New Delhi, May 22 -- Nearly 45 per cent of organisations in India identify artificial intelligence, digital, and data skills as their single largest workforce constraint, while 54 per cent of organisations report moderate to low urgency on AI investment.

According to the SHRM India Skill Intelligence Report 2026, this critical talent shortage emerges even as India possesses a massive working-age population, with 62 per cent of its citizens currently falling within this bracket.

Leadership and return-on-investment gaps account for 44 per cent of these adoption barriers, while 1 in 5 leaders cite a resistant employee mindset as the primary obstacle. Despite this slow organisational response, disruption is imminent. The report stated that ...