Total VeteranSkills Employers Will Pay For in 2030 (WEF Ranking) and the Evidence Veterans Can Bring
The WEF ranks analytical thinking, resilience and leadership as the core skills for 2030. Here is the evidence to document, and the technical gaps to close.
- Analytical thinking is the top core skill for about 70% of companies, per the WEF 2025 report.
- Leadership and social influence rose 22 percentage points as a core skill since 2023; resilience rose 17.
- AI and big data, cybersecurity and technological literacy are the fastest-growing technical skills.
- NFER projects 22% of UK workers (about 7 million) with substantial gaps in six essential skills by 2035.
- BLS lists adaptability among the top three skills for most fast-growing US occupations.
The World Economic Forum Future of Jobs Report 2025 ranks analytical thinking as the most sought-after core skill, cited by about seven in ten companies. Resilience, flexibility and agility come next (67%), then leadership and social influence. The fastest-growing skills are AI and big data, networks and cybersecurity, and technological literacy. Service builds the first group in ways you can evidence. The second group needs deliberate study and a credential.
The WEF skills ranking and the evidence to bring
The left columns come from the WEF skills outlook chapter. The right column lists the kind of proof a recruiter can check. It describes what to document and makes no claim about what every veteran holds.
| Skill | WEF finding | Evidence to document from service |
|---|---|---|
| Analytical thinking | Most sought-after core skill, about 70% of companies | Plans, risk assessments and after-action reviews, with the decision made and the result |
| Resilience, flexibility and agility | 67% global average; up 17 percentage points since 2023 | Tasks delivered after a change of plan, short-notice moves, reduced manning or kit |
| Leadership and social influence | Up 22 percentage points since 2023 | People led, budget or equipment managed, appraisal and award citations |
| Creative thinking | Rising in importance | Improvised fixes with the kit to hand, process changes you proposed and the effect |
| Motivation and self-awareness | Fifth among core skills | Qualifications earned in service, self-directed study, promotion boards passed |
| Empathy and active listening | In the core top 10 | Welfare, mentoring, briefing and training roles |
| Curiosity and lifelong learning | 50% global average | Courses completed, trade qualifications, funded learning taken up |
One group of skills is expected to lose importance: manual dexterity, endurance and precision, where 24% of employers foresee a decrease. Physical capability still counts in many trades and care roles. Employers across most sectors weight it less in the 2030 forecast.
The technical list needs a plan
AI and big data lead the growth list. In the ten industries that rate it most highly, over 90% of employers expect it to rise in importance. A service record does not substitute for a data course or a security certification. Cybersecurity shows what the market asks for in practice:
- The UK Cyber security skills in the UK labour market 2026 report (published 29 September 2026) finds 57% of businesses with a basic technical skills gap, up from 49% a year earlier, and 70% of cyber firms with staff using AI daily.
- The 2025 edition found 63% of 2024 core cyber postings asked for 2 to 6 years of experience and 17% targeted entry level, so a first role often needs a certification plus visible project work.
- In the US, the BLS projects information security analysts to grow 21% from 2025 to 2035, with a median wage of $129,180 (May 2025).
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Skills lists from the UK, the US and the WEF
| Source | Skills it puts first | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| WEF, global employers, to 2030 | Analytical thinking, resilience, leadership; AI and big data, cybersecurity, technological literacy | 86% of employers expect AI to transform their business by 2030 |
| NFER Skills Imperative 2035, UK | Collaboration, communication, creative thinking, information literacy, organising and planning, problem solving and decision making | 22% of workers (about 7 million) projected to have substantial gaps in these skills by 2035 |
| BLS top skills for fast-growing occupations, US | Adaptability appears in the top three for most rows; interpersonal, problem solving, critical thinking and detail orientation recur | Table covers 2025 to 2035 projections and May 2025 wages |
The three lists overlap heavily. Problem solving, adaptability, communication and planning appear in all of them, which makes them the safest items to evidence first.
