1. Which are the three most critical skills currently lacking in European businesses, and what concrete measures can the EU activate to close this gap by 2028?
The strength of the EU economy depends on the skills of its citizens. Mario Draghi’s report on competitiveness establishes a clear link between skills and productivity, highlighting how a skilled workforce is essential for innovation, industrial leadership and economic growth.
Currently, 80% of employers and almost 4 out of 5 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) struggle to find workers with the right skills and qualifications. This is not surprising, given rapid technological progress and the twin green and digital transition.
According to Cedefop, the three most in-demand transversal skills in online job advertisements are willingness to learn, teamwork skills and language skills. These are not abstract qualities: they are essential elements for businesses operating in a Single Market of 450 million people.
We are also seeing a growing need for digital talent. By next year, the EU will need up to 7 million workers in the AI sector. There is a shortage of 300,000 cybersecurity specialists and 100,000 semiconductor professionals. Further investment is needed to address these shortages.
There are also severe shortages in professional and technical occupations. A report by the European Labour Authority also shows high demand for welders, cooks, nursing professionals and electricians. These are stable, skilled professions that support our industrial base, our competitiveness and our social model. They play an essential role in everyday life and in people’s needs. This is why we will soon present a new European strategy for vocational education and training.
Overall, Europe needs a workforce equipped with the skills required by today’s economy. This is precisely the objective of the Union of Skills: to provide workers with practical tools to learn, adapt and thrive in the digital age. The plan includes 40 actions to strengthen education, vocational training and lifelong learning.
The EU is supporting this objective with concrete investments and is mobilising over €150 billion for skills development, including more than €15 billion from the European Social Fund Plus. In the EU budget for 2028–2034, the Commission has made social investment a priority: we have proposed a specific target of at least 14% in national and regional partnership plans, to ensure stable support for employment, skills and inclusion.
We have set clear targets for 2030: at least 60% of adults should participate in training every year, and at least 80% should have basic digital skills. These measurable targets provide direction, accountability and a concrete path to closing the skills gap. But meeting them will require sustained action at all levels.
2. How can the Union of Skills move from being a strategic framework to an operational tool for SMEs, with tangible results by 2030?
SMEs are the backbone of our economy. They account for 99% of all EU businesses - more than 32 million companies. As Isabel Schnabel of the European Central Bank recently said, Europe does not lack talent or ideas, but scale. For SMEs, this means having access to the skills, financing and networks they need to grow in the Single Market.
We want to make it easier for employers to recruit, train their staff and grow in a truly integrated Single Market. This is how the EU supports competitiveness while also protecting the European social model. The Union of Skills is moving from strategy to action.
First, we are strengthening basic skills and vocational education and training. Too many young people still struggle with reading, mathematics and science. We have set the target of reducing underachievement in basic skills to below 15%. We also aim to ensure that 45% of vocational education graduates come from science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields. SMEs need these future technicians, engineers and skilled workers.
Second, we are helping people adapt to changes in the labour market. For example, through the “Skills Guarantee” pilot project, launched with a budget of €14.5 million to reskill automotive industry workers who have lost their jobs. For SMEs, this means being able to rely on people with the skills required by the market, making them more agile in a rapidly changing economy.
Third, we are improving cross-border recruitment. The forthcoming Skills Portability Initiative and our common European skills classification, ESCO, will make qualifications more transparent and comparable across the EU. This will enable SMEs to recruit skilled workers from other Member States without unnecessary barriers, ensuring that talent can move as freely as goods and services.
Fourth, we are attracting global talent. The “Choose Europe” programme, with €22.5 million in funding, invites leading researchers to work here. Their expertise strengthens our innovation and creates opportunities for smaller businesses.
3. Chamber systems identify local skills needs in real time. How can they be permanently integrated into the European skills monitoring system by 2030?
Under the Union of Skills, we are improving the way we use data. The Commission already relies on reports on labour and skills shortages, business surveys, analyses of online job advertisements and forecasts developed within the framework of the European Semester. The challenge is not a lack of data, but how to make it usable and comparable.
In November 2025, the European Commission proposed a Council recommendation on human capital, urging Member States to support skills development and address the challenges that threaten the EU’s competitiveness.
Accurate and timely information on skills is essential. With the Joint Research Centre, we are therefore developing a European Skills Intelligence Observatory as a one-stop shop to monitor trends across all Member States.
By 2030, we want to integrate national, regional and local contributions more systematically. To obtain a complete picture, we will use information provided by social partners, EU agencies (including Cedefop, Eurofound, the European Labour Authority and the European Training Foundation) as well as public employment services.
A central role is played by the European High-Level Board on Skills, chaired by Ylva Johansson. The Board will bring together businesses, education and training providers, social partners and policymakers to ensure that realities on the ground define clear skills priorities at EU level.
4. Looking towards 2030, what balance should be struck between technical, digital and transversal skills to support the competitiveness of European SMEs?
Europe’s competitiveness will depend on technical, digital and transversal skills reinforcing each other. The right mix depends on the sector, the region and the profession.
Digital skills are now fundamental skills. Soon, 60% of the workforce will need some AI-related skills. This does not mean that everyone must be an IT expert, but most jobs today use digital tools to organise work, reach customers and innovate.
Our goal is for Europe to have 20 million ICT specialists by 2030. We are also updating the digital skills framework to include new technologies.
Technical and vocational skills remain important. We face persistent shortages in construction, manufacturing, healthcare and other essential services. Adopted in September 2025, the Herning Declaration renewed coordinated efforts to promote reforms in line with the evolving needs of society and the labour market.
Our forthcoming European Strategy for Vocational Education and Training will integrate new technologies, including AI, into curricula and will aim to increase the number of graduates in science and engineering disciplines.
Transversal skills are equally indispensable. In SMEs in particular, employees often perform several roles: they must collaborate, solve problems and adapt quickly.
For this reason, lifelong learning is the foundation. Initial education is no longer sufficient for a 40-year career. Continuous upskilling is becoming the norm.
5. If you had to identify a single key indicator, which would be the most suitable to measure whether, by 2030, European skills policies have truly reduced the skills gap for businesses?
There is no single perfect indicator. The skills gap concerns the match between what people can do and what businesses need. We need to look together at education choices, adult learning rates, vacancies and reported shortages.
However, if I had to highlight one clear signal from the business perspective, I would point to the percentage of companies reporting that the lack of skilled staff limits their investment and growth. In a 2025 European Investment Bank survey, 79% of companies said that the availability of skilled staff was an obstacle to investment. If we can significantly reduce this figure by 2030, we will know that we are moving in the right direction.
Providing effective training requires strong partnerships with the private sector, aligning education with the evolving needs of the labour market. These partnerships leverage private-sector investment and expertise to ensure that training is demand-driven and scalable.
The Pact for Skills is a good example. Since its launch in 2020, more than 6.1 million workers have received training under the Pact. More than 3,200 organisations, including businesses, social partners, training providers and public authorities, have joined forces to identify skills gaps and act accordingly. The Pact shows how European policy can bring together public and private partners to deliver tangible results.
Achieving this objective requires more than policy alone. Businesses, social partners and Chambers of Commerce play a decisive role in providing training, identifying needs and supporting mobility. The EU can contribute through funding, common tools and coordination to ensure that millions of Europeans continue to upskill and reskill.
If businesses report fewer shortages of skilled staff and workers have greater access to learning opportunities, we will have measurably improved both Europe’s competitiveness and social cohesion.