The Future of HRD: Scenarios of Possibility

Abstract

Across Europe and beyond, there is a sense that we are in the midst of a fundamental shift or change unlike anything we have experienced before and we did not see enough of it coming. As a consequence, HRD and learning and development professionals risk joining the growing ranks of those who have been left behind. Schwab (2016) refers to what he sees as a " profound shift " (p. 1) as the Fourth Industrial Revolution, where a conluence of technologies such as artiicial intelligence, robotics and the internet of things provide a capability for transformation for generations to come but much disruption, unpredictability and future surprises.