Contributors
Chief Executive Officer
November 26, 2024 • 3 Min Read
Artificial intelligence and related capabilities can inject your business with superpowers for growth and innovation—greater speed, efficiency, accuracy, visibility, and more—but only if your employees have the right skills to take advantage.
In our October 2024 pulse survey, 47% of financial decision-makers said they expect artificial intelligence (AI) to account for up to a third of new jobs. And 49% said a growing urgency to better leverage AI and automation could have the biggest impact on their investment in workforce development in the next 12 months.
Training for an AI-Powered Future
As the AI revolution continues to grow, the future of business will require continuous upskilling of employees. The tight labor market makes it more challenging for employers to fill skills gaps — and companies have rapidly changing skill needs.
BCG found companies that are best positioned for the future are upskilling their workforces. Companies that are spending upward of $50 million on AI and generative AI are also training more than a quarter of their people on the relevant tools.
Technology companies are taking the AI training challenge very seriously.
Earlier this year, Google announced it was investing $75 million to fund grants for organizations to provide free AI training. Meanwhile, Amazon recently cited the impact of its $1.2 billion skills training and education pledge, noting that those who have graduated from the program have seen pay increases of up to 40%.
In July, the AI-Enabled ICT Workforce Consortium — led by Cisco and counting members including Google, IBM, Microsoft, and SAP — released an inaugural report that found 92% of jobs are expected to undergo either high or moderate transformation due to advancements in AI. The consortium members have established skills development and training goals that will impact over 95 million individuals globally over the next decade.
Workforce Development Tops Investment Priorities
The focus on training and skills development is widespread. Our June 2024 pulse survey found investment in workforce development remains a top priority, especially as skills gaps for technical and knowledge-based work widen due to an uptick in large-scale transformation initiatives.
More than 80% of businesses said they would increase overall investment in workforce development in 2024:
- 37% plan to increase investment in reskilling and upskilling current employees.
- 22% plan to increase internal headcount.
- 18% plan to increase investment in outside talent, including consultants, independent contractors, and staffing firms.
Upskilling and Reskilling Will Become the New Standard
Employees feel a similar sense of urgency to bring their skills up to date, with 58% believing their job skills will significantly change in the next five years because of AI and big data (World Economic Forum).
The Human Progress Report, released by ETS in partnership with Harris Poll in April, found that upskilling and reskilling will become the new standard for people throughout their careers. That’s according to 85% of the 17,000 respondents surveyed.
We no longer live in a world where you get your degree or training, leave education and learning behind and never look back.
– Michelle Froah, global chief marketing and innovation officer, ETS
LinkedIn’s Workplace Learning Report found that learning improves employees’ sense of connection and adds purpose to their work. The next generation of workers will place even more value on learning and development opportunities. The study found that Gen Z workers are more likely to value learning for career progress than older generations.
In-demand skill sets will continue to evolve as we see further advancements in AI, automation, and the way work gets done. These shifts will continue to have a tremendous impact on the employee demand for learning and development benefits.
Employers must not only invest in providing the training that their workforce of the future will need, but they must consider the impact upskilling and reskilling will have on skill acquisition and talent retention.
Learn how a Dynamic Workforce™️ can help overcome an internal skills gap.
