The labor market is no longer defined by simple measures of hiring and unemployment. It is being reshaped by rapid skill evolution, uneven readiness, and the accelerating influence of AI on how work is performed. Drawing on LinkedIn’s recent labor market research, Richard Stein, CEO of talent intelligence advisor HSiQ – a Hunt Scanlon Company – examines what these signals reveal about the future of work – and why talent intelligence is becoming essential to turning disruption into advantage.
LinkedIn’s Building a Future of Work That Works report, powered by the platform’s Economic Graph of hundreds of millions of professionals and trillions of data points, offers one of the most comprehensive real-time views of global labor market dynamics heading into 2026.
The picture it presents is complex. Hiring activity remains below pre-pandemic levels across many advanced economies, yet new opportunities are emerging rapidly in AI-related and digital- enabled roles.
The labor market is not contracting uniformly. It is fragmenting. Demand is shifting faster than talent systems can adapt, creating stress not because work is disappearing, but because skills are misaligned with where growth is occurring.
AI Is Reshaping Work – Not Eliminating It
One of the report’s most important conclusions is that AI is not simply a job destroyer. Even amid slower overall hiring, LinkedIn data shows that AI has already contributed to the creation of more than 1.3 million new roles globally, including data annotators, AI engineers, and forward-deployed technical specialists.
“This underscores a critical reality: the future of work is not a zero-sum contest between humans and machines,” says Richard Stein, CEO of HSIQ, the talent intelligence advisory unit of Hunt Scanlon.
“It is a rebalancing of roles, skills, and expectations. As some traditional positions stagnate, new categories of work are forming – often faster than organizations and individuals are prepared for,” he says.
“AI is not removing work so much as it is changing what capability looks like,” he adds. “The risk is not automation itself, but how slowly talent systems adjust to what AI makes possible.”
The Readiness Gap Is the Real Constraint
LinkedIn’s research highlights a growing disconnect between opportunity and preparedness. While more than half of professionals globally report actively exploring new roles, nearly 80 percent say they do not feel ready to pursue them. That gap is a warning signal.
“The future of work is not a zero-sum contest between humans and machines. It is a rebalancing of roles, skills, and expectations.”
The constraint facing organizations is not interest or mobility – it is readiness.
Upskilling and reskilling are no longer optional workforce initiatives; they are prerequisites for participation in the future labor market. Without clearer visibility into skill trajectories and role evolution, both employers and workers are left reacting too late.
This is where labor-market data must move beyond observation and into application.
From Market Signals to Actionable Intelligence
HSIQ was built to close this gap between insight and action, says Mr. Stein.
“By combining predictive labor-market intelligence with skill-based analytics, our platform enables organizations to anticipate how roles are evolving and where capability gaps will emerge before they constrain growth,” he says.
For employers, this means aligning workforce strategy with future demand rather than yesterday’s job structures. For professionals, it means understanding not just which jobs exist today, but which skills will define opportunity tomorrow.
“LinkedIn’s report makes one thing clear: data alone isn’t enough,” Mr. Stein notes. “Insight only matters when it informs decisions – about where to invest, how to develop talent, and when to move.”
“Insight only matters when it informs decisions – about where to invest, how to develop talent, and when to move.”
“HSIQ helps organizations convert emerging demand signals into practical advantage by pinpointing where skills are becoming scarce, how competitors are hiring, and which roles are gaining strategic importance,” he adds. “In doing so, we reinforce the report’s emphasis on adaptability, human-centered capability, and continuous learning – not as ideals, but as competitive levers.”
Talent Intelligence as a Navigation System
“As the pace of change accelerates, the organizations that succeed will not be those with the most data, but those with the clearest understanding of how to act on it,” says Scott A. Scanlon, CEO of Hunt Scanlon and co-founder of HSiQ.
“The future of work rewards those who understand not just what jobs exist, but what skills will drive them,” he notes. “HSIQ helps leaders, employers, and individuals translate market signals into confident action.”
In a labor market where change is constant and visibility is uneven, LinkedIn’s report serves as both a mirror and a roadmap.
“Talent intelligence is what allows organizations to use that roadmap effectively – anticipating turns, adjusting course, and moving forward with intent rather than reaction,” says Mr. Stein.
HSiQ Insights Lab was created to examine exactly this intersection – where data, technology, and human potential converge. As the workforce contracts, advantage will not come from doing more with less. It will come from seeing more of what already exists – and using it intelligently.
For more information on how HSiQ can help your business succeed, please contact us today.
Article By
Richard Stein
Richard Stein is CEO of HSIQ. He has a distinguished career supporting the C-suite of many of the world’s top corporations and financial services organizations in all aspects of talent acquisition, development and retention. Richard is one of the industry’s top advisors with experience across the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific.
