Business Insights Journal Interview with Arthur Valentine, President, Assessment and Qualifications and CEO, Pearson US

Arthur Valentine, President of Assessment & Qualifications and CEO of Pearson U.S., shares insights on evolving careers, AI-driven skills, and the future of learning.

Welcome to the Business Insights Journal Arthur. We’re honored to have you with us to discuss the changing landscape of careers, learning, and skills development.

1.To begin, can you please share a bit about your professional journey and what led you to your dual role at Pearson as President of Assessment and Qualifications and CEO of Pearson US?
After 15 years in the technology field, I moved into the assessments –starting with licensure testing for regulated professions like insurance and real estate. I was immediately energized by the idea of playing a direct role in the advancement of people’s learning and their career. Since then, my responsibilities have grown to encompass both a global portfolio of assessments and a leadership role in the U.S. market. As President of Assessment and Qualifications, I help shape solutions that support learners at every stage of life, from K–12 and Clinical assessments to certifications and credentials that enable career advancement. As CEO of Pearson U.S., I represent our U.S. business, championing the impact we make across education and employment.
Today, someone takes a career-boosting exam powered by Pearson every 1.5 seconds. That scale of impact creates a deep sense of obligation to get it right and is deeply rewarding.

2.The traditional idea of a linear career path is evolving. From your perspective, how is this concept changing, and what should individuals be doing to adapt?
I’m in dialog with a family member in her late 20s, who is right in the midst of this reality. She’s had a wonderful three years in her first job (which happens to be in education). Her own skills using technology and communicating outcomes have developed rapidly, and she is pursuing extra learning to develop more knowledge in software. This is exactly the type of evolution that can inspire a career change.

The underlying skills needed to excel in jobs is changing so fast that it’s harder to draw that straight-line career progression. And honestly, it’s no longer a line or the familiar “career ladder” at all. It’s more like a winding journey influenced by the dynamic forces in play at the moment.

While we may not know exactly where this will take us, what we do know is that learning to learn-–and being skilled with AI (i.e., the ability to leverage AI tools to enhance work, automate tasks, or gain new insights) – is at the heart of an individual’s ability to thrive. The professionals succeeding today aren’t necessarily those who followed a predetermined path, but those who developed learning agility and the capacity to reinvent themselves.

My advice to help people prepare and adapt for today’s workforce is straightforward: Embrace the dynamism and become a lifelong learner. Invest in transferrable skills that will support lots of different jobs–such as critical thinking, problem solving, and collaboration–and commit to continuous learning. Demonstrate your capabilities with a collection of certifications, relevant project work, or a strong portfolio that showcases your ability to pivot and adapt to new roles and technologies.
There’s a lot of anxiety in the general workforce about the impact of AI on peoples’ job. I’m a big believer in the mantra, “You’re not going to lose your job to AI. You’re going to lose your job to someone who knows how to use AI.” This insight sums up modern career resilience. Beyond specific tools, it’s about developing the metacognitive ability–that skill of ‘learning how to learn’–to adapt as technology and industries transform.

3.With AI and automation transforming the workforce, what types of skills do you see gaining the most value—and how can people stay ahead?
AI and automation are reshaping entire industries, so it is not surprising that the skills employers value are also fundamentally shifting. Beyond a new set of technical requirements, this is about reimagining and connecting with what makes us valuable in the future economy.

The stand-out skills and the ones we’re seeing gain the most value today are adaptability, nimble use of technology, and, perhaps most crucially, learning how to learn.

As a professional in the assessment space, I can’t emphasize the value of certifications enough. Pursue continuous learning through certifications, micro credentials, and digital badges. Create a visible, verifiable record of your evolving capabilities. With the half-life of skills shrinking dramatically, the ability to demonstrate current competencies will increasingly set job candidates apart in a competitive landscape. Pearson’s recent Value of IT Certification report also shows that certification candidates reported promotions, salary increases, and greater confidence to go after new job opportunities. While the report focused on IT pros, this trend can be seen in other fields as well.

Next, don’t just theorize about emerging technologies—experiment with them regularly. There’s a wealth of learning materials available—much of it free—waiting to be explored. Dive into chatbots, engage with Co-Pilot or Gemini or Claude or your favorite, and build these powerful tools into your day-to-day workflow. The comfort and fluency you’ll develop might arrive more quickly than you’d expect, and that practical knowledge creates immediate value.

It’s also worth noting that our Pearson Skills Map of the U.S. revealed that while virtually all jobs are becoming ‘tech jobs’ in some way, the demand for distinctly human skills—communication, customer service, teamwork—isn’t diminishing; it’s intensifying. In the future of work, these aren’t ’soft’ in importance—they’re essential foundations that complement technology and can be supported and amplified by technology.

