How to Execute Strategic GCC Models in 2026

You're at a tipping point: fast innovation adoption, shifting abilities, and new expectations are forcing you to reassess how your company produces value through people. Global Skill Trends 2026 provides you a dataled, practical view of the labor force patterns shaping your decisionsdrawn from a worldwide study of nearly 12,000 executives, HR leaders, staff members, and financiers across 16 geographies and 16 industriesand reveals you: How peers are revamping work to blend human ability with automation What AI in the office appears like How to get ready for the AI future of work Which future-fit abilities to develop How to sharpen your employee worth proposition to drive performance.

The authors are grateful to Karen Pastakia, Kate Sweeney, Simona Spelman, Bill Briggs, and Nitin Mittal for their time, input, and stable cooperation throughout this effort. Special thanks to Catherine Gergen for her dependable research study assistance and coordination in writing this Introduction. A special note of recognition is booked for Ishani Purohit and Olivia Rueger, whose steady job management stewardship over the past year managed every moving piece of this reportfrom early preparation through last productionkeeping the team lined up, momentum strong, and execution seamless.

The authors extend thanks to the rapid eye movement teamMatt Deruntz, Maria Neira, Qiaoli Wang, Manshreya Grover, Nirupam Datta, Charu Ratnu, Santhosh Naidu, Derek Taylor, Marcella Hines, Parag Zalpuri, Chris Tomke, and Luly Castillerofor their unfaltering collaboration and behind-the-scenes execution that kept the work moving from draft to delivery. The authors likewise acknowledge the Deloitte Insights teamCorrie Commisso, Hannah Bachman, Annalyn Kurtz, Alexis Werbeck, Jim Slatton, Govindh Raj, and Molly Piersol, and the information visualization group, whose editorial rigor, storytelling craft, and visual clarity sharpened the story and brought the insights to life.

Thank you to the Global Human Capital executive teamKate Sweeney, Kate Morican, Amanda Flouch, Nathalie Vandaele, Jodi Baker Calamai, Dheeraj Sharma, Franz Gilbert, Karen Pastakia, Simona Spelman, Yasushi Muranaka, Tom Alstein, Sebastian Pfeifle, John Brownridge, Kurt Proctor-Parker, Pat Shannon, Andrew Potts, Dahlia Katz, Ava Damri, Kelly Nelson, Joan Pere Salom, Gerhard Botha, and Stuart Scotisfor sponsoring and supporting the international reach of this report.

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The authors also extend sincere thanks to the clients who generously shared their time and experiences through interviews performed for this report. Their honest insights and viewpoints enhanced our exploration, grounded the thoughtful analysis in real-world realities, and enhanced the relevance and practicality of the findings. Thank you to Lara Martinez Gonzalez, worldwide director of skill intelligence, AstraZeneca; Michelle Robertson, executive board member (international human resources, individuals and culture), Adidas; Emily Bacon, senior supervisor, company and individuals strategy, Adobe; Zac Parris, former director of organizational effectiveness, Atlassian; Taeko Kawano, executive officer and primary human resources officer, AXA; Justin Zaccaria, chief personnels officer, Bechtel; Matt Schuyler, chief people officer, Creative Artists Agency (CAA); Megan Bazan, vice president of people, Cisco; Charlotte Wolf Tarfa, vice president, worldwide skill strategy and succession, Coca-Cola; Melissa Collier, director, change management, Georgia-Pacific; Elise Bathurst, director of people operations, Google; Courtney Gilliland, senior director, United States personnels, Gordon Food Service; Lindsey Taylor, senior director, strategic workforce preparation and individuals analytics, Hewlett Packard Business; Marcia Oglen, senior vice president, enterprise personnels, Highmark Health; Jon Pitts, creator and chief technical officer, Ihp Analytics; Reiko Mukai, primary human resources officer, MetLife Japan; Charlotte Simpson, business officer and head of individuals and organization, Novartis Japan; Heather Neville, senior vice president, individuals and places method and operations, Sony Interactive Entertainment; Jill Larsen, primary individuals officer, Synopsys; Niki Rose, workforce experience and capability executive, Telstra; Tomoko Adachi, global chief personnels officer, Terumo Corporation; and Michael Ehret, senior vice president and chief individuals officer, Walmart International.

Workforce Management Trends to Watch for 2026

CEO expectations for AI-driven growth stay high in 2026at the very same time their labor forces are grappling with the more sober truth of present AI performance. Gartner research finds that just one in 50 AI investments deliver transformational worth, and only one in 5 provides any quantifiable return on investment.

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AI has the potential to lead to significant shifts in how we hire and who we hire. As AI progressively handles the less complex, more repeatable tasks being done by the labor force, companies will need to hire skill who have wider, distinctively human skills. We're seeing increasing need for abilities like problem-solving, versatility, and collaboration skills that spur organizational agility.