Eight out of ten companies cannot find the skills they need

As early as 2026, 30 per cent of routine work tasks will be automated by generative AI and, by 2027, almost 60 per cent of workers will face a retraining process, as highlighted by the World Economic Forum (2025). While automation threatens up to 85 million traditional jobs, it will create 97 million new positions in AI-enhanced industries, data ecosystems, cybersecurity, green innovation and resilient supply chains. This transformation is accompanied by record salary growth in high-skill roles, particularly digital, analytics and sustainability-oriented roles.

The Rome Business School's Salary and Career Trends Report 2026 confirms a paradigm shift: companies are increasingly hiring based on skills and no longer on formal qualifications. The most competitive professionals will be those capable of integrating AI literacy, ethical awareness, intercultural competence and adaptability.

The world of work is experiencing the most rapid transformation in decades. Generative AI reshapes processes and roles, while geopolitical tensions, climate risks and transport costs push companies towards nearshoring and multisourcing models. In fact, sustainability becomes a central competitive driver: the International Labour Organisation estimates that the green economy will generate 14 million new jobs by 2026 in roles such as climate risk analyst, circular economy designer and ESG reporting specialist.Parallel, hybrid work introduces new challenges related to team cohesion, burnout management and cybersecurity. In addition, global competition for talent is intensifying: the LinkedIn Global Talent Report (2025) shows that 84% of employers struggle to find professionals with the right combination of skills, not only technical but also behavioural and cognitive, such as adaptability, problem solving, ethical judgement and intercultural communication. In addition, ManpowerGroup (2025) records an all-time high talent shortage in specific sectors of 78%. This pressure fuels strong wage growth in the most advanced sectors: artificial intelligence increases between 15% and 22%, cybersecurity between 12% and 16%, green economy between 10% and 18%, healthcare tech and bioinformatics between 11% and 17%, while digital supply chain and logistics grow between 9% and 15% (WEF, 2025).

According to the World Economic Forum (2025), more than 60 per cent of companies today favour transferable skills over traditional job titles. This is a structural change: adaptability, digital fluency and ethical judgement are more valuable than formal pathways or job titles.
Research by LinkedIn and Deloitte (2025) confirms that the ability to learn quickly, manage complexity, collaborate in multicultural contexts and integrate technology into everyday processes has become a strategic requirement for employability. "This dual emphasis, digital and behavioural, reflects the acceleration of technology and the evolution of organisational models," says Valerio Mancini, Director of the Research Centre at Rome Business School.
AI literacy also assumes a central role: 75 per cent of companies already use artificial intelligence tools (WEF, 2025), making skills such as interpreting data, reading algorithmic outputs and being aware of bias essential. The expansion of data-driven organisations also makes data interpretation one of the fastest growing skills (LinkedIn Workforce Insights, 2025). In addition, cybersecurity awareness is increasingly crucial: the OECD (2025) reports that human error is the leading cause of cyber breaches.
Sustainability, finally, enters firmly into the profile of the professional of the future: the ILO (2025) points out that green skills such as eco-design, ESG reporting, circular economy, are among the fastest growing skills. The integration of digital mastery, ethical responsibility and advanced human skills thus defines the profile of the 'future-ready' professional.

By 2026, AI will be an integral part of business processes as a collaborative agent, creating hybrid workforces that combine human judgement and AI analytical capabilities (McKinsey, 2025). In these workforces, the most competitive professionals will be those capable of supervising AI, verifying its outputs and exploiting its strategic potential.
At the same time, the average life span of skills continues to shrink: according to WEF (2025), a skill will become obsolete in less than three years, making continuous learning the basis of future careers. At the same time, the global mobility of talent is growing thanks to remote working models: the OECD (2025) notes that companies are increasingly recruiting across national borders to access rare skills.
In addition, leadership is entering a new phase. The Deloitte Human Capital Trends Report (2025) points to a shift from authoritarian to collaborative models, based on trust, psychological safety and the ability to lead teams in continuous change. In an AI intensive context, leadership becomes more human: it requires ethical judgement, technological literacy, empathy and intercultural fluency. The rise of skills-based economies also takes shape in this scenario. According to LinkedIn (2025), skills-based hiring grew by 28 per cent in just one year, signalling a shift towards models in which professional opportunities are determined by skills and not by titles or geography.The ongoing transformation points in a clear direction: the competitive advantage of the future belongs to those who can combine technology and humanity. Creativity, resilience, adaptability and ethical responsibility become essential complements of digital literacy. "In a market marked by rapid change and talent shortages, the organisations that invest in people, as well as in innovation, will be the ones able to drive change," concludes Valerio Mancini.