Learning and Development for Innovation and Resilience in The Pharmaceutical Industry

In the pharmaceutical industry, learning and development (L&D) has evolved from a compliance-oriented training function to a strategic enabler of workforce competitiveness, innovation, and ‎organizational resilience in recent years. However, research on L&D in the pharmaceutical industry ‎remains fragmented and requires a systematic synthesis. A systematic literature review (SLR) was ‎conducted following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Using predefined search strings in Scopus, peer-reviewed journal articles from 2015 to 2025 in Business and Economics were retrieved, and 1,769 ‎records were screened, resulting in 58 studies being included in the review. Publication trends, leading ‎journals, geographical distribution, and themes of the literature were examined using descriptive and ‎thematic analyses. While there was an increase in publications in the literature, most were published ‎between 2021 and 2023, likely due to the increased focus on upskilling the workforce and digital ‎transformation during the COVID-19 pandemic. The leading journals were the Journal of Business ‎Research, Human Resource Development International, and Management Decision, and research was ‎concentrated in the United States, Europe, India, and China, with little evidence of collaborative ‎networks among them. The dominant themes included digital training, leadership development, ‎regulatory learning, and workforce reskilling, and the conceptual frameworks included the Knowledge-Based View and Human Capital Theory, although few were tailored to the pharmaceutical industry’s ‎regulatory context. The study outcomes emphasized enhancements in employee performance, ‎innovation capacity, compliance, and organizational growth. This review suggests that L&D is a ‎strategic imperative in the pharmaceutical industry and can drive competitiveness. However, gaps exist, ‎particularly in longitudinal studies, AI-driven learning evaluations, and research on emerging ‎economies‎.