The Learning and Development Innovation Award
This category is for the systems that build capability — training, skilling, assessment and the leadership programmes that decide what a workforce can do next. It covers content, delivery and the measurement that shows something actually changed.
- Independent jury
- 250
- Innovations evaluated
- 4,500+
- Star rating
- 1–5
- Running since
- 2010
Academics, scientists, officials, investors
Across seventeen editions
Every nominee earns an AGBA Innovation Star
India’s longest-running innovation award
Three categories sit close to data. This is the one about method and evidence.
Most nominations that fail here fail because they were in the wrong category. Read across before you write anything.
Innovation in Learning and Development
Training, skilling and capability building, and the measurement that shows what changed.
This category
Innovation in HR
Hiring, workforce management, employee experience and the automation reshaping how work is organised.
Innovation in Digital Transformation
Enterprise-wide change where process, platform and people move together.
Who should enter
- Training and capability programmes with evidence of changed performance, not only completion
- Skilling at scale for frontline, field or partner networks
- Leadership development and succession programmes with measured outcomes
- Learning platforms, content engines, and simulation or immersive training
- Assessment, certification and credentialing systems that employers actually trust
What this award recognises is capability that persists after the programme ends — work done differently, a role filled internally, a credential an employer trusts. Completion rates on their own do not qualify.
If the innovation is in hiring, workforce management or HR operations, enter Innovation in HR. If it is an enterprise-wide change programme, enter Innovation in Digital Transformation.
What the jury looks for
- Problem definition & market opportunityWhether the innovation solves a real problem, backed by evidence and a measurable impact on its target audience.
- InnovativenessNovelty and uniqueness — new technology, functionality or business model — measured against what already exists, including IP.
- Market potential & impactSize and growth of the addressable market, competitive landscape, and scalability across geographies.
- Social impact & sustainabilityContribution to society and the environment, including social responsibility and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
These are the same four criteria — problem definition, innovativeness, market impact and social/sustainability impact — used to assess every category. In this category the jury also weighs methodological rigour — including what you did to avoid fooling yourselves — the decision that changed as a result and what it was worth, the reproducibility and honesty of the evaluation, and the engineering quality of the data foundation underneath. Read the full evaluation criteria.
Who judges this category
Nominations are assessed by an independent jury, not by the organisers. Jurors are matched to the categories where their expertise lies. These are among those who read learning, skilling and capability entries.
Mr. Neelmani SinghGroup Head of Learning, Aditya Birla Group; Head, Gyanodaya
Dr. Abhijit GangopadhyayDean, Aegis School of Data Science & Cyber Security
Mr. Bhupesh DaheriaCEO, Aegis School of Data Science & Cyber Security
Dr. Vinay KulkarniAdjunct Professor, IIT Bombay; Director and Mentor, Aegis School of Business
Mr Arvind BaliCEO, Telecom Sector Skill Council
Mr Shrikant SinhaCEO, Telangana Academy for Skills & Knowledge (TASK)
Ms. Anju Sharma, IASPrincipal Secretary, Labour, Employment and Skill Department, Government of Gujarat
Mr. Nikunj SanghiFormer Chairman, Automotive Skills Development CouncilEight of roughly 250. The full panel spans the IITs, the IIMs, the IIITs, the Indian School of Business, national and state skill councils, the Department of Science & Technology, MeitY and CERT-In. See the full jury panel.
Capability on the podium
Education and Learning and Development have been recognised, under one name or another, since the very first edition. These are the winners photographed at the ceremony, most recent first.
Recent editions
Earlier editions
Previous winners
Learning and Development became a category in its own right at the 15th edition; before that, capability building was recognised under the education categories. The complete edition by edition record sits in the winners archive.
Category names have changed across editions as the field has moved; the rows above are the closest equivalents in the published record. See the winners archive for the full 1st–16th edition history.
What happens after you submit
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Stage one · nowNomination registration
Register your company and category through the nomination process, then complete the detailed nomination form and processing fee.
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Stage twoJury presentation
Present the innovation to the jury and take questions. Jurors score each entry against the four evaluation criteria and rank it within its category.
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Stage threeStar Certification
Nominees are also assessed for AGBA Innovation Star Certification, an independent maturity rating alongside the category judging.
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Stage fourFinalists announced
Once every category has been evaluated, finalists are announced on the website ahead of the ceremony.
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Stage fiveAward ceremony
Winners are honoured on 18 February 2027 at Hotel Ashoka, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi.
Before you write your nomination
Is an internal training programme eligible without a product?
Yes. Internal capability and leadership programmes are welcome and are judged on the same criteria as commercial platforms.
How much weight do completion numbers carry?
Little on their own. Completion shows reach, not capability. The panel looks for changed performance — time to competence, internal fill rates, safety or quality outcomes, or a credential employers act on.
Does leadership development belong here?
Yes. Succession, leadership and management development programmes are read in this category alongside skilling and training work.
How do I submit a nomination?
Nominations are submitted through the nomination process, which sets out the stages, the supporting material required and the current edition’s dates.
Put your capability building in front of the panel
Nominations for the Learning & Development Innovation Award are read by an independent jury of practitioners, academics and skilling leaders. Bring the evidence that capability changed, not the number of licences sold.