{"success":true,"data":{"pressRelease":{"id":"163131","rtpr_id":"nGNX54255c-20261007","ticker":"WTW","exchange":"NASDAQ","all_tickers":["WTW"],"title":"Uncertainty about future skills is emerging as the next workforce risk, says WTW","author":"Globe Newswire","published_at":"2026-10-07T12:31:30.092Z","article_body":"NEW YORK, Oct. 07, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Employers face a growing workforce\nrisk as employees struggle to understand which skills they need and how to\ndevelop them quickly enough to keep pace with changing work, according to\nWTW’s latest EX Intelligent report.\n\nThe proportion of employees who say their manager helps develop their\nabilities has shifted from 84% to 78% over the past four years, highlighting\nthe need to give managers more support for development conversations. At the\nsame time, only about 30% of organizations have established processes for\nidentifying, assessing and tracking workforce skills.\n\nThis mismatch risks creating “capability anxiety”: uncertainty among\nemployees about whether their skills will remain relevant, what capabilities\nwill matter most and where they should focus their development.\n\nEmployees understand that work is changing. 45% say AI is already important to\ntheir daily job and another 22% say it will fundamentally change their work in\nthe future. The pressure point is not change itself, but rather the\nuncertainty of whether they can keep up, what skills matter most and where to\nfocus next.\n\nJill Havely, Global Employee Experience Leader at WTW, said: “Employees\nrecognize that work is evolving, but many lack clarity on what skills matter\nmost and how to prepare for what comes next. Without that visibility,\nuncertainty can become a barrier to confidence and growth.”\n\n“To address this, employers need to make development more tangible by\nequipping managers to have meaningful career conversations, creating clearer\nvisibility into skills and career opportunities, and linking learning directly\nto the work employees do every day.”\n\nFor organizations, skills uncertainty can create a blind spot. If employees\ncannot connect their current role with future opportunities, confidence may\nerode, adaptability may slow and investment in new technology may fail to\ntranslate into stronger performance.\n\nWTW recommends that employers:\n* identify the skills required to deliver current and future business\npriorities;\n* give employees clearer visibility of career pathways, learning opportunities\nand internal roles;\n* equip managers to discuss changing skill requirements and guide development;\nand\n* use employee listening and workforce data to identify where uncertainty or\ncapability gaps may be affecting confidence and performance.\nHavely added: “Workforce transformation is more likely to succeed when\nemployees can see a clear path to growth and organizations have the\ninfrastructure to support it. By making skills, career pathways and\ndevelopment opportunities more visible and actionable, employers can reduce\ncapability anxiety and build a workforce better equipped to adapt, grow and\nperform.”\n\nAbout the research\n\nWTW’s 2026 Employee Experience Global Market Study includes responses from\n549 employer organizations representing 5.6 million employees globally. It\nalso draws on insights from 7,000 employees across the United States, United\nKingdom, Japan, France and Saudi Arabia.\n\nAbout WTW\n\nAt WTW, we provide data-driven, insight-led solutions in the areas of people,\nrisk and capital. Leveraging the global view and local expertise of our\ncolleagues serving 140 countries and markets, we help organizations sharpen\nstrategy, enhance organizational resilience, motivate their workforce and\nmaximize performance. Working shoulder to shoulder with clients, we uncover\nopportunities for sustainable success — and provide perspective that moves\nyou.