Autodesk, Inc. has released the 2025 State of Design & Make report, which explores sentiments from leaders across Design and Make industries on managing cost control, embracing emerging technologies, and addressing the talent and skills gaps.
The study finds that despite ongoing geopolitical and economic uncertainty, the majority of business leaders in Singapore are investing in AI, technology advancement, and sustainability across all industries, with efforts to overcome a technical skills shortage.
The talent crunch continues to impact business growth. Leaders are struggling to attract, train, and retain talent, which is affecting their ability to effectively harness or manage technological advancements, including those made in AI. More critically, talent constraints are also hampering overall business growth.
- About a third (32%) of Singapore business leaders ranked attracting, training, and retaining talent among their top 3 challenges faced.
- Three in ten (30%) also rank technological advancements, including AI, among their top 3 challenges.
- More than six in ten (62%) also find the lack of access to skilled talent to be a barrier to their company’s growth.
Businesses are struggling to find employees with the right technical skills, which may lead to a premium being placed on AI skills when hiring. In fact, less than half of local leaders say their organisations are approaching or have achieved their AI goals, suggesting potential challenges with implementation. With AI implementation only as good as the quality of data it has access to, this may also lead to high demand for data-related skill sets when hiring.
- About six in ten (61%) Singapore business leaders face challenges hiring new employees with the right technical skills.
- Nearly half (47%) are prioritising the ability to work with AI when hiring in the next few years
- This is followed by a focus on skills related to data analytics and insights, a priority among 39% when it comes to hiring.
- Only four in ten (43%) say they are approaching or had already achieved their AI goals.
While Singapore businesses acknowledge the importance of upskilling, many are finding it difficult to address these challenges with on-the-job training and continuous learning that could help their employees – and their businesses – keep up with the rapid pace of transformation.
- More than seven in ten (71%) Singapore business leaders say their organisations are implementing skilling programs to mitigate the talent shortage.
- However, more than half of professionals say they do not have the resources to design internal training programs.
- More than six in ten (61%) say external training programs do not meet the needs of their organisation, above the APAC average of 54%.
A competitive economy and rapidly digitalising landscape means that businesses must master AI skills to thrive, working alongside technology rather than against it. Industry leaders must bridge the gap between education and the demands of an AI-driven workforce by democratising access to technology, working with educators to help create effective curriculums that reflect workforce needs, and increasing job awareness to connect the next generation to the most in-demand opportunities.
In Singapore, these efforts are driven at both a public and private level. Business leaders can leverage the Enterprise Compute Initiative, which aims to close the AI capability gap by helping local enterprises, such as SMEs, adopt AI solutions tailored to their specific needs. In addition, private sector-led initiatives such as the Autodesk Education Platform contribute to accelerating skilling efforts and diversifying the talent pipeline in Design and Make industries.
