Skills related to artificial intelligence have, for the first time, been designated the most difficult for employers to find globally — surpassing traditional IT and engineering, which historically led, according to a report released Feb. 26 by ManpowerGroup.
“This historic shift highlights a new era in the persistent global talent crisis,” ManpowerGroup said in its release, noting that 72% of employers report hiring difficulties, down only slightly from 74% last year.
AI skills may in fact displace IT and data skills, the report showed; traditional IT skills fell to seventh place, below skills including AI literacy, sales and marketing, and manufacturing, “signaling a rapid realignment of strategic talent investment toward AI-driven capabilities,” a news release said.
While talent scarcity is currently “universal,” ManpowerGroup said, it is also in part defined by location. Western European countries, including Germany, France and the U.K, are facing especially stark shortages, while the U.S. is slightly below the global average (with 69% of employers reporting difficulties).
But the struggle to find talent spreads across numerous industries, from information to hospitality and the public sector. To fight this issue, employers are focusing more intently upon internal development, ManpowerGroup said — but schedule and location flexibility are also high on the list of deployed strategies.
Retention, more generally, is top of mind for employers this year, a recent Monster report said, with a little over half of employers surveyed saying it was their top workforce priority in 2026. Skills building is part of that strategy, though it is also an answer to an inability to find qualified candidates otherwise, per the report.
Skills requirements, also, have been made especially volatile by the introduction of AI, a Lightcast report said. Many workforce strategies — which may not account for macroeconomic forces such as an aging population and decreased immigration — may be designed for “a world that no longer exists,” Lightcast noted.
