Are you embracing artificial intelligence for the future, or fearing what will happen? Are you equipping yourself and your workforce with the skills to thrive alongside AI, or risking falling behind? In a world where change is constant and the impact of AI accelerates across every industry, these are critical questions talent and learning leaders must ask.
The best way to prepare for the future is to learn, adapt and help shape it actively. As AI rapidly transforms the workplace, organizations must proactively address the growing AI skills gap to remain competitive, drive innovation and empower their people to succeed.
This article explores why bridging the AI skills gap matters, how leading organizations are already taking action and what strategic approaches, grounded in a growth mindset, you can apply within your teams today.
The AI skills gap: What it is and why it matters
The AI skills gap is the difference between the skills your workforce currently has and the skills they need to effectively work with, understand and leverage artificial intelligence technologies in their roles.
Talent leaders and executives have a responsibility—and an incredible opportunity—to upskill existing talent, develop the workforce and prepare the next generation of leaders to play an active role in shaping the future with AI.
Growth, transformation and innovation cannot remain isolated within certain departments; it’s critical for talent leaders to be at the table, driving conversations about how to equip employees to build, manage and work alongside AI — ethically, strategically and creatively.
Bridging the AI skills gap isn’t just about technical proficiency. It’s about cultivating a workforce that can adapt, collaborate, think critically and continuously learn as AI reshapes the world of work.
Real-world implications for talent development
It can feel overwhelming to know where to start, but inaction risks falling behind. Taking intentional, early action is essential. Here are examples of organizations already leveraging AI to support talent development:
Across industries, leading companies are using AI to drive different facets of talent development—from continuous learning to internal mobility to strategic career pathing.
IBM: Personalized learning at scale with AI
Talent development area: Learning and upskilling
IBM launched the SkillsBuild platform to close the skills gap by using AI to recommend personalized courses based on users’ interests, talents and career aspirations. By continuously analyzing user interactions, SkillsBuild now helps thousands of learners upskill and reskill for in-demand job roles across industries.
DHL: Advancing internal career growth through AI
Talent development area: Internal mobility and career development
DHL uses AI through its internal career marketplace to compare employees’ existing skills with open role requirements and direct them to targeted training programs. This AI-driven approach improves internal career mobility while helping managers fill vacancies more effectively.
Johnson & Johnson: Shaping career pathways for a global workforce
Talent development area: Career pathing and talent planning
Johnson & Johnson leverages AI-powered talent intelligence systems to map employees’ current skills to future career opportunities and personalized learning paths. This strategy supports internal mobility and ensures the company’s workforce is future-ready and continuously growing.
Key strategies to bridge the AI skills gap through a growth mindset
Now that you’ve seen examples of organizations actively transforming their workforces with AI, let’s explore key strategies you can apply, all through the essential lens of a growth mindset.
The concept of a growth mindset, coined by psychologist Carol Dweck, teaches that intelligence, abilities and talents are not fixed traits, but qualities that can be developed with effort, learning, and perseverance.
In the context of AI transformation:
- A fixed mindset might say: “AI is a threat to my job. I don’t have the skills for this, and I never will.”
- A growth mindset would reframe it: “AI is changing how we work—and I can learn new skills to grow alongside it.”
Cultivating a growth mindset within your organization builds the foundation for learning agility, innovation and adaptability—all of which are critical for thriving in an AI-driven world.
Here are strategic recommendations framed by growth mindset reframes and reflection questions:
- Assess AI readiness with curiosity, not judgment
- Conduct a skills gap analysis to understand where your workforce currently stands in AI literacy and capabilities.
- Reframe: “This is our starting point, not a final judgment. Every skill gap is an opportunity for growth, learning and innovation.”
- Reflection: What strengths and hidden potentials can we uncover by approaching this assessment with curiosity?
- Design learning pathways that embrace the power of “yet”
- Create personalized, tiered learning paths that meet employees where they are and show a clear, accessible journey to AI fluency.
- Reframe: “Our people may not have these skills yet, and with effort, practice and support, they absolutely can grow into them.”
- Reflection: How can we design learning experiences that make employees excited to keep stretching and growing?
- Cultivate a culture of continuous learning
- Normalize microlearning, experimentation and learning from mistakes through regular, accessible AI skill-building activities.
- Reframe: “Learning isn’t about getting it perfect the first time. It’s about practicing, experimenting and adjusting along the way.”
- Reflection: How are we celebrating not just wins, but the willingness to try, iterate and learn?
- Develop managers as growth mindset coaches
- Train managers to support and coach their teams toward AI learning goals, emphasizing effort, resilience and curiosity.
- Reframe: “Our managers are not just task leaders—they are growth champions who help people build confidence and stretch into new skills.”
- Reflection: In what ways can our managers model learning behaviors and make growth visible for their teams?
- Promote ethical, human-centered AI adoption
- Integrate ethics and responsible AI use into all AI-related training programs and team discussions with a learning lens.
- Reframe: “Understanding and using AI responsibly is a continuous learning journey—we can keep asking better questions, together.”
- Reflection: How can we encourage our teams to approach AI ethics with humility, openness and a commitment to lifelong learning?
- Celebrate progress, not just mastery
- Publicly recognize small wins, learning milestones and acts of curiosity or resilience related to AI upskilling.
- Reframe: “Every step forward is worth celebrating—it reinforces that growth is a journey, not a one-time event.”
- Reflection: How can we intentionally highlight the process of learning, not just the end results, to keep motivation high?
Call to action
This is only the beginning. Reflect on the urgency of investing in AI capabilities—not just to stay competitive, but to empower your workforce to actively shape the future alongside emerging technologies.
Cultivating a growth mindset is foundational to ensuring your talent can transform how they approach AI and contribute to both personal and organizational growth.
Now is the time to champion a culture of curiosity, resilience and continuous learning and to ensure that learning leaders have a seat at the table in shaping the future of work.
The question is no longer whether AI will impact your workforce—it’s whether you will lead your workforce to thrive alongside it.
