This year’s World Youth Skills Day theme, “Skills for a Shared Future,” underscores an important reality: skilling is not merely about preparing people for jobs, but about building inclusive, resilient and sustainable societies. It calls for a balanced blend of technical, digital, AI, green, social-emotional and civic competencies, complemented by the distinctly human qualities that technology cannot replace.
The conversation around employability, therefore, needs to move beyond technical expertise alone. While technological proficiency remains essential, the workforce of the future will increasingly be defined by professionals who combine technical capability with digital fluency, analytical thinking, communication, collaboration, business acumen and adaptability.
Equally important is ensuring that no one is left behind. Access to quality skilling opportunities and greater inclusion in training programmes remain significant challenges that demand urgent attention. Every young person deserves the opportunity to build a future with dignity and purpose. The future of skilling lies in continuously updating curricula, embracing emerging technologies, strengthening industry partnerships and providing real-world exposure that prepares learners for rapidly evolving workplaces. Investing in quality, relevance and inclusion is the key to building a workforce that is ready for tomorrow while ensuring that no talent is left behind.
Expanding access to training remains important, but the bigger challenge today is ensuring that skills translate into meaningful livelihoods. While youth employability has increased from nearly 34 per cent a decade ago to more than 51 per cent, employers continue to report gaps in workplace readiness, digital capabilities and industry-specific competencies. Skilling can no longer be designed in isolation. It must evolve alongside industry, technology and the changing nature of work—beginning in school classrooms and continuing throughout a person’s career.
India has already laid the foundation for this transformation through the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which has reimagined higher education around multidisciplinary learning, flexibility, skill integration and stronger industry engagement. The direction is promising, but the next phase must focus on translating these reforms into workplace capability.
According to Dr Nipun Sharma, CEO, TeamLease Degree Apprenticeship, cross-functional skills cannot be developed through classroom instruction alone. They are built through experiential learning, hands-on training, industry projects and sustained exposure to real work environments, where students learn to apply knowledge, collaborate across functions and navigate business challenges. “As India moves towards Viksit Bharat 2047, our success will depend not only on creating more graduates, but on creating graduates who are equipped to work across technologies, industries and disciplines from day one,” he says.
As artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies continue to reshape every sector, the ability to work across disciplines will become a stronger differentiator than expertise in any one technology. The professionals who remain most employable will be those who can continuously learn, integrate knowledge from multiple domains and solve complex real-world problems.
Echoing this view, Jaimy Thomas, Co-founder and Chief Delivery Officer, Experion Technologies, says: “The defining skill of the future may not be the ability to use technology adeptly, but the ability to give it direction. As AI reshapes work, industries and decision-making, young people will need more than technical skills, tools or certifications. The real differentiator will be the ability to understand problems deeply, ask better questions, collaborate across disciplines and apply technology with judgment, creativity and purpose. I believe the skills that will matter most are those that make young people not just employable, but ready to lead, solve and shape a more intelligent, inclusive and humane future.”
Taking the debate further, Neha Mantoo, Director – Talent Acquisition (Head – India), TELUS Digital, observes: “Today, the ability to find information is no longer a differentiator. The real advantage lies in how individuals apply that knowledge with critical thinking, creativity, adaptability and ethical judgment. This shift also requires employers to rethink traditional hiring practices. Instead of evaluating candidates solely on what they know, organisations must assess how they solve problems, collaborate with technology and continue learning in an AI-driven world.”
For P.B. Venkatraman, Dean, BITS Pilani Work Integrated Learning Programmes (WILP), the conversation around skills must move beyond employability to capability. “As AI becomes embedded across industries, the real differentiator will not be technical proficiency alone, but the ability to combine strong domain expertise with digital fluency, critical thinking and sound judgement. This requires closer integration between academia and industry, where learning continuously reflects emerging technologies, business realities and evolving workforce needs. Institutions must prepare professionals not just for today’s jobs, but for roles that will evolve over the course of their careers. Building this culture of continuous, industry-relevant learning will be critical to strengthening India’s competitiveness in the global knowledge economy.”
Abhishek Sarmah, Head of Corporate Strategy and Strategic Marketing (ESG & CSR), Delta Electronics India, believes that future-ready professionals need far more than static technical knowledge. “Young professionals entering the workforce need resilience, systems thinking and the agility to learn as the ground shifts beneath them. Whether through this Centre or our Delta Spark programme, our focus is on giving students real exposure to live business challenges. No single company or university can solve this equation alone. It requires shared infrastructure, shared mentorship and shared accountability. The future isn’t something that simply happens to the next generation—it is something we actively build with them.”
Dr Sanjay Gupta, Vice Chancellor, World University of Design, believes World Youth Skills Day is a reminder that the most valuable skills of the future will not simply be technical but deeply human. “As artificial intelligence automates routine tasks and augments specialised knowledge, the real differentiators will be creativity, critical thinking, empathy, ethical judgement and the ability to solve complex problems across disciplines. The jobs of tomorrow will increasingly belong to those who can imagine possibilities, design meaningful experiences and translate ideas into innovations that improve lives.”
Dr Gayathri Vasudevan, Co-founder and Chairperson, Sambhav Foundation, stresses that the strongest outcomes emerge when training reflects industry needs, builds workplace-ready skills and prepares young people for sustainable livelihoods through employment or entrepreneurship. “Scaling this impact will require stronger collaboration between industry, training institutions, governments and communities so that skilling reflects both evolving industry needs and the realities of local job markets. When training is aligned with opportunities available within and around communities, it improves not only employability but also long-term workforce participation and livelihood sustainability. ‘Skills for a Shared Future’ is ultimately about ensuring that every young person has the skills, opportunities and support to participate meaningfully in India’s growth.”
