For employees—Millennials and non-Millennials alike—obsolescence is a bigger concern than layoffs. But as the chart below shows, only 19% say economic uncertainty is a concern, meaning their worries are likely skills-related.

Employees are not confident in their current skill sets, especially in the Americas, where fewer than 40% say the skills they have today will be what is needed in their jobs in three years.

Technology skills in particular will continue to lag. The need for skills like analytics, cloud, and programming/development will grow sizably over the next three years, but less than half of employees expect to be proficient with most of these key technologies.

Better training and education opportunities would benefit employees and businesses alike. Today, less than a quarter of executives say they offer education as a benefit, and incentives for pursuing educational opportunities are also uncommon. With more incentives to pursue education and participate in supplemental training programs, employees would expand their skill sets and likely inspire peers to do the same—with the added bonus of making employees happier and more engaged.