AI skills are now a direct factor in career progression across UK businesses, with new research revealing that proficiency in artificial intelligence is influencing promotion decisions, performance ratings and pay packets. A study by HiBob, the HR platform provider, found that 63% of business leaders responsible for hiring AI talent link these skills to promotions, 61% factor them into performance ratings and 31% tie them to salary increases. The findings signal a fundamental shift in how employers evaluate and reward their workforce.
AI skills drive pay premiums and career pathways
The financial value placed on AI expertise is already clear. More than four in ten (43%) leaders said they would offer a salary premium of at least 10% to employees skilled in AI safety, ethics and governance. A further 39% would pay more for those able to evaluate and improve AI outputs, while 37% would offer extra for experience in automation and technical integration. Only 3% said they would not pay a premium for any AI-related skills. This trend is reflected in broader market data from the Oxford Internet Institute, which found that AI expertise commands a 23% wage premium, compared with 13% for a master’s degree and 33% for a PhD — a sign that skills are increasingly valued over formal qualifications alone.
Beyond salary, businesses are using other incentives to attract and retain AI-skilled staff. Clearer performance metrics are being offered by 30% of companies, opportunities to lead or join AI initiatives by 29%, and defined career pathways linked to AI capability by 28%. The demand for these skills is accelerating: 77% of business leaders expect most non-technical roles to require at least moderate AI proficiency within the next two years.
Hiring challenges push firms towards structured sourcing
Securing AI talent remains a significant obstacle. The hardest skill group to recruit for is AI safety, ethics and governance, cited by 41% of leaders, followed by automation and technical integration (38%) and workflow evaluation and redesign (36%). In response, 80% of organisations report having a defined strategy for sourcing strong AI-skilled candidates. Tactics include building talent communities (35%), tagging applicants in tracking systems (31%) and running referral campaigns (29%). The Oxford Internet Institute notes that demand for AI skills in UK job vacancies surged by 21% between 2018 and 2024, even as the proportion of roles requiring formal higher education qualifications declined, reinforcing the move towards skills-based hiring.
Upskilling and reskilling take centre stage
Faced with a tight labour market, a majority of businesses are turning inward to build AI capabilities. HiBob’s research shows that 82% are investing in upskilling or reskilling their workforce to meet business goals. Yet the approaches vary considerably. Around one in three companies provide structured support such as funded learning (33%), protected practice time (33%) or prompt and workflow libraries (31%). Despite this, 99% of leaders say peer coaching is important, suggesting that much of the responsibility for developing AI skills falls on managers and teams rather than being embedded at an organisational level.
Ken Matos, director of insights at HiBob, said the expectation for employees to use AI with “judgment, accountability and consistency” reflects a cultural shift. “Managers are increasingly expected to lead this shift, but many organisations have yet to invest in the structure, training and support needed to help them do so effectively,” he added. The challenge, he argued, lies in defining what strong AI capability looks like and embedding it into roles and performance reviews.
The internal push aligns with wider trends. According to HiBob’s research, 54% of UK SMEs were actively adopting AI in 2026, a significant increase from previous years, using the technology for data analysis, forecasting, business intelligence, customer experience enhancement and operational cost reduction. The UK government is also promoting adoption through initiatives such as the AI Opportunities Action Plan, with growing recognition that AI is reshaping the labour market — creating roles in professional and associate professional areas while potentially displacing jobs in others.
Measuring the value of AI skills
As investment in AI talent grows, organisations are beginning to track the impact more closely. The most commonly measured outcomes are quality and accuracy (32%), compliance and risk reduction (29%), time saved (25%) and cost savings (25%). These metrics, HiBob said, signal a focus on measurable business value. The company’s own platform, Bob, supports organisations in defining and tracking skills, embedding them into hiring and performance processes, and delivering targeted learning — aiming to ensure AI is used consistently and responsibly across the workforce.
