How Assessments Help Higher Ed Build a Smarter Workforce

Higher education institutions face complex challenges in retaining top-tier talent in a tight labor market while addressing skills gaps across their workforce. Addressing challenges such as an aging academic workforce and difficulty recruiting and retaining front-line staff requires a learning and development (L&D) program that spans across the entire employee life cycle. When workforce development goals align with organizational priorities, L&D becomes more than just an HR function — it transforms into a strategic powerhouse of talent mobility, engagement, and retention.

Precision is required to identify the right training and leadership needs. This is where assessment tools such as SHRM’s Applied Skills & Knowledge Assessment (ASKA) can offer value. ASKA pinpoints real skills gaps within HR teams and lays a foundation for creating targeted development plans, driving both individual performance and institutional success. 

This cohesive integration of L&D strategy, skills assessment, and customized development paves the way for competitive advantage while emphasizing long-term organizational growth. 

Why Learning and Development Is an Organizational Imperative 

According to the SHRM 2025 Employee Benefits Survey, formal training provided by government and education employers has seen a rise in adoption — from 72% in 2021 to 82% in 2025 for developing new skills and from 76% to 82% during the same time frame for maintaining current skills. This shift reflects an important trend: Employees are increasingly prioritizing career growth, and organizations willing to meet these expectations can gain a competitive edge in recruitment and retention. 

Employee interest in career growth demonstrates the importance of continuous learning opportunities, but what does L&D mean for the bottom line? In an industry like education, where budgets can be tight, the return on investment of effective training can be measured in cost savings from turnover. These savings are crucial in this moment, when voluntary turnover rates remain higher than they were before the pandemic. The median voluntary turnover rate has held steady at 12% since 2022, three points above pandemic levels, according to SHRM’s 2025 CHRO Benchmarking data brief.  

This stabilization points to the need for higher education institutions to address talent vacancies through attraction and recruitment efforts. It also supports the effort to encourage L&D at all stages of the employee life cycle, maximizing opportunities for employee experience and engagement, which account for 42% of turnover intent, according to SHRM’s The Case for Employee Experience report. 

To embed L&D at every stage of the employee life cycle, institutions should look to build an ecosystem rather than a single pathway.

Related Article: Reimagining HR Partnerships in Higher Education

Building an Effective L&D Ecosystem 

Developing a robust L&D strategy that spans from recruitment to retention requires intentionality and the use of tools that can bridge current gaps. A tool like ASKA should sit as the cornerstone while three pillars — alignment, flexibility, and elevation — guide the integration of workforce development into the employee life cycle.

1. Align L&D with Organizational Goals 

One of the key reasons why L&D programs fall short is their disconnection from institutional priorities. This misalignment can show up in unused training budgets, disengaged learners, or duplicated efforts to educate employees. To make training initiatives impactful, HR and leadership must strategically map employee performance goals to broader organizational objectives. 

Actionable Tip with ASKA: 

The Team Leader Report generated by ASKA provides ranked skills gaps and SHRM Behavioral and Technical Competency assessments for your teams. This gives leaders a clear framework for aligning training efforts directly with institutional priorities like faculty retention or technology optimization. As a result, leaders can make decisions faster and be more strategic about budget allocation.

2. Offer Flexible and Diverse Training Formats 

Different teams and functions demand different approaches to learning. E-learning platforms and asynchronous webinars may work well for administrative staff, while peer mentorship or on-the-job programs suit hands-on roles like lab technicians or facilities managers. 

Additionally, hybrid work environments require mobile-friendly and flexible content delivery, ensuring every employee can access upskilling opportunities without disruption. 

Actionable Tip with ASKA: 

ASKA’s Individual Assessment Reports identify specific competencies that need development across behavioral and technical areas. Their focus on situational judgment items allows organizations to tailor content for operational or strategic employees, ensuring learning formats support their daily needs.

3. Elevate L&D as a Recruitment and Retention Tool 

L&D is a recruitment differentiator in a crowded market. Potential hires increasingly assess organizations’ long-term investment in their professional growth. In fact, 66% of emerging professionals rank professional development opportunities as “very important,” according to SHRM’s Expectations and Realities: Preparing the Next Generation of Talent for the World of Work report. 

L&D influences retention, too. While about a third of emerging professionals said they expect to stay at their next or current job for four years or long, twice as many said they would stay beyond the four-year mark if given consistent opportunities to develop in-demand skills, the SHRM report found.

Clear pathways for advancement and development can significantly differentiate institutions in competitive hiring markets.  

Actionable Tip with ASKA: 

Use ASKA’s Cohort Learning Recommendations to design and promote professional development journeys during the hiring process. Incorporate employee testimonials and success stories into job advertisements and career pages, showcasing current staff who advanced via employer-funded certifications or custom L&D programs. Internal communication channels such as email announcements and posts on the organizational intranet can also reinforce visibility.

What’s Next for Higher Education Leaders? 

The skills gap isn’t disappearing anytime soon, but your organization’s ability to address it is stronger than you think. No matter the starting point, organizations can look to align L&D with organizational goals, adding flexibility and diversity to learning paths, and leveraging development as an instrument to improve recruiting as well as retention.  

Together, these steps combine to create an ecosystem of learning in higher education. Embedding these effective L&D strategies into the employee life cycle and leveraging assessment tools such as ASKA, allows organizations to unlock their workforce’s full potential.

Assessment: Bring ASKA to Your Team