Daniela Oliboni, CEO Hermes Consulting and Lucia Grazi, Managing Partner Hermes Consulting
From skills to awareness, from performance to presence: a new concept of transformative learning is taking shape. It does not mould, shape or adapt. It recognises, awakens and restores meaning. And perhaps, for the first time, it truly liberates.
We live in a time when everything must be constantly updated: technologies, roles, languages. Professional training has become a buzzword, but also an exhausting one. We hear about upskilling, reskilling and the future of work. Yet a new need is quietly growing: to be before doing, to feel before knowing, to find oneself before reinventing oneself.
A new approach to corporate learning is emerging. It is no longer satisfied with simply transferring skills, but aims to transform: to bring people back into contact with who they are, even before what they know how to do.
Never before has there been so much talk about skills to update. New rankings point out which skills will disappear and which will become indispensable.
The risk? That the concept of reskilling, designed to support change, turns into a source of collective anxiety.
According to the 57th Censis Report, more than 60% of Italians, and 65% of young people, experience a deep sense of insecurity in the face of unexpected changes in work and society. In this landscape, transformative learning becomes even more essential.
Returning to the human essence
The answer comes not only from the future, but from our roots. Working on the essence of the human being—self-awareness, quality of relationships, authentic presence—means turning transformative learning into an ally to navigate complexity.
From technique to inner strength
Technical skills can be taught; inner strength must be cultivated. Transformative learning reconnects people with their own integrity: motivation, vision, coherence. These are the invisible foundations of behaviour.
A manager can learn the techniques of inclusive leadership, but if deep down they still believe that “controlling everything” is necessary to feel secure, that skill will remain sterile.
The central role of the body and emotions
Another return is underway: the body is taking centre stage again. Emotions are not obstacles, but a compass for transformation.
According to the HR Innovation Practice Observatory of the Politecnico di Milano, only a minority of Italian organisations include psycho-emotional well-being practices in their managerial development programmes. Where this happens, employee engagement increases significantly.
When transformative learning opens up to the body, emotions and breath, people learn with every fibre of their being.
A new grammar: learning with every fibre of our being
It all begins with a radical choice: placing the human being at the centre in their entirety. Not just the role. Not just the performance. But the person.
Training is no longer just about transferring content: it is about generating consciousness. It means creating spaces where body, emotions and mind are allies in authentic learning.
Conclusion
Younger generations are asking for this, even quietly. More experienced professionals desire it using different words. Transformative learning does not serve the system; it regenerates it. It does not mould; it awakens. It does not impose; it guides.
A new grammar of learning is emerging: built on care, listening, storytelling and authenticity. Learning that guides each person along their journey with meaning and truth.
Read the article published in Harvard Business Review – Mondo Formazione:
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