The Demographic and Occupational Factors ‘Influence over the Development Accessed Solutions

The study aims to reveal the Romanian employees and entrepreneurs’ development preferences in their current work environment, for both professional and personal skills, in terms of content and delivery method. Based on lack of relevant quantitative analysis for the outcome expected, a study was performed using an online survey, conducted in October 2024, collecting a total of 918 valid responses. The study sample consisted in individuals aged 19-55, currently employed in Romania, with at least one year of work experience. The results show that respondents benefited occasionally from development solutions, the frequency being associated with the current occupation, favorable for office roles and managerial position, rather than physical roles. An additional positive association is made with a higher level of completed studies, personal income and size of the company they work for. Classroom training remains popular, and AI-based is preferred by younger generations, while a third of the respondents use only one development option. The residentials of larger cities and middle to top managers prefer collaborative tools and learning journeys, and Gen Z prefers learning by observation, contrary to more senior employees. No association was found either between frequency and gender, residential environment, generation, or career stage, nor between type of professional development solution and gender. The study contributes to a better understanding of development solutions and their frequency usage, and the demographic and occupational factors association, for better upskilling and re-skilling programs, and thus a more efficient use of training time and budgets in an exponential changing environment.