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Where Does Alignment Break Between Strategy and Intent?

The need for capability transformation within organizations continues to grow, yet the extent to which this need translates into a concrete strategy varies significantly. The data shows that in nearly one-third of organizations, upskilling and reskilling have not yet become a strategic priority. While 43% of organizations report having a structured program, only 13% state that they have been able to systematically roll these strategies out across the entire company. This indicates that capability transformation is still progressing in a fragmented manner at the organizational level.

For 57% of companies, upskilling and reskilling are not yet a strategic priority

On the other hand, among organizations that do have a strategy, it is possible to say that upskilling investments are primarily made to ensure the sustainability of critical roles (22%), improve employee engagement (21%), and support AI and digital transformation adaptation (20%). This distribution shows that capability strategies are shaped by efforts to respond to both organizational continuity and cultural transformation needs. However, despite digital transformation and AI adaptation being among the key motivations for upskilling, McLean & Company’s HR Trends research indicates that only 11% of organizations have implemented an AI-specific upskilling strategy. This data highlights a clear gap between transformation expectations and execution.

When these findings are considered together, a striking picture emerges. Organizations have strong intentions around transformation, yet sufficient progress has not been made in translating these intentions into a systematic learning architecture. Particularly in areas requiring rapid adaptation, such as generative AI, the risk of losing competitive advantage increases for organizations without a clear strategy.

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The New Focus of Upskilling: Developing People Who Can Manage Technology

Survey data indicates that organizations are moving their upskilling and reskilling strategies beyond traditional training models. While technical skills alone appear to have relatively lower priority, adaptation to AI and digital transformation stands out as one of the most important motivations at 20%. In addition, 16% focus on productivity and workforce optimization. When these two areas are considered together, it becomes clear that organizations are using capability investments to reposition the human factor in the digital age.

Upskilling is evolving from an approach focused on teaching technology into a transformation aimed at developing people who can work effectively alongside technology. In this shift, the most critical variable is no longer information itself, but context. In an environment where information is easily accessible, the differentiating factor becomes how that information is integrated into processes, culture, and workflows.

In short, upskilling investments are no longer made to enable people to use more technology, but to transform technology in a way that is more human-centered, meaningful, and sustainable. This shows that capability strategies are being treated not merely as training initiatives, but as transformation architectures.

According to McKinsey & Company’s HR Monitor 2025 Report, on average only 21% of employees in Europe report having received formal training on the use of generative AI.

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