Highlighting the importance of lifelong learning, BLS International, a global AI and technology-enabled services partner for governments and diplomatic missions, said it continues to strengthen employee capabilities through structured learning, leadership development and digital upskilling, recognising that continuous learning is essential in an era of rapid technological and economic change.
For Dr B.K. Chakravarty, Dean, School of Design Innovation, Mahindra University, preparing students for the future goes far beyond helping them secure their first job. “‘Skills for a Shared Future’ is about equipping graduates to solve challenges that have yet to emerge. Technological competence must be complemented by creativity, empathy, critical thinking, sustainability and an entrepreneurial mindset. Strong industry partnerships, experiential learning and interdisciplinary collaboration should become the norm. Education must combine academic rigour with real industry projects to nurture innovators and responsible leaders capable of creating meaningful societal impact.”
Bhagwati Chhabbarwal Shetty, Chief Human Resources Officer, Comviva, believes organisations must move beyond traditional talent models. “The rapidly evolving digital landscape demands that we move beyond legacy, template-driven talent frameworks towards ecosystem-wide skill integration. The focus must now be on equipping young talent to compete globally by building future-ready capabilities and enabling them to thrive in cross-functional innovation environments.”
For Manisha Dubey, Head, IDEMIA India Foundation, the true success of skilling initiatives lies in employment outcomes. “We must redefine how we measure success. The real metric is not how many young people we train, but how many we empower with meaningful employment. Skills must translate into livelihoods, confidence and long-term careers.”
Renuka Kamath, Professor of Marketing and Associate Dean at S. P. Jain Institute of Management & Research (SPJIMR), believes the rapid evolution of technologies such as artificial intelligence has made a fundamental shift in higher education imperative.
“Higher education institutions must move beyond delivering fixed curricula to nurturing continuous learning, agility, critical thinking and social-emotional resilience. I firmly believe that our youth’s unique competitive advantage will lie in what makes them deeply human. Industry is looking for a workforce of ethical decision-makers, empathetic leaders and cross-disciplinary thinkers. Increasingly, employers are hiring young professionals who can operate at the intersection of high-tech and high-touch,” she says.
At SPJIMR, this philosophy is reflected in its emphasis on active and experiential learning. The institute integrates Critical Thinking, Systems Thinking and Design Thinking into its curriculum, while urban and rural immersion programmes and courses rooted in the science of spirituality aim to provide students with holistic development and prepare them for conscious, purpose-driven leadership.
Among sectors witnessing rapid transformation, tourism and hospitality is emerging as a major employment generator. Demand for skilled professionals is expected to increase significantly, with the industry requiring nearly three million additional workers by 2028, as workforce demand grows from 11.8 million in 2024 to 14.8 million by 2028. Beyond conventional hospitality roles, employers increasingly seek skills in digital customer engagement, sustainable tourism, culinary innovation, travel operations and destination management.
Jyoti Mayal, Chairperson, Tourism & Hospitality Skill Council (THSC), says the sector’s changing landscape requires professionals to combine technical expertise with communication skills, digital proficiency, adaptability and a strong service orientation. According to her, building these capabilities will not only improve employability but also strengthen India’s competitiveness as a global tourism destination.
Vinkesh Gulati, Chairperson, Automotive Skills Development Council (ASDC), emphasises that industry partnerships remain central to building an inclusive skilling ecosystem. Through CSR-led initiatives with leading automotive companies, ASDC aims to equip learners with industry-relevant competencies while supporting India’s ambition to become a global mobility and manufacturing hub.
The growth of AI infrastructure is also creating new opportunities. Santosh Kulkarni, Senior Director, Learning and Development, Vertiv, says demand for engineers with expertise in AI workloads, critical power and cooling systems will continue to rise. Close collaboration with institutions such as the IITs, he says, is helping bridge the gap between academic learning and industry requirements while expanding opportunities in Tier-II and Tier-III cities.
For Sunil Sharma, Managing Director and Vice President – Sales (India & SAARC), Sophos, practical exposure is indispensable. “Certifications and classroom theory only take students so far. What prepares young professionals is hands-on experience with real tools, live attack scenarios and incident response. Cybersecurity is fundamentally a people challenge before it becomes a technology challenge, and industry cannot complain about a talent shortage unless it is willing to invest in building that talent.”
Anjali Sharma, Vice President–HR and Global Head of Learning & Development, Fulcrum Digital, believes organisations must view youth skilling as core business infrastructure rather than a CSR initiative. She advocates combining the digital fluency of young professionals with the judgement and experience of seasoned mentors through structured, hands-on learning programmes.
The renewable energy sector presents another major opportunity. Sandesh Naik, Chief Financial Officer, AB Energia Solutions, says the industry’s rapid expansion is driving demand for professionals skilled in project management, digital construction, quality assurance and advanced renewable technologies. Investing in technical talent, he argues, is essential not only for employment generation but also for building India’s clean energy infrastructure.
Similarly, Pratap Mane, President and India Head, Colt Data Centre Services, believes India’s demographic advantage can help create a globally competitive talent base for digital infrastructure. As AI reshapes industries, he says, the conversation must move beyond preparing talent for today’s jobs to building capabilities that will define tomorrow’s economy.
Finally, Sandip Weling, Whole-time Director and Chief Business Officer, Global Retail Business, Aptech Limited, argues that qualifications alone are no longer sufficient. As AI, the creator economy and immersive technologies reshape careers, he says, industry-aligned, hands-on learning that blends creativity with digital and technical expertise will be critical to preparing young people for long-term success.
Call to Action: To truly harness the promise of Skills for a Shared Future, India’s policymakers, industry leaders, and educators must unite to create agile, inclusive training ecosystems. By empowering youth with future-ready skills, a collaborative approach can become not only a driver of economic growth but also a beacon of shared prosperity and cultural pride.
