2023 Learning & Development Industry Outlook

By Sanket Merchant, January 18, 2023

As we roll into 2023, there are potentially turbulent times on the horizon that also come with exciting opportunities for corporate learning and development teams.

Market uncertainty means L&D leaders may have to lead while under pressure and with fewer resources. But you can get ahead of the curve and ensure your function is operationally equipped to meet challenges while maximizing opportunity.

In this special industry outlook webinar recorded on January 18th at 1 pm (ET), we welcomed leading industry analysts, learning technology investors, and experienced CLOs to provide their expert insight into what to expect in the year ahead.

Moderated by Debbie Richards, Chief Technology Officer at Creative Interactive Ideas and former ATD Houston president, our expert panel included:

• Michael Rochelle, Chief Strategy Officer and Principal HCM Analyst at Brandon Hall Group
• Sanket Merchant, Partner and Lead Investor at PeakSpan Capital
• Michele Ricchiuto, Global Learning and Development Director at Allstate

Plus, you’ll learn how Cognota’s LearnOps® technology can empower you to increase and demonstrate business alignment and impact.

The session includes:

• A panel of leading industry experts to discuss the 2023 outlook of the corporate L&D industry and how to respond quickly to market conditions.
• The concept of LearnOps®: What it is and how it will influence the way L&D teams work and succeed in 2023 and beyond.
• A look at Cognota’s LearnOps® platform, including FY23 focus areas and planned roadmap investments areas of the future.

About Sanket Merchant

Sanket has worked with growth-stage software businesses throughout his career and has served on more than 12 boards. Today, he is one of four Partners on the team and leads the firm's coverage of both Cyber & Digital Infrastructure and EdTech. Sanket joined PeakSpan just one year after its founding in 2016 as one of the first non-founding team members and has helped build the firm from two investments and $150M in Fund I to more than $2.5B in AUM, backing applied AI and B2B software companies on the journey from $3–10M to beyond $50M in ARR.

Before joining PeakSpan, Sanket worked in the Technology, Media & Telecom Group at Houlihan Lokey, focusing exclusively on software M&A and private financing transactions for $10–50M ARR companies through critical inflection points such as selling, raising capital, or recapitalizing. Before Houlihan Lokey, Sanket was a Global Banking and Brokerage Group Consultant at FactSet Research Systems, where he partnered with investment banking, private equity, and venture capital clients.

Sanket holds a B.B.A. in Finance with a minor in Economics from the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Sanket jokes that he's grown up at PeakSpan, having celebrated some remarkable personal milestones while with the firm, including getting engaged and married to his wife, Mansi, purchasing their first home, and welcoming their twin boys, Aarav and Samar.