Education & Training
Insights

Virtual, Hybrid & Tech-Driven Solutions Educating The Workforce of Tomorrow

It is a transformational time for education, training and certification. There has been a huge drive to digital and virtual courses and qualifications. Education and training companies can now engage industry professionals anywhere, at any time. Resultantly their opex has reduced but they face challenges in increased competition, governments offering free training courses, shrinking talent pools and the gig economy offering comparable start-out incomes for industry professionals. Interestingly, there has been a continued proliferation and specification of new training content, especially around health, wellness and nutrition-based content, to meet the demands of coaches/PTs/instructors, many wanting to diversity their skills sets and add new income possibilities. On the tech side, companies are now experimenting with large language models to build more personalised offerings as a service. Industry professionals have never had so much access to skill development and career development opportunities.

We wanted to include in this section a recognition of the memory of Laurie McCartney, the president of the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) and Athletics and Fitness Association of America (AFAA), who sadly passed away in February 2023. As her
colleagues and friends so poignantly wrote, “Laurie’s kindness, stewardship and friendship are truly irreplaceable, and the entire Ascend Learning community will continue to honor her memory in everything we do moving forward”. We all, individually and collectively, celebrate Laurie, her life and her legacy.

Ross Campbell

Founder & CEO
Beyond Activ

2023 was another successful year for IFA with continued expansion and new partners across the globe. Many groups are uncomfortable with the rapid changes we are seeing in the industry, our students want more information, faster and delivered in a way that gives them the foundation for a career in fitness and wellness with a focus on training, nutrition and recovery. At IFA, finding comfort in the uncomfortable stages of rapid growth and company expansion has shown to be a positive thing. 2024 will be the year to be part of the IFA offering with updated training programs, workshops and systems to support the industry.