Figure 4. Feelings Toward Work I worry about my job security. I often think of leaving my company. I may look for a new job next year. I can never catch up at work. My job is a big part of who I am. I can count on my manager. I understand my job responsibilities. Overall, I am satisfied with my job. 6% 2% 3% 2% 2% 6% 9% 8% 9% 14% 23% Strongly disagree Disagree * Maintaining a leadership position with direct reports. * Experience - years in the workforce was positively related to salary. * Working more than 40 hours per week. CAREER GOALS AND DEVELOPMENT: PATH TO THE C-SUITE Our survey also considered the career aspirations of L&D professionals, as well as the skills and development that they believe they need to grow in their careers. Becoming a director of training or chief learning officer (CLO) was the most common career goal for training professionals. However, nearly 20% of the sample indicated that they do not feel like they have the skills necessary to reach their professional development goals. Given these career goals, L&D professionals seemed to have a realistic picture of the types of skills that would best prepare them to achieve those goals, focusing on development needs in areas like business acumen and strategic alignment. The topics that were most commonly called out as professional development needs were: * Strategic alignment. * Change management. * Process optimization. * Stakeholder communication. * Competency model development. * Business acumen. NEARLY 20% OF LEARNING PROFESSIONALS INDICATED THAT THEY DO NOT FEEL LIKE THEY HAVE THE SKILLS NECESSARY TO REACH THEIR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT GOALS. Neutral 16% 15% 17% 18% 17% 29% 21% 33% 25% 13% 27% 46% 36% 45% 49% Agree Strongly agree 19% 28% 25% 30% 36% 32% 18% 24% 25% 21% 13% 18% 8% 13% TRAINING INDUSTRY MAGAZINE - SPRING 2024 I WWW.TRAININGINDUSTRY.COM/MAGAZINE 49https://www.trainingindustry.com/magazine