MILWAUKEE, March 2, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- As artificial intelligence shifts from experimentation to enterprise-wide deployment, the technology industry faces a new reality. The challenge is no longer access to innovation, it is access to talent.
Newly released data from ManpowerGroup's 2026 Talent Shortage Survey confirms the shift. For the first time, AI model and application development (20%) and AI literacy (19%) top the global ranking of hardest-to-fill capabilities, displacing engineering and pushing traditional IT and data skills to seventh place. Overall, 72% of employers report they still cannot find the skilled talent they need. The scarcity is not easing. It is evolving.
ManpowerGroup and Experis will bring these insights to Mobile World Congress 2026 in Barcelona, Spain, March 2–5, where more than 109,000 professionals and 95% of the world's leading IT and telecom companies gather to define what comes next. As the technology ecosystem convenes to showcase what is possible, every CTO, CHRO, and CEO is grappling with the same question — how do you build the human capabilities that make technology actually work?
"The companies winning in the AI era are not simply the ones with the best models, they're the ones with the most capable people and the clearest understanding of the skills their business needs next," said Mara Stefan, VP of Global Insights at ManpowerGroup. "MWC is where the technology ecosystem comes together to see what's possible. Our role is to help organizations understand how to build the human edge that turns that potential into performance."
Key Experis and ManpowerGroup Events at MWC Barcelona 2026
- Experis Meet-Up at Talent Arena
Monday, March 2, 9:30–10:30 AM | Talent Arena PRO Area
Experis opens the week with a networking meet-up at the Talent Arena for senior technology professionals, offering an introduction to Experis's capabilities in AI, automation, and advanced tech talent and laying the groundwork for the afternoon's workshop. The session targets experienced candidates and technology leaders looking to understand how AI is reshaping the skills needed to stay competitive. - Hyperautomation Workshop at Talent Arena
Monday, March 2, 4:45 PM | Talent Arena PRO Stage
Experis, co-lead sponsor of the 2026 Talent Arena, leads an interactive session on hyperautomation and its real-world applications in talent acquisition and workforce transformation. The workshop puts agentic AI to work on one of the most pressing challenges in the sector and reflects the Talent Shortage Survey's clearest signal: upskilling and reskilling existing employees is the number one employer response to structural scarcity globally. - "Now and Next" with Mara Stefan
Wednesday, March 4, 3:30 PM | Talent Arena Main Stage
In a session presented by Experis, Stefan will take the Talent Arena main stage to present The Human Edge: Global Future of Work Trends report, identifying 16 trends across four driving forces, Hybrid Superteams, Rapid Relearning, Changing Norms, and the Succession Crisis. The session will examine what skills the world needs, where the gaps are widest, and what leading organizations are doing to close them.
Work Intelligence Lab: Conversations from the Floor
ManpowerGroup's Work Intelligence Lab podcast will record live from MWC Barcelona with leaders from IBM, EY, and more, capturing real-time perspectives on AI's impact on the future of work from some of the most prominent voices in the global technology ecosystem.
For updates, insights, and to follow ManpowerGroup at Mobile World Congress, visit: www.manpowergroup.es/nuestras-soluciones/manpowergroup/mobile-world-congress-2026
ABOUT MANPOWERGROUP
ManpowerGroup® (NYSE: MAN), the leading global workforce solutions company, helps organizations transform in a fast-changing world of work by sourcing, assessing, developing, and managing the talent that enables them to win. We develop innovative solutions for hundreds of thousands of organizations every year, providing them with skilled talent while finding meaningful, sustainable employment for millions of people across a wide range of industries and skills. Our expert family of brands – Manpower, Experis, and Talent Solutions – creates substantially more value for candidates and clients across more than 70 countries and territories and has done so for more than 75 years. We are recognized consistently as a best place to work for Women, Inclusion, Equality, and Disability, and in 2025 ManpowerGroup was named one of the World's Most Ethical Companies for the 16th time; all confirming our position as the brand of choice for in-demand talent.
For more information, visit www.manpowergroup.com, or follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Bluesky.
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SOURCE ManpowerGroup