\n\nMedia contacts\n\nArnelle Sullivan\n\nArnelle.Sullivan@wtwco.com\n\nIleana Feoli\n\nIleana.Feoli@wtwco.com\n\n(https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/d60448c5-44c1-4061-a525-161810e55c26)\n\n\n\nGlobeNewswire, Inc. 2026","article_body_html":"","raw_payload":{"data":{"id":"nGNX54255c-20261007","title":"Uncertainty about future skills is emerging as the next workforce risk, says WTW","author":"Globe Newswire","ticker":"WTW","created":"2026-10-07T12:31:30.092Z","tickers":["WTW"],"exchange":"NASDAQ","article_body":"NEW YORK, Oct. 07, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Employers face a growing workforce\nrisk as employees struggle to understand which skills they need and how to\ndevelop them quickly enough to keep pace with changing work, according to\nWTW’s latest EX Intelligent report.\n\nThe proportion of employees who say their manager helps develop their\nabilities has shifted from 84% to 78% over the past four years, highlighting\nthe need to give managers more support for development conversations. At the\nsame time, only about 30% of organizations have established processes for\nidentifying, assessing and tracking workforce skills.\n\nThis mismatch risks creating “capability anxiety”: uncertainty among\nemployees about whether their skills will remain relevant, what capabilities\nwill matter most and where they should focus their development.\n\nEmployees understand that work is changing. 45% say AI is already important to\ntheir daily job and another 22% say it will fundamentally change their work in\nthe future. The pressure point is not change itself, but rather the\nuncertainty of whether they can keep up, what skills matter most and where to\nfocus next.\n\nJill Havely, Global Employee Experience Leader at WTW, said: “Employees\nrecognize that work is evolving, but many lack clarity on what skills matter\nmost and how to prepare for what comes next. Without that visibility,\nuncertainty can become a barrier to confidence and growth.”\n\n“To address this, employers need to make development more tangible by\nequipping managers to have meaningful career conversations, creating clearer\nvisibility into skills and career opportunities, and linking learning directly\nto the work employees do every day.”\n\nFor organizations, skills uncertainty can create a blind spot. If employees\ncannot connect their current role with future opportunities, confidence may\nerode, adaptability may slow and investment in new technology may fail to\ntranslate into stronger performance.\n\nWTW recommends that employers:\n* identify the skills required to deliver current and future business\npriorities;\n* give employees clearer visibility of career pathways, learning opportunities\nand internal roles;\n* equip managers to discuss changing skill requirements and guide development;\nand\n* use employee listening and workforce data to identify where uncertainty or\ncapability gaps may be affecting confidence and performance.\nHavely added: “Workforce transformation is more likely to succeed when\nemployees can see a clear path to growth and organizations have the\ninfrastructure to support it. By making skills, career pathways and\ndevelopment opportunities more visible and actionable, employers can reduce\ncapability anxiety and build a workforce better equipped to adapt, grow and\nperform.”\n\nAbout the research\n\nWTW’s 2026 Employee Experience Global Market Study includes responses from\n549 employer organizations representing 5.6 million employees globally. It\nalso draws on insights from 7,000 employees across the United States, United\nKingdom, Japan, France and Saudi Arabia.\n\nAbout WTW\n\nAt WTW, we provide data-driven, insight-led solutions in the areas of people,\nrisk and capital. Leveraging the global view and local expertise of our\ncolleagues serving 140 countries and markets, we help organizations sharpen\nstrategy, enhance organizational resilience, motivate their workforce and\nmaximize performance. Working shoulder to shoulder with clients, we uncover\nopportunities for sustainable success — and provide perspective that moves\nyou.\n\nMedia contacts\n\nArnelle Sullivan\n\nArnelle.Sullivan@wtwco.com\n\nIleana Feoli\n\nIleana.Feoli@wtwco.com\n\n(https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/d60448c5-44c1-4061-a525-161810e55c26)\n\n\n\nGlobeNewswire, Inc. 2026"},"type":"article","timestamp":"2026-10-07T12:31:30.126385306Z","server_sent_at_ms":1791376290126},"received_at":"2026-10-07T12:31:30.176Z","source_url":null},"analysis":{"id":"151592","press_release_id":"163131","analysis_json":{"industry":{"label":"Professional Services","sector":"Industrials"},"redFlags":[],"eventType":"other","narrative":"WTW published its latest EX Intelligent report arguing that uncertainty about future skills is emerging as the next major workforce risk for employers.