What the skills look like inside fast-growing jobs
The BLS publishes the top three skills for each fast-growing occupation. This extract shows how the human skills sit beside the technical ones.
| Occupation (US) | Projected growth, 2025 to 2035 | Median wage, 2025 | Top three skills (BLS) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nurse practitioners | 41.0% | $132,300 | Adaptability, interpersonal, problem solving |
| Data scientists | 34.6% | $120,230 | Mathematics, computers and IT, writing and reading |
| Medical and health services managers | 24.2% | $123,860 | Adaptability, leadership, critical thinking |
| Information security analysts | 21.0% | $129,180 | Computers and IT, adaptability, writing and reading |
| Industrial machinery mechanics | 17.8% | $64,520 | Fine motor, mechanical, adaptability |
| Logisticians | 17.6% | $82,320 | Adaptability, critical thinking, problem solving |
Adaptability appears in five of the six rows. Leadership shows up for managers only. That detail helps when you tailor a CV: lead with adaptability and problem solving for most targets, and add leadership when the role manages people.
Skill demand differs by sector
The WEF breaks the skills data down by industry. A few contrasts show why a generic CV underperforms:
| Sector or region | WEF skills finding |
|---|---|
| Insurance and pensions management | Resilience rated core by 94% of employers (global 67%); curiosity and lifelong learning 83% (global 50%) |
| Mining and metals | Environmental stewardship at 50%, about 2.5 times the global average |
| Telecommunications | Design and UX, networks and cybersecurity, and programming at twice the global average; 63% of the workforce needs training by 2030 |
| Information technology services | 62% of the workforce needs training by 2030 |
| Companies headquartered in North America | 67% of the workforce needs training by 2030 |
Read the sector rows as a prompt to tailor your evidence. Insurance employers rate resilience and learning habits highly, while mining and metals employers rate environmental stewardship highly.
Who pays for the training
The WEF reports that employers mainly fund their own training programmes, with free training second and government or public-private funding third. Half of the global workforce has completed training, reskilling or upskilling, up from 41% in 2023. Ask about funded development in every interview. A role that pays for a qualification is worth more than its salary line shows.
Turn service into evidence
- Choose three skills from the table that match the roles you want.
- Write one evidence line per skill: the situation, the scale (people, money, equipment, time), your action and the measurable result.
- Collect proof: appraisal wording, award citations, qualification certificates and two named referees who saw the work.
- Close the technical gap with one recognised qualification in the field you are targeting, and build one small project you can show.
- Test the wording on a civilian. If they need a translation, rewrite the line without service terms.
Our guides on military CV translation tools and interview translation cover the wording. The National Careers Service skills assessment (40 questions, 5 to 10 minutes) offers a UK starting point for matching skills to jobs.
The WEF, NFER and BLS lists describe what employers value. None of them shows which groups hold those skills, so the link from service to skill is yours to prove. A named result with numbers outweighs any list of adjectives.
What to do this week
- Choose three skills from the WEF table that match your target roles.
- Write one evidence line per skill with scale, action and a measurable result.
- Collect appraisal wording, citations and two named referees for each line.
- Pick one recognised qualification in a growth field and book it.
- Ask a civilian friend to read your CV lines and flag any service jargon.
Questions people ask
What skills will employers want most in 2030?
Are military skills transferable to civilian jobs?
Do veterans need technical skills as well?
What are the essential employment skills in the UK?
Which skills are losing importance?
- World Economic Forum, "Future of Jobs Report 2025: Skills Outlook" (chapter 3, 2025). https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/in-full/3-skills-outlook/
- World Economic Forum, "The Future of Jobs Report 2025: Digest" (January 2025). https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/digest/
- NFER, "The Skills Imperative 2035: The story so far". https://www.nfer.ac.uk/publications/the-skills-imperative-2035-the-story-so-far/
- NFER, "The Skills Imperative 2035: demand for skills in the labour market in 2035" (2023). https://www.nfer.ac.uk/publications/the-skills-imperative-2035-an-analysis-of-the-demand-for-skills-in-the-labour-market-in-2035
- BLS, "Top skills for fastest growing occupations" (Employment Projections table 6.3, 2025 to 2035). https://www.bls.gov/emp/tables/top-skills-for-fastest-growing-occupations.htm
- DCMS and DSIT, "Cyber security skills in the UK labour market 2026" (29 September 2026). https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cyber-security-skills-in-the-uk-labour-market-2026
- DSIT, "Cyber security skills in the UK labour market 2025" (19 September 2025). https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cyber-security-skills-in-the-uk-labour-market-2025/cyber-security-skills-in-the-uk-labour-market-2025
- BLS, "Information security analysts", Occupational Outlook Handbook (2025 to 2035). https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/information-security-analysts.htm
- National Careers Service, "Skills assessment". https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/skills-assessment
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