In the face of a widening skills crisis, organizations worldwide are turning to automation and artificial intelligence to bridge critical talent shortages that threaten to cost the global economy $5.5 trillion by 2026. These losses stem from product delays, competitive disadvantages, and lost business opportunities. Nine in ten organizations expect to face this skills pinch, with two-thirds already experiencing digital transformation delays of up to ten months due to gaps in IT operations, cloud architecture, data management, and software development.
The $5.5 trillion skills crisis isn’t coming—it’s here, forcing organizations to automate or fall behind in the global race for talent.
AI proficiencies have emerged as the most highly prized yet difficult skill to find, cited by 45% of respondents. The demand intensifies as 94% of CEOs and CHROs identify AI as the top in-demand skill for 2025. However, only 35% of leaders believe their employees are effectively prepared for AI roles, and half of employers report difficulty filling AI-related positions. The stakes are high: AI-exposed roles evolve 66% faster and command a 56% wage premium.
The cybersecurity landscape reveals the severity of these shortages. Global vacancies have reached 4.8 million positions, requiring an 87% workforce increase to meet demand. In the United States alone, the gap exceeds half a million roles, with half of organizations taking over six months to fill cybersecurity positions. Four industries account for 64% of the shortage: Financial Services, Materials & Industrial, Consumer Goods, and Technology.
Rather than relying solely on traditional hiring, forward-thinking organizations are deploying smart solutions. Generative AI coding technologies and personalized workforce training could reduce projected losses by $1 trillion by 2027. Sixty percent of organizations now rely on managed service providers for data infrastructure, double last year’s rate. Companies are adopting open-source databases like PostgreSQL to streamline operations and implementing continuous upskilling programs to address emerging technologies like containerization. Organizations should also align these efforts with ITSM integration practices to ensure seamless service delivery and visibility with service request management across teams.
The path forward requires strategic action. Organizations must prioritize AI integration that delivers business value while implementing FinOps practices for cost optimization. Vendor consolidation reduces complexity and improves security. Most critically, companies need all-encompassing data strategies, identified by 61% as their top priority for extracting AI value. Traditional learning systems that rely on course completions fail to provide reliable indicators of actual workforce capability. With 83% of organizations willing to contemplate alternative providers to close skills gaps, the message is clear: automation and AI aren’t just supplements to hiring—they’re essential survival strategies.