\n\nKey findings include a drop in employees saying their manager helps develop their abilities, from 84% to 78% over four years, and only about 30% of organizations having processes to identify and track workforce skills.\n\nOn AI, 45% of employees say it is already important to their daily job and another 22% expect it to fundamentally change their work.\n\nThe research draws on WTW's 2026 Employee Experience Global Market Study covering 549 employer organizations representing 5.6 million employees, plus a survey of 7,000 employees across five countries.","sentiment":"neutral","agentHooks":{"shouldPost":false,"suggestedAngle":"Thought-leadership survey on skills uncertainty and 'capability anxiety' -- brand content, not a market-moving disclosure."},"keyFigures":{"customDimensions":{"survey_employers":549,"orgs_with_skills_processes":"about 30%","employee_survey_respondents":7000,"survey_employees_represented":"5.6 million","employees_say_ai_important_now":"45%","employees_say_ai_will_change_work":"22%","manager_development_support_shift":"84% to 78% over four years"}},"quotedText":"Employees recognize that work is evolving, but many lack clarity on what skills matter most and how to prepare for what comes next.","namedEntities":{"people":[{"name":"Jill Havely","role":"Global Employee Experience Leader at WTW"},{"name":"Arnelle Sullivan","role":"media contact"},{"name":"Ileana Feoli","role":"media contact"}],"products":["EX Intelligent report","2026 Employee Experience Global Market Study"],"companies":[{"name":"WTW","ticker":"WTW","relationship":"filer/author"}],"dollarAmounts":[]},"materialImpact":{"score":1,"reasoning":"This is a thought-leadership research report (EX Intelligent survey) with no financial results, guidance, contracts, or corporate actions affecting WTW. It is brand-building content with no direct material impact on the company."},"tickerRelevance":{"others":[],"primary":"WTW"},"globalImportance":10,"audienceRelevance":10,"eventTypeSecondary":[],"importanceComponents":{"tickerTier":"large-cap","eventGravity":"thought-leadership-research","issuerAuthored":true,"financialMateriality":"none"}},"event_type":"other","event_type_secondary":null,"sentiment":"neutral","material_impact_score":1,"narrative":"WTW published its latest EX Intelligent report arguing that uncertainty about future skills is emerging as the next major workforce risk for employers.\n\nKey findings include a drop in employees saying their manager helps develop their abilities, from 84% to 78% over four years, and only about 30% of organizations having processes to identify and track workforce skills.\n\nOn AI, 45% of employees say it is already important to their daily job and another 22% expect it to fundamentally change their work.\n\nThe research draws on WTW's 2026 Employee Experience Global Market Study covering 549 employer organizations representing 5.6 million employees, plus a survey of 7,000 employees across five countries.","key_figures":{"customDimensions":{"survey_employers":549,"orgs_with_skills_processes":"about 30%","employee_survey_respondents":7000,"survey_employees_represented":"5.6 million","employees_say_ai_important_now":"45%","employees_say_ai_will_change_work":"22%","manager_development_support_shift":"84% to 78% over four years"}},"named_entities":{"people":[{"name":"Jill Havely","role":"Global Employee Experience Leader at WTW"},{"name":"Arnelle Sullivan","role":"media contact"},{"name":"Ileana Feoli","role":"media contact"}],"products":["EX Intelligent report","2026 Employee Experience Global Market Study"],"companies":[{"name":"WTW","ticker":"WTW","relationship":"filer/author"}],"dollarAmounts":[]},"model_name":"glm-5.3-flashx","prompt_hash":"sha256:5c812bd9e28b810d","schema_hash":"sha256:05005c02d9cffac9","created_at":"2026-10-07T12:31:35.579Z","global_importance":10,"audience_relevance":10,"importance_components":{"tickerTier":"large-cap","eventGravity":"thought-leadership-research","issuerAuthored":true,"financialMateriality":"none"}},"durationMs":5390,"modelName":"glm-5.3-flashx"}}