From Ladder to Lattice: How AI Is Redefining Workforce Growth

Employee ambition isn’t declining. But traditional growth systems can’t keep pace with how skills are built today.

From Career Latter to Career Lattice: Litmos Data Report Reveals New Insights on the Evolution of Employee Performance, Readiness, and Retention

In December 2025, Litmos surveyed employees and HR leaders to understand how workforce growth is evolving inside modern organizations.

The results point to a structural shift in how skills are developed, how employee performance is measured, and how career progress actually happens.

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This isn’t a culture trend.
It’s an operating model challenge.

When leaders lack visibility into workforce capability, growth defaults to outdated signals — tenure, course completion, annual cycles — instead of demonstrated skill and measurable contribution. The result? Faster skill development without career mobility, less predictable advancement opportunities, misalignment between employee recognition and performance, and rising employee frustration and attrition.

Employees don’t want less structure — they want clearer guidance to shape their careers. 19% worry that unclear career paths mean no path at all. 33% feel hesitant to build personalized career paths without guidance. 48% are still excited to build personalized career paths (when given an active role)

Leading organizations are responding differently.

In 2026 and beyond, employee performance won’t improve by delivering more training alone. It will improve when organizations can turn learning into measurable workforce capability.

Discover how leading organizations are making workforce capability visible in real time, connecting learning directly to employee performance outcomes, redesigning recognition, and using AI to accelerate speed-to-application. Download the report today!