Skills: The New Global Currency? hundoLAB and City & Guilds Launch Groundbreaking Report Series

hundoLAB, the new research and development arm of Hub71 startup hundo, an award-winning workforce skills platform, has launched its inaugural report, Skills: The New Global Currency?

The flagship report developed with Lead Expert Partner City & Guilds explores the urgent global skills crisis and presents actionable solutions for employers. With over 145 years of expertise in workforce development, City & Guilds brings unparalleled insight to this series, complementing hundo’s innovative approach to workforce readiness.

Now available to download, the report is a call to action for employers to join the conversation to address the widening skills gap. According to research from this year’s World Economic Forum, 65% of firms worldwide cite skills shortages as a barrier to transformation, signalling the urgency for practical, scalable solutions.

Esther O’Callaghan OBE, Founder of hundo, said:

“The skills crisis isn’t a distant challenge, it’s a reality that’s impacting candidates, employees and businesses today. Employers have a critical role to play in leading the charge to build resilient, future-ready workforces. This report is a wake-up call: invest in skills now, or risk being left behind in a rapidly transforming global economy.”

Kirstie Donnelly MBE, CEO of City & Guilds, adds:

“As the Global Skills Partner, working with employers across the world, City & Guilds sits in a unique position. It is clear to me that we are at a crucial point in the global skills economy, driven by rapid tech/AI advancements and the urgent need for sustainable practices. This shift is both an opportunity and a challenge for employers.”

Russ Shaw CBE, Founder of Tech London Advocates & Global Tech Advocates and contributor to the report, comments:

“The critical lack of tech skills means that vital roles in high growth sectors go unfilled, holding back desperately needed economic growth. Solving this cannot simply be the responsibility of the public sector – it is in the best interests of the companies who benefit from a digitally attuned workforce to play their part in training it too.

“This report and the work being done by hundoLAB are vitally important, and closer
collaboration between industry and education is desperately needed to address the global skills crisis. By uniting industry experts with educators and government, this report is kickstarting important work to ensure that the next generation is equipped with the tools to succeed in an economy with AI and green technologies at its heart.”

The report launches five months after hundo joined Hub71, Abu Dhabi’s global tech ecosystem, and expanded into new markets in the Middle East. With a long-standing legacy in technical and vocational education and training (TVET) across the region, City & Guilds brings deep expertise to the collaboration, reinforcing a shared commitment to shaping the future of workforce development worldwide.

Skills: The New Global Currency? features insights and recommendations from a global
community of Future Skills Experts across workforce development, education, policy, and social impact. The report explores how skills can be leveraged to boost social, economic and
organisational resilience, and provide actionable takeaways for employers to invest in skills now to future-proof their workforces.

Furthermore, the report sets the foundation for future explorations into critical topics, such as human-machine collaboration, democratisation of skills, and intergenerational impact. Each edition will focus on actionable frameworks helping organisations navigate the evolving skills economy.

Expert contributors include Russ Shaw CBE, Founder of Global Tech Advocates and Tech
London Advocates, Faiza Khan, Executive Director of Corporate Affairs and Foundation for City & Guilds (UK); Kay Vasey, Head of Youth and Family for K-ID (Singapore); Abdulbasit
Salahudeen Mikhail, Youth Advisory Council Lead for Comic Relief US (Nigeria); and former UN Diplomat Jeffrey Saleem Waheed (Maldives).