One in Three Companies Already Mandate AI Training – Businesses Warned Not to Fall Behind
Around a third of companies now require staff to complete artificial intelligence training – a proactive push that risks leaving slower adopters behind, according to the latest research from global tech body CompTIA.
The report, AI’s Impact on Productivity and the Workforce, warns that firms waiting to skill their people may be locking themselves into the very early-stage AI adoption they cite as the reason to delay.
Nearly half of respondents (46%) said training was “not needed yet” because AI in their organisation is “still in the early phases” – a stance researchers described as a “chicken or the egg paradox”. “…[T]he reason they may be in that position is because staff do not possess the AI skills to move AI deployments forward,” the report notes.
FOMO rising in boardrooms
Leadership pressure is intensifying: more than 8 in 10 companies (82%) report a “high degree of growing expectations” for AI to deliver productivity gains.
Yet elevated expectations are colliding with reality. Nearly four-fifths of companies (79%) that tried replacing human tasks with AI reported some level of backtracking when technology fell short – returning work to people to meet deadlines, standards or compliance requirements.
Performance issues, scaling challenges and unexpected costs were among the top drivers of failed deployments.
“AI deployments that fall short tend to signify more than technology shortcomings,” researchers warn. “Sufficient attention to workflow processes and skills training for staff are equally important.”
Adoption remains uneven – and skills are the key divider
CompTIA finds an average of 37% of employees within companies are already using AI on the job. Larger firms report more top-down adoption, driven by CEOs and senior leadership.
But while many organisations are experimenting, most aren’t yet building the workforce capabilities needed to scale AI successfully,
Only 34% of companies currently mandate AI skills training. A further 36% make training optional, leaving uptake to staff discretion.
Investment in learning, however, is accelerating: 85% of companies say they value industry-recognised certifications to validate staff AI knowledge and task completion.
“We’re using AI” ≠ “We’re benefiting from AI”
The report stresses that measurement lags behind ambition.
Across five key productivity metrics – including time savings and increased output – only around half of companies measure AI’s effects rigorously.
Researchers warn that organisations may be overestimating progress if the returns from AI tools are judged by “eye-balling” rather than structured evaluation.
Staffing upheaval – but slower than headlines suggest
The research was based on a September 2025 survey of 1,133 U.S. companies, sampled across industries and firm sizes.
AI-related workforce change is happening – but far more cautiously than “robots taking jobs” headlines imply:
Some 38% of companies have taken some staffing action attributed to AI – including adding new roles, shifting workers and, in some cases, eliminating posts.
Only 20% report replacing staff positions with AI at all – and most of those moved staff elsewhere or hired new people due to automation. The net impact of companies that solely reduced staff due to AI is just 9%.
However, junior-level workers appear most exposed, with companies citing perceptions of easier replaceability and lower influence on outcomes.
A credibility problem: “AI made us do it”
Even firms that did cut staff due to AI admit the technology may be a convenient justification:
Some 64% acknowledged using AI as cover for unpopular business decisions, such as layoffs or deep cost reductions.
The competitive threat is no longer theoretical
Companies are increasingly focused on talent competition in the AI economy with demand for AI skills in U.S. tech job listings more than doubled year-over-year (+107%). Job ads requiring AI skills have tripled versus overall tech hiring trends, according to the study.
Nearly half of firms (49%) say they are reassessing competitiveness due to AI pressures.
Final thoughts
Although the survey sample is U.S.-based, CompTIA’s analysis emphasises a global transformation already underway. Firms that do not aggressively skill their workforces – especially in customer-facing and operational roles – may struggle to catch up when AI moves from experimentation to expectation.
As researchers conclude, in a world where many companies expect productivity gains “urgently”, the status quo of inaction “is usually not an option”.
To learn more about AI's impact on productivity, download CompTIA’s AI’s Impact on Productivity and the Workforce report or visit CompTIA’s comprehensive research library, including insights from job seekers, IT professionals, community college students, and more.
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