4.Many professionals feel that their education hasn’t equipped them for real career advancement. Why do you think that disconnect exists, and how can it be addressed?
This is a very hot topic in education right now, and for good reason. People are asking: What’s the best route to a fulfilling, future-focused career? Is it college? Career and technical education (CTE)? Apprenticeships? The short answer is: yes — all of the above.

The more nuanced answer starts with recognizing that the traditional college-bound model promoted throughout K–12 no longer reflects the realities of today’s learners or the demands of tomorrow’s workforce.

Pearson CEO Omar Abbosh describes this one-size-fits-all approach–where students progress together at a similar pace and learn a fixed set of skills–as an educational ’conveyor belt.’

To truly prepare people for meaningful, future-ready careers, we need to move toward a more personalized model of learning. That means giving learners more control over what they learn, when they learn it, and how they apply it. It means shorter, fit-for-purpose credentials that are aligned with real-world needs, and targeted learning experiences that build specific, demonstrable skills. It also means more internships, mentorships, apprenticeships–and expanding access to CTE and other career-aligned pathways, not as replacements for college, but as additional options that reflect the different ways people learn and grow.

We’re already seeing what this looks like in practice. I recently wrote about a high school in Philadelphia where every senior in the welding program graduated with a job offer — including one student who secured a $68k job offer before even finishing school. This is what can happen when education is aligned with opportunity: learners are empowered, employers are engaged, and the system strives to work for everyone.

5.We’re seeing a growing demand for shorter, more targeted learning formats like certifications and microcredentials. What do you believe is driving this trend?
This year at the World Economic Forum, Pearson released its “Lost in Transition: Fixing the ‘Learn to Earn’ Skills Gap” report. One of the most important findings was about what’s lost when people make significant career transitions. This could be transitioning from school to work or change due to layoffs or automation. These transition periods–times when people could be learning–have a huge economic impact.

Our research found that inefficient career transitions and related learning gaps cost the U.S. economy $1.1 trillion per year. By shortening the transition from formal education to work by just six weeks, the U.S. could gain $40 billion annually.

I think that’s why we’re seeing momentum behind shorter, more targeted learning formats. Certifications and micro credentials can offer faster, more flexible ways for people to upskill, stay relevant, and enter or re-enter the workforce with confidence.

6.How do you see the role of formal education changing as people move across jobs and even industries over the course of their lives?
While traditional four-year degrees aren’t the only path for most professions, they still offer a strong foundation for many learners. The broad exposure to subjects and ideas, plus the social development of a traditional higher education experience, remain invaluable for many. But for those looking to enter the workforce quickly or pivot into new roles or industries, options like micro credentials and certifications are essential. These shorter, targeted programs give people the flexibility to build skills on their own terms—and keep learning as their careers evolve.

7.What should someone entering the workforce today be doing differently than someone who started 10 or 20 years ago?
Learn to learn. Learn AI. Experiment with tech all the time.

8.On a personal level, how do you approach your own learning and strategy development to remain effective in such a fast-changing education and workforce environment?
Experiment, experiment, experiment.

At Pearson, we’ve built AI toolboxes that give our people access to multiple chatbots and content generation tools. While our customer-facing work is tightly governed by policy, we want our teams to try a lot of AI tools in their daily work. Our senior executive team is currently completing a two-month training course to get the most of our AI, including Co-Pilot and other tools. We believe that we can’t lead on AI if we’re not using it ourselves.

And I bring this mindset home, too. My wife and I (well, mostly her) recently had the joyful occasion of our son’s wedding. AI chatbots were a big Saturday/Sunday topic in the planning stages-–they helped with invitation creation, seating charts (a fraught subject!), after-party menu planning, and lots of other details.

9.What advice would you offer to someone who feels professionally stuck but doesn’t know what type of learning or skill development would help unlock their next opportunity?
Get curious and do your research! Open your browser or chatbot (they’re becoming the same thing) and start asking questions. What skills are in demand in the roles you’re interested in? What are people in your field learning right now? The information is out there, more than ever, but you have to curate it. Don’t wait for someone to hand you a roadmap. Build your own.

10.Finally, looking ahead to the next decade, how do you see the relationship between learning and work continuing to evolve—and what’s one insight you’d like readers to walk away with?
Learning will increasingly be baked into the job. Formal training will still play a role, but more and more, learning will happen in the moment—as part of the work itself. The tools we use every day will help us pick up new skills, spot areas where we need to grow, and guide us toward what’s next. In that world, learning isn’t something you pause to do—it’s something you’re doing all the time.