95% of HR leaders report rising workloads as AI adds new pressure to workforce training and skills development
HR leaders face overwhelming pressures to keep up
28 July 2026
Three quarters of UK organisations still have no AI workforce plan despite growing demands on HR, learning and development teams.HR leaders and those responsible for workplace training are facing mounting pressure as artificial intelligence accelerates the pace of change across UK organisations, according to new research from The Coders Guild.The findings reveal that HR and learning and development professionals are increasingly being asked to lead workforce transformation programmes, redesign recruitment processes, implement AI governance frameworks, upskill employees and improve productivity - often without the resources, training or workforce plans needed to support them.The research comes as 95% of HR leaders report rising workloads and 91% say their responsibilities have increased over the past year, highlighting growing concerns around pressure, change fatigue and the long-term sustainability of workforce transformation efforts.At the same time, 78% of HR leaders expect AI to significantly change workforce skills requirements within the next three years, yet only 24% of organisations currently have a documented workforce strategy for AI.This means three quarters of UK organisations are entering the AI era without a clear plan for preparing their workforce.Despite 67% of HR leaders identifying AI adoption as a strategic business priority, fewer than one-third feel fully prepared to lead the organisational changes required to make AI successful.The research suggests that many organisations are treating AI as a technology challenge when, in reality, the biggest barrier to success is workforce readiness.Crispin Read, Founder of The Coders Guild, said:“The biggest myth in all of this is that everyone else has already cracked AI and you're the one falling behind. Almost nobody has cracked it. The leaders who feel furthest back are usually sitting exactly where most organisations are.”He adds:"The people carrying this are already stretched. They're being asked to prepare a whole workforce for one of the biggest changes to how we work that any of us have seen, on top of recruitment, retention, compliance and everything else that lands on them in a normal week. The line I hear again and again is, 'I kept telling myself I'd learn AI when things calmed down. They never calmed down.' That's not a failing on anyone's part. It's the reality of running a busy team right now."You don't need to become a technical expert to lead this well. You need enough understanding to make good calls, set sensible guardrails, back your people and see where AI genuinely earns its place. The whole point of handing the routine work to AI is to get more human time back, not less.”
The research also highlights that more than seven in ten HR leaders (71%) expect AI to reshape recruitment processes within the next two years, while 55% of managers say they do not know how to effectively assess AI capability during recruitment.
The findings also reveal growing concern around governance and compliance.Some 62% of HR professionals are concerned about AI governance and compliance risks, while 54% of organisations currently have no formal policy governing employee use of AI tools.Despite being expected to lead organisational AI adoption, only 23% of HR departments have received AI-specific training themselves.The Coders Guild warns that organisations risk creating a new workforce wellbeing challenge if investment in skills and training fails to keep pace with AI adoption.While AI is often positioned as a productivity solution, the research suggests it is also creating anxiety among leaders responsible for implementing change.Many HR and learning professionals report feeling caught between growing boardroom expectations and limited internal capability.The challenge is particularly acute as organisations attempt to adopt AI while simultaneously addressing recruitment shortages, retention challenges and wider economic pressures.Without clear workforce strategies, the responsibility for closing AI skills gaps increasingly falls on already stretched HR and learning teams.Nearly seven in ten employers (68%) expect AI literacy to become a standard workplace skill within the next five years.Demand for AI skills continues to rise rapidly, while traditional degree requirements continue to fall.The research found that 67% of AI-related vacancies request fewer than three years' experience, demonstrating a growing preference for practical capability over traditional career pathways.Across many management and professional roles, employees with AI capability can command salaries between 20% and 25% higher than peers without those skills. HR professionals with AI skills can earn up to 25% more than colleagues lacking AI capability.The findings suggest that access to AI training is becoming a major factor in attracting and retaining talent.Almost two-thirds of employees (64%) say AI training would make an employer more attractive.Nearly half (47%) believe AI skills will be essential for career progression within the next two years.Employees receiving AI-related training are 35% less likely to actively seek employment elsewhere, while organisations investing in AI capability programmes report higher levels of employee engagement.As a result, AI training is increasingly being viewed alongside flexible working and career development as a core employee benefit.The research also identifies major disparities in AI readiness across both sectors and regions.The research also highlights significant AI readiness gaps across both sectors and regions. Construction, manufacturing, hospitality and social care are among the least prepared industries, with only 14% of construction businesses providing formal AI training and fewer than 10% of social care organisations offering workforce training programmes.We led the research and development behind the new Level 4 AI and Automation standard, alongside Skills England and the Alan Turing Institute. What came through from the businesses we spoke to was consistent. Leaders wanted to understand AI well enough to direct it. They weren't trying to become engineers. They were trying to make confident decisions for their teams.Regional disparities are also emerging. While London, the South East and East of England lead on AI readiness, organisations in the North East, Yorkshire and Humber, Wales and Northern Ireland are falling behind.
