74% of workers blame employers for their AI skills gap.,92% of IT jobs are expected to transform due to AI, with 74% of IT pros fearing skill obsolescence.,Only 25% of employees find their organisation's professional development plans highly effective.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is not just the future; it's the present. It's transforming jobs, and workers know it. A whopping 92% of IT jobs are expected to change due to AI, and 74% of IT professionals fear their skills will become obsolete. But here's the kicker: employees are eager to learn AI, but they're not getting the support they need from their employers.
The AI Skills Gap: A Growing Concern
A recent survey by Skillsoft of 2,500 full-time employees in the US, UK, Germany, and India revealed some startling facts. 35% of respondents lack confidence in their current skills, and 41% worry about job security due to skills gaps. The most critical gap? AI and machine learning (ML). This echoes sentiments found in other regions, such as the APAC AI in 2026: 4 Trends You Need To Know report, which highlights the rapid evolution of AI across Asia.
43% of respondents said AI/ML was their biggest skills gap.,74% of these workers blame their organisation's poor AI training programs.,Only 25% found their organisation's professional development plans highly effective.
Ciara Harrington, Skillsoft's chief people officer, warns that skills gaps "hold workers back from reaching their full potential" and "hinder organizations in achieving their key business objectives." This is particularly relevant in dynamic markets where AI Boom Fuels Asian Market Surge.
Employees Eager to Learn AI
Interestingly, employees who identified AI/ML as their biggest skills deficiency were more confident in their ability to learn these skills. Only 21% lacked confidence in their skills, and 33% had job security concerns—both better than the survey average. This suggests that workers are eager to integrate AI into their workflows, given the opportunity, aligning with discussions around What Every Worker Needs to Answer: What Is Your Non-Machine Premium?.
The Role of Organisations
Organisations need to step up their AI training game. While 95% of respondents said their organisation has professional development plans, the complaints piled up:
43% cited lack of time to engage with training.,30% found learning formats non-user-friendly.,26% noted lack of leadership support.
Gartner VP analyst Lily Mok emphasises the need for a holistic, long-term approach to talent development. She advises equipping managers with the right tools, investing in advanced platforms, and building a continuous learning culture. Research from the World Economic Forum consistently highlights the importance of reskilling and upskilling for the future of work Future of Jobs Report.
The Importance of Effective Training Programs
With accelerated AI adoption, strong internal training programs are crucial. CIOs play a key role in setting workforce AI training agendas. They must consider how these programs are developed to offer the right platforms and approaches for employees eager to upskill.
The Future of AI in the Workplace
The future of AI in the workplace is bright, but it depends on employers bridging the skills gap. As Mok puts it, companies can't "hire themselves out of the skill shortage." They must invest in their current workforce. This investment is crucial as the AI Wave Shifts to Global South, creating new demands and opportunities.
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Latest Comments (4)
it's so true how much workers want to learn this! we saw something similar when we were looking for new talent for our Vietnamese NLP models. everyone is really keen to upskill, but finding good resources, especially for non-English AI, is still a major hurdle. big opportunity for companies to step up.
that 74% stat about workers blaming employers for the AI skills gap, it's actually true. in our team, we had infra guys trying to pick up MLFlow and Kubeflow without much guidance. they were basically googling official docs, took ages to get anywhere useful. felt like we were all just throwing darts.
This survey on why employees blame their organizations for the AI skills gap really mirrors what you touched on from that APAC report a while back. Good to see more data on it now.
I see it here too, the 74% blaming orgs for poor AI training. Everyone wants to learn but the internal offerings are usually too generic for our specific telco needs.
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