Evolution of Global Capability Centers in 2026

You're at a tipping point: rapid technology adoption, moving skills, and new expectations are requiring you to rethink how your company creates worth through people. International Skill Patterns 2026 provides you a dataled, practical view of the labor force trends forming your decisionsdrawn from a global study of almost 12,000 executives, HR leaders, workers, and investors throughout 16 geographies and 16 industriesand reveals you: How peers are revamping work to blend human capability with automation What AI in the workplace looks like How to prepare for the AI future of work Which future-fit skills to establish How to sharpen your employee worth proposal to drive performance.

The authors are grateful to Karen Pastakia, Kate Sweeney, Simona Spelman, Costs Briggs, and Nitin Mittal for their time, input, and steady partnership throughout this effort. Unique thanks to Catherine Gergen for her reputable research assistance and coordination in composing this Introduction. An unique note of recognition is scheduled for Ishani Purohit and Olivia Rueger, whose consistent project management stewardship over the past year managed every moving piece of this reportfrom early preparation through last productionkeeping the group aligned, momentum strong, and execution smooth.

The authors extend thanks to the rapid eye movement teamMatt Deruntz, Maria Neira, Qiaoli Wang, Manshreya Grover, Nirupam Datta, Charu Ratnu, Santhosh Naidu, Derek Taylor, Marcella Hines, Parag Zalpuri, Chris Tomke, and Luly Castillerofor their steadfast collaboration and behind-the-scenes execution that kept the work moving from draft to delivery. The authors also acknowledge the Deloitte Insights teamCorrie Commisso, Hannah Bachman, Annalyn Kurtz, Alexis Werbeck, Jim Slatton, Govindh Raj, and Molly Piersol, and the information visualization group, whose editorial rigor, storytelling craft, and visual clarity sharpened the story and brought the insights to life.

Thank you to the Worldwide Human Capital executive teamKate Sweeney, Kate Morican, Amanda Flouch, Nathalie Vandaele, Jodi Baker Calamai, Dheeraj Sharma, Franz Gilbert, Karen Pastakia, Simona Spelman, Yasushi Muranaka, Tom Alstein, Sebastian Pfeifle, John Brownridge, Kurt Proctor-Parker, Pat Shannon, Andrew Potts, Dahlia Katz, Ava Damri, Kelly Nelson, Joan Pere Salom, Gerhard Botha, and Stuart Scotisfor sponsoring and supporting the global reach of this report.

ANSR July USA PRs

The authors likewise extend genuine thanks to the customers who generously shared their time and experiences through interviews conducted for this report. Their candid insights and point of views improved our exploration, grounded the thoughtful analysis in real-world truths, and strengthened the importance and practicality of the findings. Thank you to Lara Martinez Gonzalez, worldwide director of talent intelligence, AstraZeneca; Michelle Robertson, executive board member (international human resources, people and culture), Adidas; Emily Bacon, senior manager, company and people technique, Adobe; Zac Parris, former director of organizational effectiveness, Atlassian; Taeko Kawano, executive officer and primary human resources officer, AXA; Justin Zaccaria, chief personnels officer, Bechtel; Matt Schuyler, chief people officer, Creative Artists Company (CAA); Megan Bazan, vice president of people, Cisco; Charlotte Wolf Tarfa, vice president, international skill strategy and succession, Coca-Cola; Melissa Collier, director, modification leadership, Georgia-Pacific; Elise Bathurst, director of people operations, Google; Courtney Gilliland, senior director, United States personnels, Gordon Food Service; Lindsey Taylor, senior director, strategic labor force planning and people analytics, Hewlett Packard Business; Marcia Oglen, senior vice president, enterprise human resources, Highmark Health; Jon Pitts, creator and chief technical officer, Ihp Analytics; Reiko Mukai, chief personnels officer, MetLife Japan; Charlotte Simpson, corporate officer and head of people and organization, Novartis Japan; Heather Neville, senior vice president, individuals and locations strategy and operations, Sony Interactive Home Entertainment; Jill Larsen, chief individuals officer, Synopsys; Niki Rose, workforce experience and ability executive, Telstra; Tomoko Adachi, global chief human resources officer, Terumo Corporation; and Michael Ehret, senior vice president and primary people officer, Walmart International.

Critical Steps for Scaling Global Operations

CEO expectations for AI-driven growth remain high in 2026at the exact same time their labor forces are coming to grips with the more sober truth of current AI performance. Gartner research discovers that just one in 50 AI financial investments provide transformational value, and only one in five delivers any measurable return on financial investment.

ANSR July USA PRs

AI has the potential to cause major shifts in how we work with and who we work with. As AI increasingly takes on the less complex, more repeatable tasks being done by the workforce, companies will require to work with talent who have wider, distinctively human skills. We're seeing increasing need for abilities like problem-solving, versatility, and collaboration skills that stimulate organizational agility.