Only 17% of North East organisations provide structured AI training, while employers in Wales and Northern Ireland record some of the lowest levels of AI workforce planning and participation.For organisations looking to build AI capability across leadership and workforce teams, further information on The Coders Guild's AI Leadership programmes is available at: www.thecodersguild.org.uk/ai-leadership-training/
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The research also highlights that more than seven in ten HR leaders (71%) expect AI to reshape recruitment processes within the next two years, while 55% of managers say they do not know how to effectively assess AI capability during recruitment.
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The findings also reveal growing concern around governance and compliance.Some 62% of HR professionals are concerned about AI governance and compliance risks, while 54% of organisations currently have no formal policy governing employee use of AI tools.Despite being expected to lead organisational AI adoption, only 23% of HR departments have received AI-specific training themselves.The Coders Guild warns that organisations risk creating a new workforce wellbeing challenge if investment in skills and training fails to keep pace with AI adoption.While AI is often positioned as a productivity solution, the research suggests it is also creating anxiety among leaders responsible for implementing change.Many HR and learning professionals report feeling caught between growing boardroom expectations and limited internal capability.The challenge is particularly acute as organisations attempt to adopt AI while simultaneously addressing recruitment shortages, retention challenges and wider economic pressures.Without clear workforce strategies, the responsibility for closing AI skills gaps increasingly falls on already stretched HR and learning teams.Nearly seven in ten employers (68%) expect AI literacy to become a standard workplace skill within the next five years.Demand for AI skills continues to rise rapidly, while traditional degree requirements continue to fall.The research found that 67% of AI-related vacancies request fewer than three years' experience, demonstrating a growing preference for practical capability over traditional career pathways.Across many management and professional roles, employees with AI capability can command salaries between 20% and 25% higher than peers without those skills. HR professionals with AI skills can earn up to 25% more than colleagues lacking AI capability.The findings suggest that access to AI training is becoming a major factor in attracting and retaining talent.Almost two-thirds of employees (64%) say AI training would make an employer more attractive.Nearly half (47%) believe AI skills will be essential for career progression within the next two years.Employees receiving AI-related training are 35% less likely to actively seek employment elsewhere, while organisations investing in AI capability programmes report higher levels of employee engagement.As a result, AI training is increasingly being viewed alongside flexible working and career development as a core employee benefit.The research also identifies major disparities in AI readiness across both sectors and regions.The research also highlights significant AI readiness gaps across both sectors and regions. Construction, manufacturing, hospitality and social care are among the least prepared industries, with only 14% of construction businesses providing formal AI training and fewer than 10% of social care organisations offering workforce training programmes.We led the research and development behind the new Level 4 AI and Automation standard, alongside Skills England and the Alan Turing Institute. What came through from the businesses we spoke to was consistent. Leaders wanted to understand AI well enough to direct it. They weren't trying to become engineers. They were trying to make confident decisions for their teams.Regional disparities are also emerging. While London, the South East and East of England lead on AI readiness, organisations in the North East, Yorkshire and Humber, Wales and Northern Ireland are falling behind.
Only 17% of North East organisations provide structured AI training, while employers in Wales and Northern Ireland record some of the lowest levels of AI workforce planning and participation.For organisations looking to build AI capability across leadership and workforce teams, further information on The Coders Guild's AI Leadership programmes is available at: www.thecodersguild.org.uk/ai-leadership-training/
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