Jobs/Appointments
Only 1 in 10 Global Workers Have In-Demand AI Skills—Study
Salesforce’s new digital skills survey shows that the vast majority of global workers think skills are more important than education qualifications or career background. Most people leaders (98%) believe the shift to skills-based hiring provides business benefits. Yet only 1 in 10 say they have AI skills — which is cited as one of today’s most in-demand digital skills.
This article looks at the survey’s full findings, based on 11,000+ workers across 11 countries, and shares new data on how the workforce perceives the role that generative AI will play in the jobs of today and tomorrow.
Eighty-four per cent of global workers consider the skills-based experience more important than a degree when trying to land a job in today’s market.
However, there’s a disconnect between the skills companies are hiring for and those currently used by the workforce. While 4 in 5 global workers report using digital skills in their day-to-day work, few report skills beyond collaboration technology, digital administration, and digital project management.
In contrast, today’s fastest growing and in-demand skills as reported by workers include artificial intelligence (AI) and coding/app development — but they rank among the least used in workers’ day-to-day roles.
The good news? There appears to be less fear — and more excitement — among workers about the potential of emerging technologies to transform the jobs of the future. This, paired with workers’ reported desire to learn new skills, suggests that companies can help close the digital skills gap by providing continuous, skills-based training to their employees.
A global movement toward skills-based hiring
The shift toward skills-based hiring is evident at all levels. Most (82%) people leaders surveyed said that skills are the most important attribute when evaluating candidates. Only 18% said that relevant degrees are the most important.
Over half of people leaders (56%) cite talent retention as a business benefit to skills-based hiring. Increased workforce diversity (48%) and knowledge sharing (46%) also ranked highly.
Additionally, most people believe that prioritizing employees’ digital skills development will have positive impacts on wider business performance, citing increased productivity (47%), better team performance (43%), and improved problem-solving capabilities (40%).
Leaders and employees agree on the need for AI skills
Workers are excited about emerging AI technologies like generative AI. Sixty per cent of global workers reported excitement about the prospect of using generative AI for their job. In fact, more workers were excited about its use in their workplace (58%) than worried about it replacing them in their job (42%). This is in line with interest from management: Globally, two-thirds of people leaders(67%) say that their company is considering ways to use generative AI.
Despite this excitement, recent research shows that while over half of U.S.-based senior IT leaders say their business is currently using or experimenting with generative AI, 66% say their employees don’t have the skills to successfully leverage the technology.
Workers agree that AI skills are important: Nearly one-fourth of global workers rank AI skills as among the top three most important digital skills right now. This number rises when asked about the importance of these skills over the next five years.
As needs evolve, workplace skills lag
Despite its importance to their future skill set, only 1 in 10 workers say their day-to-day role currently involves AI. A mere 14% say their role involves other, related digital skills like encryption and cyber security, and a smaller 13% claim to use coding and app development skills.
The industry indexing the highest for AI skills, specifically, is the technology industry, but even for this industry, less than a third of employees (27%) use AI skills within their roles today. Outside of traditional IT roles, this number drops further; less than 10% of those in healthcare (8%) and the public sector (6%) report they use AI skills in their day-to-day role.
The path forward is upskilling. Nearly all (97%) global workers believe businesses should prioritize AI skills in their employee development strategy.
Upskilling is critical across wide swaths of these emerging technologies. As a result of the rise in AI and automation, people leaders say data security skills (60%), ethical AI and automation skills (58%), and programming skills (57%) will become increasingly important in the workplace. When asked what ‘soft’ skills will likely be more important as a result, people leaders ranked creative imaginative skills (56%), customer relationship skills (53%), and leadership skills (51%) highest.
Fortunately, companies seeking to boost emerging technology skills and focus on skills-based hiring have something going for them — workers want to expand their limited set of digital skills. Nine in 10 believe that businesses should prioritize digital skills development for their employees.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
President Bola Tinubu has removed Mt Mele Kyari as the chief executive of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, replacing him with Mr Bashir Bayo Ojulari in line with the powers granted under Section 59, subsection 2 of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021.
In a statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, on Wednesday, it was also revealed that Mr Pius Akinyelure is no longer the chairman of the NNPC board as he has been replaced by Ahmadu Musa Kida.
According to the statement, Mr Tinubu reconstituted the 11-man NNPC board, which came into being on November 2023, to enhance operational efficiency, restore investor confidence, boost local content, drive economic growth, and advance gas commercialisation and diversification.
President Tinubu also handed out an immediate action plan to the new board: to conduct a strategic portfolio review of NNPC-operated and Joint Venture Assets to ensure alignment with value maximisation objectives.
Since 2023, the Mr Tinubu administration has implemented oil sector reforms to attract investment. Last year, NNPC reported $17 billion in new investments within the sector. The administration now envisions increasing the investment to $30 billion by 2027 and $60 billion by 2030.
His administration targets raising oil production to two million barrels daily by 2027 and three million daily by 2030. Concurrently, the government wants gas production jacked to 8 billion cubic feet daily by 2027 and 10 billion cubic feet by 2030.
