AI-driven workforce transformation: What’s at stake

Leaders across HR, L&D, and Benefits recognize that deploying AI in their workforce has quickly become table stakes. Yet, with the breakneck speed at which AI is moving, the pressure mounts for organizations that haven’t figured it out. Stalling out in observation mode could amount to a fatal lag with consequences like losses in efficiency, competitiveness, and employee engagement. To gain perspective in this moment, consider what’s at stake when we talk about AI-driven workforce transformation.

Insight: There is growing conviction that today's skills aren't the right ones for the jobs of today—and especially tomorrow. Yet, companies are struggling to quantify and respond to these industry trends.

Why this matters: By 2030, ~85M jobs could be unfilled because of skills gaps, costing companies $8.5 trillion in unrealized annual revenue (Korn Ferry).

• The average half-life of skills (i.e., skills relevancy) is under 5 years, and as low as 2.5 years in some technical fields (HBR). Just 5% of the main skills job candidates need today will be the same in three years (McKinsey).
• This means 1B+ global jobs will require reskilling in the next 5 years, and an estimated 44% of reskilling will need to take place by 2025 (World Economic Forum)
• Al is expected to shift ~ 12M jobs, especially in office support, food service, customer service, and production (McKinsey). On the other hand, sectors like healthcare, data analysis, Al expertise, software engineering, digital marketing, education, and green energy will grow (World Economic Forum)

If you do nothing: the cost of inaction

Waiting for consensus or watching to see what the competition is doing is going to have a compounding effect for the worse in this case. That’s because, while we talk about AI generally, it will actually be deployed in a very customized, specific, and granular way within each organization and for each individual in the workforce. And this revolution is so total that it will cleave the winners from the losers. Winners – the early adopters and all the others who jumped right in, caught the wave, and figured out how to surf it. Losers —paddling along in the wake and struggling to catch up.

If you do something: the rewards of taking action

Already, we are seeing rewards in the form of revenue increases due to AI adoption. And this is just scratching the surface. The time savings and possibilities of reallocation of work as a result of deploying AI in the workforce have tremendous potential. Just as there will be a compounding effect for inaction, there will be a compounding benefit for those who learn to build and exercise the muscle that comes with AI integration at scale.

Meet the moment with AI that works for your workforce

Leveraging AI for workforce transformation can feel like a riddle — one that keeps you up at night. But consider this: You may not know all of the ways AI will impact your workforce, but you do know your workforce. 

Your HR expertise positions you to lead this transformation. Instead of feeling paralyzed by all that AI could do, reframe this as an opportunity to use your expertise in strategic vision, empathy, and data-driven decision-making to define what it should do. This approach touches both the strategy and the solution — that AI should: 

• Assist you as an HR leader in understanding the opportunities to upskill and reskill your workforce 
• Transform the way work is done across your business, making space for more creative problem solving  

Expect a future state where you’re in the driver’s seat and AI has the ability to be your guide in:  

1. Assessing the opportunities to better leverage AI across your current workforce
2. Developing a strategic plan for upskilling and reskilling employees
3. Delivering targeted training programs that help build skills for the future
4. Measuring and optimizing the results 

Lead the transformation with confidence and agility

The brutal thing about AI as table stakes is that you won’t get credit for the deliberation — only the actions you took to meet the moment. Embrace the role of guiding your organization through AI-driven change by leaning in, rather than waiting for others to decide how AI will be deployed both for your workforce, and within it. 

Being part of the conversation early will help you ensure the right decisions are made about skills investments, strategic workforce deployment, and labor reallocation. There’s a lot at stake. 

Ready to take the first step?

Connect with one of our experts to see how Guild can support your skilling and reskilling initiatives, ensuring your organization thrives in the AI era and beyond. Schedule a call →