Recent attempts to achieve a global consensus on what needs to be done to tackle climate change, and how quickly, have generated a lot of talk, but at least there’s a consensus gradually emerging. With a broad acknowledgement even by countries that rely on fossil fuel revenue that something does need to be done, attention switches to the question of ‘how’.

Politicians who blithely throw talk of ‘innovative technologies’ into the debate, in the hope that the boffins will eventually come up with something to match their pledges, may be hoping that artificial intelligence will provide a silver bullet for identifying ways of reducing carbon emissions without having a devastating (and politically unpopular) impact on modern life.

The truth, as engineers will be well aware, is that while AI is great at copying things humans already do, and sometimes doing them better, it lacks our ability to innovate. Recent research by psychologists at the University of California Berkeley, which found that while children and adults alike can solve problems by finding novel uses for everyday object, AI systems often lack the ability to view tools in a new way, is just one example of this.

That leaves the responsibility for creating net zero technologies with human engineers. And although they’re achieving a lot already, there’s serious concern in businesses around the world that a significant lack of skills is the biggest barrier to reaching net zero.

In August and September 2023, The IET commissioned independent research agency YouGov to ask engineering employers from all over the world about their current priorities and challenges around climate change. The focus was on what sustainability skills they believe are needed in the near future, how hard it is to recruit people with those skills, and how they are responding.

The results aren’t promising. Fewer than 5% of companies across eight countries say they have all the skills to be resilient to climate change, and a lack of skills is seen by employers as the most common barrier to reaching net zero. A lack of knowledge or skills within management to adapt to greener processes is the most common concern, followed by a lack of knowledge or skills in the workforce to adapt to greener processes.

That contrasts with an apparent lack of concern on the part of organisations that they will become uncompetitive, by having to increase prices for example. Only the UK and Germany placed this in their top three most common answers. Companies worldwide also consider themselves to have the resources needed to achieve net zero – this was the option least likely (or joint least likely) to be selected by every country.

Worryingly, lowering environmental impact is the lowest business priority across all countries surveyed except for the UK and Germany. German companies placed this in their top three, whereas they are the only country not to report increasing productivity as one of their three most commonly selected business priorities.

When it comes to skills, the biggest gap wherever you look is in the most skilled roles, at professional level or technician and skilled craft level. More than 90% of organisations plan to respond to these gaps, with upskilling or retraining existing employees the top response, although there are variations between countries. China, for example, is nearly three times more likely to concentrate on upskilling existing employees than Germany, where increasing contingent labour was the most common response to managing skills gaps.

When asked what was preventing their organisation from becoming net zero, a lack of some sort of skills was among the top three responses for every country except the UK.

India and Saudi Arabia’s top responses were a lack of knowledge or skills within the workforce to adapt to greener processes. For Malaysia, Australia, Brazil and Egypt it was a lack of knowledge or skills within management. US companies picked both as their joint most common answer.

Confidence in the ability of people in senior roles to delivery sustainability strategies reveals some interesting patterns. Unlike professional or technician skills, leadership and management were not generally seen as resources that were especially missing.

So, what business priorities aligned to net zero do companies consider to be the most important? Perhaps surprisingly, developing solutions/technologies for environmental sustainability and lowering environmental impact were not among the most commonly selected responses. Engineering companies are more likely to be prioritising adapting to new technologies, increasing their productivity and upskilling/reskilling current staff than concentrating on sustainability and environmental impact.

Of the organisations for whom sustainability is a business priority, there are big differences between countries about whether they have the skills in place to meet them. For example, 90% of those surveyed in China are confident that they have all or most of the skills they need, whereas in Germany nearly half (48%) think they only have some or none of the skills.

With Brazil, Malaysia and the USA all stating that innovative thinking is the most important skill needed to deliver a sustainability strategy, it is clear that these ‘human’ skills will only increase in importance if climate technologies are to develop at pace.

Talking points

The report on its International Green Skills Survey 2023 identifies better strategic leadership as important to helping engineering organisations to meet net zero. Companies see other factors forming barriers, such as increased operating costs or high levels of initial investment. The research suggests that the leadership skills gap is more likely to be perceived at an innovation and strategy level, rather than management and execution. What skills might need developing to close the gap within leadership roles?

What’s your experience, and what do you think the priorities should be? Read the full report on the survey and tell us.

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