Survey: Only 41% of US Workers Consistently Use New Methods After Training
Training does not guarantee change at work: according to a new TalentLMS survey of 1,500 U.S. employees, only 41% consistently use a new way of working after training, while 42% still use tools or processes their manager thinks they have replaced. The company calls the pattern "habit hugging."
- TalentLMS surveyed 1,500 U.S. employees for its report on "habit hugging."
- Only 41% consistently use a new way of working after training, while 42% still use tools or processes their manager thinks they have replaced.
- Among AI-trained employees, 36% sometimes revert to old ways and 12% work without AI.
- 49% of employees adopt new methods consistently when managers model them, versus 22% when managers do not.
- 41% say their company tracks training completion, but only 36% say it checks whether learning is used.
What "habit hugging" means
TalentLMS, an employee training platform, published the report Habit hugging: When old habits block new ways of working. The company uses the term to describe holding onto familiar ways of working while jobs keep changing, expectations rise and AI rewrites how work gets done.
According to the survey, 65% of employees say breaking old work habits is harder than learning new ones. Adoption is rarely a clean switch: 73% of employees mix old and new ways of working to get the job done, and 29% say their company is investing in tools they have quietly stopped using.
Pressure also plays a role. Almost half of employees (48%) feel rushed to adopt new ways of working, and 60% say that at their company, getting results matters more than using the new way.
AI training does not guarantee AI use
The gap extends to AI. Among employees who were trained to use AI for work tasks, 36% sometimes revert to old ways of working, and 12% continue working without AI, according to the report.
Dimitris Tsingos, CEO at Epignosis, the parent company of TalentLMS, said that "AI training alone isn't enough to make new ways of working stick." He argued that organizations need to "move beyond training completion and help employees put what they've learned into practice." In his view, the real opportunity with AI is to free up human time and brainpower for higher-value work such as judgment, leadership and problem-solving.
Managers and measurement
The survey points to managers as a key factor. When managers use the new ways of working they expect employees to follow, 49% of employees consistently adopt them. When managers do not, the figure falls to 22%.
Measurement is another weak spot. While 41% of employees say their company tracks training completion, only 36% say it checks whether they are using what they learned. TalentLMS notes that completion confirms training happened, but looking at what happens afterward shows whether learning reaches the workday.
- 50% of employees say making the new way part of their everyday workflow would help new behaviors stick.
- 49% point to more opportunities to practice.
What it means for employers
The findings suggest that finishing a course is not the same as changing how work is done. Based on the survey, companies that want training to pay off may need to look beyond completion rates, check whether employees apply new skills, and have managers use the new methods themselves. The full report is available on the TalentLMS website.
As with any vendor-commissioned research, the figures reflect the company's own survey of U.S. employees and are presented here as TalentLMS's findings.