Furthermore, President Tinubu expects the new board, whose appointment became effective today, to elevate NNPC’s share of crude oil refining output to 200,000 barrels by 2027 and reach 500,000 by 2030.
Business Post reports that Mr Adedapo Segun, who replaced Mr Umaru Isa Ajiya as the chief financial officer last November, has been appointed to the new board by President Tinubu.
Six board members, non-executive directors, represent the country’s geopolitical zones. They are Bello Rabiu, North West, Yusuf Usman, North East, and Babs Omotowa, a former managing director of the Nigerian Liquified Natural Gas( NLNG), who represents North Central.
Mr Austin Avuru is a non-executive director from the South-South, Mr David Ige is a non-executive director from the South West, and Mr Henry Obih is a non-executive director from the South East.
Mrs Lydia Shehu Jafiya, permanent secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, will represent the ministry on the new board, while Aminu Said Ahmed will represent the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
The new board chairman is from Borno State. He is an alumnus of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, where he received a degree in civil engineering in 1984. He also obtained a postgraduate diploma in petroleum engineering from the Institut Francaise du Petrol (IFP) in Paris
On his part, Mr Ojulari hails from Kwara State. Until his new appointment, He was Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Renaissance Africa Energy Company.
His Renaissance recently led a consortium of indigenous energy firms in the landmark acquisition of the entire equity holding in the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC), worth $2.4 billion.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The tenure of the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Mrs Kemi Nanna Nandap, has been extended.
Her tenure was extended by President Bola Tinubu, according to a statement issued on Monday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga.
She was first appointed to the position on March 1, 2024, and was to serve till August 31, 2025, but the President has shifted her term forward to December 31, 2026.
Mrs Nandap began her career in the NIS on October 9, 1989, and under her tenure as the head of the agency, the NIS has witnessed significant advancements in its core mandate, with notable improvements in border management, modernisation of immigration processes and national security measures.
President Tinubu commended the Comptroller-General for her exemplary leadership and urged her to continue dedicating herself to the Service’s strategic priorities, which align with his administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
He reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to supporting the NIS in fulfilling its mandate to protect Nigeria’s territorial integrity and promote safe, legal, and orderly migration.
By Adedapo Adesanya
A cross-border payments company, Blaaiz, has announced the appointment of Mr Oladunjoye Afolabi, a distinguished executive and transformational business strategist, as a non-executive board member.
This monumental appointment signals a bold new chapter for Blaaiz as it cements its position as a dominant force in the global payments landscape.
Building on its recent expansions into Kenya and Uganda, alongside the acquisition of key licenses in the USA, Canada, and Nigeria, Blaaiz is now intensifying its push into other strategic markets including Ghana and the UAE, with Afolabi’s visionary leadership set to be a cornerstone of its expansion drive.
According to a statement shared with Business Post, in his role on the board, Mr Afolabi will focus on strategic finance, global expansion, and operational excellence.
He is expected to advise Blaaiz on optimising its cross-border payment infrastructure, enhancing risk management frameworks, and developing cutting-edge financial strategies to scale operations worldwide.
Mr Afolabi brings over 18 years of executive experience driving exponential revenue growth and operational excellence within multinational corporations across tech, telecom, consulting, manufacturing, and shipping industries.
He has held prominent leadership positions at one of the biggest global providers of digital communications infrastructure firms, serving across West Africa, East Africa, and Europe.
His most recent role was Chief Operating Officer & Board Member, where he spearheaded multiple innovative financial strategies.
His leadership optimised complex multinational operations and transformed companies’ financial architectures for sustainable growth. His expertise also extends to strategic financial oversight and regulatory compliance, which he honed through his experience at two of the big 4 accounting firms, Ernst & Young and KPMG.
With Mr Afolabi’s appointment, Blaaiz says it continues its relentless pursuit of providing seamless, secure, and innovative cross-border payment solutions. As the company expands its reach across Africa, North America, Europe, and beyond.
Speaking on this development, Mr Ifelade Ayodele, CEO and Co-Founder of Blaaiz, stated, “Afolabi is a true trailblazer and his appointment represents a watershed moment for Blaaiz. His proven track record of delivering exceptional financial outcomes across multiple continents and navigating complex regulatory requirements across key regions is exactly what we need as we pursue our ambition to become the leading provider of secure, borderless banking solutions in emerging markets.”
“Having Afolabi onboard is a key testament to our commitment to world-class governance and we are incredibly lucky to have him,” he added.
Adding his input, Mr Oladunjoye said, “I am honoured to join Blaaiz at this crucial stage of its growth. I’m impressed by their innovative approach to cross-border payments and I look forward to contributing my expertise to their regional expansion, empowering users to send money across the world with purpose.”
According to the statement, Blaaiz remains committed to empowering individuals and businesses to connect financially across borders, turning every transaction into a step towards a brighter, more inclusive financial future.
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