Nigerian businesses face skills shake-up as AI, digital technology reshape workplaces

Nigerian businesses must rethink workforce development and talent management as technological change reshapes job requirements, with nearly two-fifths of workers’ existing skills expected to change or become outdated by 2030, according to the World Economic Forum (WEF).

The challenge was highlighted at the Lead the Future Conference 2026, where business and human resource leaders called for organisations to move beyond traditional recruitment and management practices to prepare employees for the changing workplace demands.

Kola Oluyemi, group head of Sterling Academy, said organisations must recognise that the changing workforce is not simply a question of managing differences between age groups, but of responding to evolving skills requirements and expectations.

Citing the WEF’s Future of Jobs Report 2025, Oluyemi said 39 percent of workers’ existing skill sets were expected to change or become outdated by 2030. The report, published in January 2025, draws on the perspectives of more than 1,000 employers representing over 14 million workers across 55 economies.

The report identifies artificial intelligence, big data, cybersecurity, and technological literacy as skills expected to grow in importance as businesses adopt new technologies. It also highlights analytical thinking, creative thinking and adaptability as essential capabilities in the changing labour market.

For Nigerian businesses, the implications extend beyond hiring technology specialists. Organisations must also determine how to retrain existing employees, redesign roles and create opportunities for workers to acquire the skills needed to remain productive as technology changes how work is performed.

Oluyemi said companies should adopt skills-based hiring rather than relying excessively on academic qualifications without assessing candidates’ ability to apply their knowledge.

“A certificate is good, but if you have a certificate and there’s no application or knowledge, it’s useless to the organisation,” he said.

He argued that workforce development should begin with an organisation’s business strategy and the capabilities required to achieve its objectives. Employers must then assess whether those capabilities exist internally and establish learning pathways that allow employees to develop and move into new roles.

The need to adapt also extends to how companies retain and manage talent, as Kunbi Adeoti, chief people experience officer at Leadway Group, said the relationship between employers and employees was changing, with workers considering flexibility, career progression, wellbeing and the values of an organisation when deciding whether to remain with an employer.

She questioned if traditional employee-retention measures adequately reflected these changes, arguing that businesses needed to understand what workers value rather than assume that one approach would suit everyone.

“It’s not a linear career anymore. That’s why we have the concept of pivoting. How do you learn, relearn and learn again?” Adeoti said.

She also urged employers to create workplaces where employees across different generations could contribute meaningfully. While experienced workers bring institutional knowledge, younger employees can contribute agility and speed, she said, making it important for organisations to create opportunities for knowledge-sharing and collaboration.

Adeoti said businesses should use employee surveys, focus groups and engagement processes to understand workforce expectations and develop policies that reflect their needs.

Ademola Adebise, chairman of Family Homes Funds Ltd, similarly stressed that organisational transformation depended on more than technology investment.

“Transformation is really people doing things, not just the technology,” he said, identifying clear vision, communication, access to resources, execution and measurement as important elements of effective leadership.

He revealed a challenge facing businesses pursuing digital transformation, which includes technology investments that must be accompanied by the organisational capabilities and workforce changes required to translate them into results.

The WEF report estimates that 59 out of every 100 workers will need training by 2030, while 63 percent of surveyed employers identify skills gaps as a major barrier to business transformation.

As AI and other digital technologies become more integrated into business operations, the ability of organisations to develop talent, adapt job roles and support continuous learning will become important to their competitiveness.

For Nigerian companies, the task is not only to adopt new technology, but to ensure their people can use it effectively while preparing for the jobs and skills that will define the next phase of business.