According to a recent KPMG LLP survey of seven industries of the US economy, industrial manufacturers are most active in introducing new technologies to optimize costs and drive growth. Ninety-three percent of industrial manufacturing organizations already use artificial intelligence in operations, and this is the top score among the seven industries.
In the United States, industrial manufacturing has the highest multiplier effect: every dollar earned in direct labor income in this industry results in $ 3.14 in direct labor income through direct or indirect influence. In addition, in ten years during 2019 - 2029, the US manufacturing sector is projected to lose more than 400,000 jobs, which means that industry leaders have all the tools (in the form of AI) to take advantage of the opportunity to optimize costs while upskilling and reskilling workforce. A ‘new’ employee of manufacturing company in the context of general digitalization is able to use artificial intelligence technologies to organize production with qualitatively new, ‘smart’ methods that were previously unavailable.
However, the lack of truly skilled professionals in the US labor market remains a major concern. After the pandemic broke out last year, the priority of the talent risk has risen sharply and has almost reached the first position among the threats to long-term growth. If before the pandemic less than one-third of all manufacturing companies prioritized investment in workforce, then over the past year the priorities have shifted dramatically. According to KPMG survey of manufacturing CEOs this year, investment in digital training, development and upskilling is now very active, with skills remaining future-focused.