This annual forum brought together the leaders shaping the skills economy. Dive into the key takeaways—and register now to continue the conversation at September’s Back to School Summit.
In late March, over 350 senior leaders from government, education, philanthropy, and industry came together in Washington, D.C. for Global Skills Week—HolonIQ’s flagship forum on the future of learning, work, and economic opportunity.
With leaders from across the sector coming together for the first time at the event, the summit served as a working platform for bold ideas, shared strategies, and cross-sector coordination. Across plenaries, skills councils, and hands-on workshops, three themes stood out: the shift from degrees to demonstrable skills, the emergence of AI as a contributor to core learning infrastructure, and the rise of industry-led education-to-employment strategies.
From Degrees to Skills: Realigning Education for Economic Opportunity
The week opened with a sharp view of a system in transition: AI, automation, and demographic shifts are pressuring economies to rethink the traditional degree pipeline. The data is clear: 2.5M U.S. jobs are at high risk of automation and $500B+ in new capital is targeting upskilling and reskilling. In response, employers and governments are starting to codify skills-first hiring policies, while institutions adapt by embedding micro-credentials and career navigation services into their offerings.
The Future of Skills & Work Forum led with a standout panel on the future of skills and economic opportunity, leaders from Blackstone Charitable Foundation, Jobs for the Future, ASA, and the American Council on Education called for rethinking credentials and embedding career readiness from an earlier age. Following the panel, UVA and WGU added real-world texture through their work on aligning institutional models with employer demand, surfacing new approaches to advising, program design, and the value of short-term credentials.Also convening during the week, the Early Career Navigation Council, hosted by America Student Assistance, zeroed in on fragmented pathways for young people entering the workforce. Discussions emphasized real-time labor data, digital career platforms, and work-based learning models. Across these conversations, participants called for transparent, interoperable short term credentials and wraparound supports that meet learners where they are. From middle school career exploration to the rewiring of credential ecosystems, the next era of economic opportunity could be built on verified skills.
2025 Back to School Summit
Networking, ideas, connections and partnership building with 600 of education’s most senior global leaders in New York, September 09-11, 2025
Generative AI moved from theory to application across the week. In plenary sessions and workshops, AI was framed not just as a disruptor, but as a foundational layer of the new learning ecosystem.
The AI & Digital Skills Council, co-hosted by HolonIQ and BCG, explored global readiness gaps, institutional innovation, and the urgent need for scalable digital infrastructure. While leading institutions are embracing AI-native learning environments, many remain constrained by outdated systems and limited literacy among staff and policymakers.
Workshops like AWS’s PartyRock and OpenAI’s Education in Action demonstrated real-world use cases such as advising bots, curriculum co-pilots, and AI-supported student assistants. The emphasis wasn’t just on products, but on institutional models, secure deployments, governance frameworks, and coalition-building. American University’s Kogod School of Business shared its full-campus implementation model—revamping over 40 courses and establishing governance structures for responsible use. AI is becoming essential to core infrastructure, and leaders believe they are laying the foundation for long-term resilience and relevance for advancing a tech-enabled learning future.
Climate, Industry, and the Skills That Scale
The skills economy is also being shaped by national competitiveness, climate adaptation, and regional workforce transformation.
The Green Skills Council, hosted by IFC, highlighted how green jobs are outpacing traditional training pipelines, and how initiatives like Jobs for the Future’s CREST are successfully placing tens of thousands of workers into climate-aligned roles. The call to action: national green taxonomies, credential alignment, and incentives for inclusive transitions.
In the Advanced Manufacturing Council, regional case studies from Montana to Alabama showed how local coalitions are retooling workforce systems. Sim labs, employer-led consortia, and stackable credentials are anchoring new models for industrial talent development. And global players like Intel are setting targets to upskill millions through public-private collaboration.
From green energy to advanced manufacturing, the Forum’s sessions emphasized the need for integrated systems of training, policy, and employer alignment. The World Bank and IFC outlined investment strategies to drive green upskilling in emerging economies, while the University of Alabama showcased the Talent Triad, a statewide initiative linking credential data, employer needs, and economic development in a single, outcomes-focused model. Climate and industry aren’t niche topics; they’re central to economic strategy, and skills are the enabler.
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