Kyndryl Report Highlights Workforce Gap Hindering AI ROI

Kyndryl’s second Annual People‑Readiness Report, based on a global survey of 1,100 senior business and technology leaders in eight countries, finds that AI adoption is outpacing organisations’ ability to prepare their workforce. While 57% of respondents say AI is already embedded in core processes – up from 35% a year earlier – only 32% have achieved at least one of their two top AI objectives and just 11% meet both. Only 23% of firms judge their staff fully ready to work with AI, six points lower than in 2025, and 79% expect AI adoption speed to exceed organisational governance and operating‑model capacity.

The study identifies a small group of “Pacesetters” – 9% of organisations – that redesign roles around AI, implement change‑management programmes and actively upskill employees. These firms are 1.5 times more likely to realise AI‑linked revenue growth and 1.6 times more likely to report product‑service innovation. Additionally, 81% anticipate AI agents making high‑impact decisions within a year, yet only 25% fully trust unsupervised systems. Strong governance frames correlate with higher internal confidence and better investment outcomes.