40% of UK Employers Report Critical Mid-Level Skills Gaps

Four in ten UK employers — 40% — say they face critical skills gaps in mid-level professionals, according to Hays' annual Workforce Trends and Salary Report 2027. The recruiter surveyed more than 11,200 professionals and employers, including over 1,200 senior leaders and C-suite decision-makers, and found the gap is now a significant barrier to growth.

The numbers get worse from there. More than 85% of employers experienced some form of skills shortage over the past year, and 27% report shortages in leadership capability. Poor succession planning to replace seasoned colleagues compounds the problem, Hays said.

Where are the gaps sharpest?

The most acute shortages sit among experienced professionals who can turn strategy into delivery, and the pressure cuts across specialisms:

• Technology: 47% of tech employers say AI, machine learning and data science capabilities are the hardest to hire.
• Business support: 36% of employers point to commercial awareness and business judgement as the most difficult skills to secure.
• HR: 26% of employers name HR technology and systems capability as their greatest capability gap.
• Construction and property: skilled labour shortages pressure project delivery.
• Life sciences: specialist clinical, manufacturing and technical expertise is scarce.

For HR leaders, the 26% figure is the operative one. HR's own capability gap sits in the technology stack, at the exact moment employers are betting on AI to offset hiring constraints.

Are employers hiring or automating?

Both, but not equally. While 39% of employers plan to increase hiring next year, almost half — 48% — plan to invest in AI and automation over the next 12 months to achieve their top organisational goal. Only 24% plan to increase permanent headcount. That two-to-one split means many transformation and productivity agendas will run without significant headcount growth, raising questions about who actually delivers the work.

Hiring itself is getting harder. Employers named attracting the right permanent talent as their biggest workforce challenge (35%), followed by budget pressures versus market expectations (25%).

What does Hays' CEO say?

"The findings show that for many organisations in the UK, the challenge is not about defining the strategy but having the right people in place to deliver it," said Tom Way, Hays CEO for UK and Ireland. "We're seeing growing pressure in the layer of experienced professionals who translate ambition into action, lead teams, manage projects and drive transformation."

Way was blunt about the consequences. "When that capability is missing, growth can be impacted, productivity suffers and senior leaders find themselves focused on resolving issues rather than pursuing opportunities," he said.

He also described the current hiring climate as a "super selective phase" — not a blanket freeze, but one where employers expect every new hire to make a meaningful impact.

What should employers do?

Way's prescription targets internal talent processes first. Employers need to "look beyond the external market alone," he said, which means investing in developing existing people and building clear succession pipelines before experienced colleagues step back. He also urged a more specialist approach to finding people who can turn plans into delivery.

"The good news is that business ambition remains strong. Workforce readiness now needs to match intent," Way said. "Many organisations are investing in transformation and emerging technologies, but our findings suggest workforce capability is becoming the barrier between what are very good plans, and actual, delivered impact."

For people teams, the survey points to three near-term moves: succession planning for the mid-level layer where 40% of employers report gaps, upskilling programmes targeted at the specific capability shortages in each function, and a hiring strategy calibrated to a market where nearly half of employers are choosing AI investment over headcount. With the 2027 planning cycle underway, HR functions that can't close their own 26% HR technology capability gap will struggle to lead that work.