A sense of exuberant optimism

27 July 2026

Andrew Crisp examines some of the emerging corporate data from the upcoming new report, ‘The future of lifelong and executive education’.

Phew, the pandemic is over; let’s get on with life.  No doubt a refrain heard in much of the world a few years ago, but the promise has perhaps not lived up to reality.  Coming out of the pandemic, AI was beginning to take off in a meaningful way, and businesses saw an opportunity to move quickly.  At least, that’s what the data said from the CarringtonCrisp study, ‘The future of lifelong and executive education’ in 2023.

Two-thirds (67%) of employers expected their budget for learning and development to increase.  However, in the third round of our study on lifelong and executive education, to be published in August, only 38% of learning and development professionals had recorded budget increases in the past two years. 

So, what went wrong?  The continuing war in Ukraine and its impact on energy prices, the tariff regime of the Trump administration and growing investment in AI have produced a drag on business spending for learning and development, with growth not moving forward at the pace expected.  More still saw budgets increasing rather than decreasing over the past two years, often driven by the need to develop AI skills, but not at the pace expected. 

The conflict in the Middle East in recent months seems to have tempered expectations of growth in the next two years, with findings from the new study suggesting more than half (53%) of employers in 2026 expect budget growth in the next two years.  A new question in 2026 strikes a realistic note, with limited budget identified as the main barrier to investment in learning and development.

However, future predictions are not identical around the world.  In both the UAE and Saudi Arabia, more than 70% of employers expect budget growth in the next two years.  Although conflict has caused disruption, it has also driven domestic capacity growth in some sectors due to supply chain issues and increased oil prices during the conflict, which have driven unexpected government surpluses.

In India, expectations are even greater with more than 8 in 10 employers believing their budgets for learning and development will grow in the next two years.  By contrast, fewer than half of the employers from the UK, USA and Germany forecast budget increases in the next two years, although all have more expecting increases than decreases.

For business schools and universities considering how to grow their executive education portfolios, an important consideration is understanding businesses and their likely demand.  Budget is one part of the equation and doesn’t always mean the cheapest option; value for money and impact are also key considerations.

For more details on the findings from the new report ‘The future of lifelong and executive education ’, visit our website again in August or see the story in the next newsletter.

Photo by Jobert Enamno