SSSIAI discovery
Research study / 2026Research pack

Market context

Put the findings in context.

Current and historical market research, dated competitor developments and the implications for SSSI.

Market context is not an SSSI visibility trend.

There is one recorded SSSI baseline. The annual survey figures and dated developments below describe different populations and periods.

US training-market estimates

Spending moved unevenly.

USD billions. Annual weighted survey estimates for US organizations with 100+ employees; not SSSI's addressable market.

Global survey context

Confidence in senior leadership.

Non-executive employees, Korn Ferry annual surveys. Repeated waves, not a same-person panel; publisher methods and coverage notes apply.

Five useful themes

Follow the evidence.
Choose what fits.

T01 / Supports commercial clarity

External expertise remains part of the learning market

US training spending and external-products/services estimates moved differently across annual editions.

What this suggests for SSSI

Make a small, business-relevant engagement easy to evaluate; connect it to an existing priority rather than a vague training budget.

Source and interpretation notes

Weighted survey estimates for US organizations with 100+ employees; universes and respondents vary. Totals include payroll and many learning categories. They do not measure SSSI's addressable market or expected revenue.

Training magazine: 2023 industry report Training magazine: 2024 industry report Training magazine: 2025 industry report
T02 / Relevant to S06 and S05

Trust is part of the execution problem

Korn Ferry reports non-executive confidence in senior leadership of 68% in 2024, 65% in 2025 and 53% in 2026.

What this suggests for SSSI

Connect SSSI's leader-follower work to how decisions, priorities and difficult conversations are handled.

Source and interpretation notes

Repeated global surveys, not a same-person panel or SSSI client sample. Coverage expanded; the publisher states consistent country/eligibility rules for comparisons. Relationships reported with AI attitudes are associative, not causal.

Korn Ferry: leadership confidence analysis
T03 / Supports the existing intervention positioning

Strategic ambitions need an interpersonal foundation

DDI's 2027-edition research, published October 2026, contrasts high priorities for innovation/change/strategy with lower-ranked interpersonal needs.

What this suggests for SSSI

Explain influence, trust and communication in relation to the strategic work a leader needs to deliver. Keep the expertise; make its business relevance concrete.

Source and interpretation notes

The study was fielded April-August 2026 across 50+ countries. The edition label is not a claim about observed 2027 outcomes. HR investment intentions and leader needs are different questions; rank comparisons are not causal proof.

DDI 2027 edition: research methods DDI 2027 edition: future leadership skills DDI 2027 edition: trust
T04 / Improve explanation before considering new technology

Practice and personalization are becoming more visible in competing offers

Crucial Learning announced Replay integration in May 2026; October release notes feature an AI Practice Center. DDI announced CoLab Studio in May 2026.

What this suggests for SSSI

Show what supported practice and adaptation actually involve at SSSI. Explain practitioner judgment, feedback and application, with examples.

Source and interpretation notes

These are dated product developments, not evidence that every employer needs AI roleplay or that the products cause superior results. SSSI need not build a platform to respond.

Crucial Learning: Replay partnership Crucial Learning: platform release notes DDI: CoLab Studio announcement
T05 / Supports clearer audience and outcomes

Skills are being discussed in terms of business strategy

LinkedIn's 2025 report describes concern about the skills needed to execute strategy and links learning with wider career-development practices.

What this suggests for SSSI

Frame programme and readiness pages around the responsibility and work the participant must handle, not only the programme title.

Source and interpretation notes

Global self-report context, not measured US demand for a particular SSSI programme; it does not establish that more article volume creates bookings.

LinkedIn: Workplace Learning Report 2025

Historical context

What came before the baseline.

Company statements, external events and market evidence retain their own provenance. They are not earlier AI visibility measurements.

1970s

Research foundations

The supplied research bibliography connects the influence framework with McClelland and Berlew's work.

An expertise foundation to explain accurately; not independent validation of every current programme claim.

2012

Self-reported delivery history

The supplied homepage states that virtual programmes were first delivered in 2012.

Virtual delivery should not be presented as a newly invented capability or an independently verified current performance advantage.

September 2024

Historical external event

A WEST influence workshop names Sherri, legacy SMS and a current SSSI quiz link.

Useful identity continuity; not a current offer or an additional recommendation in this baseline.

2025

Market evidence

Training market estimates, DDI leadership research and LinkedIn learning research provide context for budget and skills decisions.

Different populations and methods; do not combine their percentages into one trend line.

May-October 2026

Competitive developments

Dated personalization/practice releases and current leadership research make business relevance, trust and application prominent themes.

A reason to communicate supported application clearly, not a reason to rebrand as an AI software provider.

3-5 November 2026

SSSI recorded baseline

40 approved questions across four products produced 160 saved primary answers and one current-name SSSI recommendation.

One observation period. No prior SSSI wave exists in this study, so no historical visibility decline is asserted.