09, February 2026

Stefan Lauber

4 minute read

This time of year is peak season for L&D, Skills Development, and training teams. As financial year-end approaches, many organisations are managing multiple priorities at once, often with limited capacity and tight deadlines.

Training budgets and bursary spend must be finalised. Employees are registering for the new academic year. WSP and ATR submissions are due. And on top of that, HR and training teams are expected to balance compliance requirements while still preparing the workforce for future skills needs.

At iFundi, we work closely with HR and training teams during this busy season to reduce workload, support BBBEE objectives, and help organisations build a future-ready workforce for 2026 and beyond. Our goal is simple: to make this period easier, more structured, and more strategic.

One of the most practical ways we support teams is through our AI-powered WSP application. WSP development can be time-consuming, especially when the process is manual and requires repeated alignment across departments. Our solution simplifies and automates key parts of WSP creation and alignment, helping teams work faster while improving the quality and consistency of submissions.

In addition, iFundi offers BBBEE-aligned programmes across IT, digital, and management skills. These programmes are designed not only to support compliance, but also to build real capability, helping employees gain skills that are relevant in the workplace and aligned to the realities of a digital economy.

As the new academic year approaches, we also support organisations with bursary-ready learning pathways. Whether you are enrolling employees or supporting qualifying students, we help you structure learning in a way that makes planning, reporting, and long-term development more manageable.

To make skills development more accessible, iFundi also offers discounted tuition fees for employees, even if they pay for their own studies. This creates additional opportunities for upskilling without increasing budget pressure, while still strengthening internal talent pipelines.

Beyond programmes and tools, we believe in supporting the broader HR and L&D community. That is why we regularly host free advisory and knowledge-sharing sessions for training and HR professionals. These include our Community of Experts sessions, which focus on practical ways to develop WSPs faster and smarter. We also host introductory sessions on 4IR for HR teams to help organisations navigate emerging skills, and Masterclasses on digital skills such as AI, Cybersecurity, Data Science, Cloud Computing, Robotics, and IoT.

This busy season does not have to feel like survival mode. With the right support, compliance deadlines and future skills priorities can work together. If your team is under pressure to deliver year-end outcomes while preparing for the next academic cycle, iFundi is ready to support you.