International Monetary Fund: Key learnings from the latest report for HR leaders

As the world of work is constantly adapting to new and emerging tech, HR leaders are tasked with equipping employees with the necessary skills to thrive in an AI era.

Although the emergence of AI and automation often causes divided opinions, new research from the International Monetary Fund - Bridging Skill Gaps for the Future: New Jobs Creation in the AI Age - suggests a new reality for the technology.

Demonstrated throughout the report is the critical role HR leaders play in strategic upskilling, as well as the need to drive workforce adaptability and continuous learning.

To gain greater understanding of the report’s findings, UNLEASH took a deep dive into the data to find the three key takeaways.

Skills adaptability becomes central to employability

There’s a lot of speculation circling AI’s impact in the workplace, but the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF's) latest research puts the emphasis on using AI to upskill.

This therefore highlights that an employee's ability to maintain a role greatly depends on whether they utilize technology to update and learn new skills, while also demonstrating the need for employers to support this learning.

For example, the analysis of millions of online job postings shows that the demand for new skills is rising, with 10% of jobs in advanced economies and 5% in emerging markets now requiring at least one new skill.

This shows that the demand for new skills has grown, as just a decade ago, almost no jobs saw this as a fundamental requirement.

The research also suggests that certain roles are seeing the highest demand for new skills, such as professional, technical, and managerial roles.

IT-related skills dominate the demand for new skills, accounting for roughly half of all new skill requirements in the dataset.

What’s more, the report states that the “growing share linked” between IT and AI is “reflecting the general-purpose character of these technologies.”

To navigate this, the report suggests that employees should look at the differing demands in the sector – such as the increasing need for telecare and digital health skills in the healthcare industry, and the surge of social media knowledge in marketing roles.

Demand for new skills does not only diffuse across countries, but also within them. A network analysis within the United States shows that the diffusion of firms’ demand for new skills across states is highly uneven and reflects the role of large, innovative hubs,” the report adds.Demand for new skills does not only diffuse across countries, but also within them. A network analysis within the United States shows that the diffusion of firms’ demand for new skills across states is highly uneven and reflects the role of large, innovative hubs,” the report adds.

Can skills boost wages?

Job listings with more skills command higher wages, with one new skill boosting the offered wage by ~3-3.4% compared to jobs that don't require new skills.

Job listings with four or more new skills were found to pay up to 15.1% more than roles with no new skills in the UK and 8.5% more in the US.

From this data, HR teams can better justify investment in targeted training to bolster retention and increase organizational wage competitiveness where new skills are scarce.

In US local labor markets, an increase of 1 percentage point in the share of job postings with new skills is associated with an average wage gain of 2.3 percent and an employment gain of 1.3 percent,” the report highlights.In US local labor markets, an increase of 1 percentage point in the share of job postings with new skills is associated with an average wage gain of 2.3 percent and an employment gain of 1.3 percent,” the report highlights.

Local economies were reported to benefit from this “wage bump,” as the more money employees have, the more likely they are to spend with local businesses, requiring a need for more staff to be hired to meet demand.

Similarly, the German local labor markets were found to “experience insignificant employment impacts”, while still demonstrating a “sizeable wage gain” of 0.9%.

This impacts both high- and low-skilled workers the most, “with no significant benefits for middle-skilled workers.” As a result, job polarization is reinforced which “potentially” contributes to the “shrinking of the middle class”.

Skills may increase pay, but do they boost employment?

Although AI-specific skills were found to offer higher wages, the report noted that they do not guarantee job growth, meaning the benefits of AI adoption are “highly uneven”.

IMF analysis found that in regions with higher demand for AI-related skills, employment levels are 3.6% lower in occupations that are highly exposed to AI but offer limited scope for human-AI complementarity.

Workers in entry-level, middle-skilled roles face the greatest challenges, especially in occupations highly exposed to AI where there is limited complementarity with human work.

Primarily, this is because these positions are particularly vulnerable to automation, therefore reducing hiring opportunities even as AI-related skills offer wage premiums for those who possess them.

The data also reinforces the idea that the adoption of Gen AI across the US is reducing entry level hiring, “especially when tasks can be automated”.

AI-developer skills command a wage premium in the UK of approximately 7.5-8% within the same occupation. In comparison, AI-user skills receive a smaller premium of about 2%.

In comparison, employees in the US with AI development expertise earn more than 8% above the average wage. AI-user skills consequently show a modest increase comparable to other emerging non-AI skills.

In contrast, a 2% “bump” was reflected in those using AI in their roles – similar to other emerging non-AI skills – highlighting that deep technical expertise in AI is in high demand and raised a premium in the job market.

Actionable insights for HR leaders

Overall, the IMF reiterates the importance of life-long learning and education, while calling for better policies around targeted upskilling, retraining programs, and workforce mobility to better support workers adapting to the changing demands of AI.

“Economies where demand for new skills is high, but domestic supply remains relatively more constrained, should expand worker training opportunities, integrate IT training across all fields of study, [and] strengthen STEM education,” the report highlights.

HR leaders focused on shaping L&D strategies should therefore recognize the importance of structured upskilling programs to safeguard their business in the future of work.

In a blog post, IMF’s Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva said that “success will hinge on bold steps taken now: investing in skills supporting workers through job transitions and keeping markets competitive so innovation benefits everyone.”In a blog post, IMF’s Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva said that “success will hinge on bold steps taken now: investing in skills supporting workers through job transitions and keeping markets competitive so innovation benefits everyone.”

As a result, the IMF's message to HR leaders is clear: it should no longer be seen as an option to invest in structured upskilling programs, but rather a necessity and an essential part of preparing for an AI-driven future.