Shaping the Future of Work, the Workplace and the Workforce

Author: Prithvi Shergill CEO – Tomorrow, Partner – entomo

January 8, 2025

In today's rapidly evolving digital landscape, forward-thinking enterprises are actively seeding new ideas, nurturing them through strategic investments, and harvesting the benefits of innovation. As Tomorrow @entomo has redefined its mission to generate business value by enhancing creativity and capability within and beyond the entomo ecosystem, it is investing in:

Sharing Thought Leadership

Prithvi Shergill, CEO of Tomorrow, has prioritized personal capacity to disseminate emerging thought leadership that fosters continuous learning. By sharing insights on current trends and best practices, he aims to engage teams and individuals in navigating the complexities of digital transformation.

Inspiring Ideas

Recognizing the importance of co-creation, Tomorrow will support its community of collaborators by facilitating the exchange of information leading to new ideas among industry stakeholders. Through its platform, Tomorrow enables Prithvi and its team members as well as others within the entomo ecosystem to share experiences, that shape solutions to address contemporary challenges in future ways of working. This collaborative approach fosters an inclusive culture and effectively leverages technology to amplify innovation.

Investing in Innovation

To reset, reinvent, and reimagine new ways of working, Tomorrow translates thought leadership into actionable ideas and investments that reshape work, workplaces, and workforces. By utilizing frontier technologies in automation, advanced analytics, behavioral science, and artificial intelligence (AI), Tomorrow enhances unique products and platform-powered solutions within the entomo ecosystem to:

• Enhance Workforce Contribution: Streamlining processes to boost individual and collective productivity.
• Ensure Workplace Collaboration: Enabling seamless communication and cooperation among team members.
• Elevate Work Capabilities: Developing skills and competencies to meet evolving industry demands.

Through a commitment to facilitating information exchange by sharing such thought leadership, inspiring ideas, and making strategic investments, we encourage our partners and clients to be well-positioned to build enterprises of tomorrow.

Shaping the Future of the Indian Workforce: Inside a Blueprint for National Skilling and Employment

India is at a pivotal juncture in its economic and workforce transformation journey. With over 65% of its population under 35 years old, the country has a rare demographic advantage. However, to unlock its full potential, India needs a robust framework to skill its workforce, prepare for future economic demands, and address existing systemic inefficiencies. There is a need for a National Skilling and Employment Agenda (NSEA), a blueprint built on the principles of Reform, Perform, and Transform.

A Vision for a Skilled India

An NSEA has the potential to be a bold initiative that seeks to unify and modernize the skilling ecosystem in India. Its three pillars—Reform, Perform, and Transform—are designed to tackle the country’s most pressing workforce challenges:

• Reform: Modernize education and training systems by addressing outdated structures and aligning vocational training with industry needs.
• Perform: Enhance workforce competence and job placement through practical, hands-on training and tailored career development programs.
• Transform: Future-proof the workforce by embedding digital literacy, innovation-driven skills, and lifelong learning into the skilling framework.

This structured approach is not just about improving current systems—it’s about building a resilient, adaptable workforce capable of thriving in an ever-evolving global economy.

Key Challenges in India’s Skilling Landscape

Despite significant progress under initiatives like Skill India, India’s skilling ecosystem faces notable gaps:

1. Fragmented Implementation: Programs are spread across multiple agencies and ministries, creating inefficiencies and diluted focus.
2. Industry-Academic Mismatch: Existing skilling programs often fail to reflect the dynamic needs of industries.
3. Rural-Urban Divide: Rural areas struggle with access to quality training and infrastructure, deepening inequalities.
4. Lack of Lifelong Learning Pathways: Skilling is often short-term and does not accommodate continuous career development.
5. Digital Skills Gap: Advanced digital competencies like AI, data science, and cloud computing remain underdeveloped in the existing frameworks.

These challenges have limited the impact of otherwise well-intentioned programs. Addressing them requires a comprehensive and collaborative effort informed by global best practices.

Bridging the Gaps with Global Insights

The proposed NSEA can draw inspiration from successful models worldwide, aligning with international practices to ensure relevance and scalability such as:

• Singapore’s SkillsFuture Framework: By integrating modular and lifelong learning, Singapore has created a workforce that evolves with industry demands. India can adopt a Unified Skill Qualification Framework (USQF) to standardize learning pathways and recognize prior learning experiences.
• Germany’s Dual Apprenticeship Model: Combining classroom education with on-the-job training, Germany ensures job readiness. A similar Unified National Apprenticeship Model (UNAM) in India could connect industry needs with academic training, fostering real-world skills.
• China’s Digital Literacy Campaigns: Through initiatives like “Internet Plus,” China has empowered its rural population with digital tools. India’s National Digital Literacy Mission (NDLM) can replicate this to bridge the urban-rural divide and promote rural economic growth.

Research done in partnership with Unearth Insight www.unearthinsight.com show how these models highlight the importance of integrating data-driven decision-making, private-sector partnerships, and technology-enabled training to build a future-ready workforce.

Path to Impact: Aligning Skills with Market Needs

At the heart of the NSEA proposed is the recognition that skilling must align with market realities to create a meaningful impact. Industry-specific skilling hubs, data-backed program monitoring, and agile learning platforms are critical components of this transformation. India’s skilling ecosystem must shift from a static, one-size-fits-all approach to a dynamic, flexible framework that evolves with market trends.

This transformation is not just about numbers—it’s about ensuring every individual has access to skills that make them employable, productive, and prepared for future economic shifts.

What’s Next in the Series

This article marks the beginning of the Tomorrow Think-Tank series, where we will dive deeper into the lessons and best practices India can learn from global leaders in workforce transformation.

Over the next set of articles, we’ll explore:

1. Singapore: How its SkillsFuture program fosters lifelong learning and modular skilling.
2. United States: The role of Workforce Innovation Programs in reskilling mid-career professionals for emerging industries.
3. China: Strategies for bridging the urban-rural divide with digital literacy campaigns.
4. Nordic Countries: The emphasis on workforce flexibility and continuous skill development.
5. United Kingdom: Bridging Skill Gaps in India: Insights from the UK’s Skills Bootcamps and Data-Driven Models
6. Germany: The Dual Apprenticeship Model and Industry Partnerships: Germany’s Blueprint for Sustainable Skilling in India
7. Indonesia: Indonesia’s Workforce Revolution: Lessons from a Nation Bridging Skills and Industry
8. Philippines: The Philippines’ Workforce Playbook: Bridging Skills, Certification, and Opportunity
9. Thailand: Thailand 4.0: Building a Workforce for Innovation and Resilience

We will then bring this together as A Unified Vision for India - crafting a cohesive, inclusive skilling framework that addresses regional disparities and future economic demands.

Each article will explore actionable insights, providing a roadmap for transformative change in India’s skilling landscape.