World Economic Forum - Future of Jobs Report 2025

Analytical thinking is still the most in-demand skill, and I wish I could tell you that solves the problem.

But it doesn't.

The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025 paints a familiar picture. Tech change, climate transition, and economic volatility, plus demographic and geopolitical pressures, all hitting at once. (World Economic Forum, 2025)

If you work in L&D, education, talent, or leadership, the headline takeaway is not “learn AI.” It is “the mix is changing, and the human side is not going away.”

But, I think you should still “learn” AI. At the very least, use it to save yourself some time.

Generated by Wix AI - Prompt was "Artificial Intelligence"

The “core skills” list is not a surprise

WEF’s survey of global employers puts analytical thinking at the top of what organisations say they need in 2025. It is followed by resilience, flexibility, and agility, then leadership and social influence, then creative thinking. (World Economic Forum, 2025)

I think the order of this list is important.

It suggests employers are not only trying to solve harder problems, they are trying to solve them while the ground keeps shifting, and while humans still have to coordinate the work.

If you have been living in “change fatigue” for the last few years, that is not you being dramatic. That is the labour market asking for it, at scale.

The skills changing fastest are not just technical

WEF reports that AI and big data are expected to be the fastest-growing skill category, with networks and cybersecurity and technological literacy right behind it. (World Economic Forum, 2025)

Then, mixed right into the same top tier, you get:

• Creative thinking

• Resilience, flexibility, and agility

• Curiosity and lifelong learning

  
  

Same list. Same urgency. (World Economic Forum, 2025)

I think that this is the part that gets missed when leaders skim the infographic and declare, “We need an AI training program.”

You do, but if you only train tool use, you are training people for the first month of the next five years.

The big number everyone should sit with

WEF estimates that 39% of workers’ existing skill sets will be transformed or become outdated over the 2025 to 2030 period. (World Economic Forum, 2025)

Two things can be true at once:

• That number is lower than their 2023 estimate (44%), suggesting organisations are getting better at adapting.

• 39% is still enormous, if your plan is “we will figure it out later.”

  
  

Employers say skill gaps are the biggest barrier, and they are acting like it

When WEF asked employers what will block transformation, the top answer was skills gaps in the labour market, cited by 63% of employers. (World Economic Forum, 2025)

And the most common response strategy is straightforward: 85% plan to prioritize upskilling. (World Economic Forum, 2025)

Professional development is no longer this “nice-to-have” aspect of a career. In the report’s framing, it is a core business continuity move.

The “AI replaces jobs” story is incomplete, even in WEF’s own numbers

WEF’s projection (based on employer expectations) is that 2025 to 2030 will involve a lot of churn.

They estimate structural transformation will amount to 22% of today’s total jobs, with about 170 million jobs created and about 92 million displaced, for net growth of 78 million jobs. (World Economic Forum, 2025)

That does not mean everyone lands safely.

But it does shift the narrative from "AI steals your job" to "what do I need to remain useful?" as all of these industries experience this churn.

What this means for L&D, if you want it to transfer

If your training plan is just a catalogue of courses, this report will feel stressful.

If your plan is “build practice conditions,” it is actionable.

Here are three moves I would make based on WEF’s skills signal.

1) Treat resilience and adaptability like a skill, not a personality trait

Research insight: Resilience, flexibility, and agility are already core, and also rising in importance. (World Economic Forum, 2025)

L&D application: Build practice where change is part of the task, not a disruption to it.

Implementation detail: Run short “constraint drills” in team training. Change one variable mid-exercise. Time pressure. Missing info. Conflicting priorities. Then debrief what people did, not what they intended.

Success indicator: Teams can name the adaptation moves they used, and can repeat them intentionally next time.

2) Build baseline tech literacy, then specialize later

Research insight: AI and big data, cybersecurity, and tech literacy are the fastest-growing skills. (World Economic Forum, 2025)

L&D application: Give everyone a shared “minimum viable literacy” so you can talk about tools without splitting the organisation into priests and peasants.

Implementation detail: Teach three things to everyone:

• What the tool is good at

• What it is bad at

• How to verify outputs in under 60 seconds

  
  

Then train specialists deeply.

Success indicator: Fewer “AI panic” escalations, groups that are able to use a shared vocabulary about the tech, and fewer people blindly copying outputs into real work.

3) Measure skills as behaviours under pressure, not as knowledge in a quiz

Research insight: Analytical thinking, creative thinking, leadership, and social influence are prominent, and they are not “content” skills. (World Economic Forum, 2025)

L&D application: Use simulations, scenario walk-throughs, and peer feedback. Treat it like sports training and assess performance in reps, not comprehension in theory.

Implementation detail: For one core workflow, try building an observed practice rubric. Make one criterion “uses evidence,” another “asks a clarifying question,” another “checks assumptions.”

Success indicator: Supervisors can spot the behaviours in real work, and people can self-correct without being told.

The part I think is worth arguing about

WEF lists “reading, writing and mathematics” as slightly declining in relative importance, and manual dexterity showing notable net decline. (World Economic Forum, 2025)

I get the logic. Automation eats routine.

But in my experience, writing is not going away. It is changing shape. People still have to:

• articulate intent,

• frame a decision,

• and explain what they did and why.

  
  

GenAI can draft. It cannot care whether the draft is true, appropriate, genuine, or politically safe.

That judgment is still human, and it is more valuable when the first draft is cheap.

Bottom line

If you want a single sentence summary of the report for a talent strategy slide, it is this:

The fastest-growing skills are technical, and the most durable skills are human, and you need both in the same person. (World Economic Forum, 2025)

And if you want a single sentence summary for an L&D strategy slide, it is:

Stop building knowledge, start building skills in authentic situations.