2026 World at Work Report: Beyond Boundaries

The rules of work are being rewritten. Rapid technological transformation, borderless talent, and the breakdown of century-old work conventions are changing how companies hire, expand, and operate.

The report reveals:

• 91% of the workforce feels confident in navigating tech innovation, yet 62% are actively or likely to seek a new job within six months.
• 85% of executives state that managing cross-border HR and compliance has grown significantly more complex.
• 35% identify "AI coworkers" as the single most impactful workplace trend defining the next decade.

Drawing on insights from 7,100 business leaders and professionals across six major global economies, G-P’s 2026 World at Work Report explores the forces reshaping the workplace – from AI and shifting employee expectations to the growing complexity of managing global teams – and what they mean for the future of work. 

 

 

 

2026 World at Work Report 

Beyond Boundaries: AI, Global Talent and the Structural Evolution of Traditional Work

Executive Summary 

The global employment landscape is undergoing a permanent, transformative structural shift. Where the world of work was once defined by geographic boundaries, we are now stepping into an exciting, borderless era of global opportunity.

In an age characterized by rapid macro-economic shifts and the exponential rise of artificial intelligence, the world’s most forward-thinking organizations are achieving success not by resisting these changes, but by embracing them. They are unlocking a distinct competitive edge by treating agility as a core part of their business.

Drawing from a comprehensive survey of 7,100 business leaders and employed professionals across six major global economies (U.S., U.K., Australia, France, Germany and Singapore), this study uncovers a workforce united by rapid technological transformation and the dismantling of century-old work conventions.

Key Finding Highlights:

• High Confidence Amid Technological Shift: Despite rapid disruption, global workforce optimism remains remarkably resilient: 91% express confidence in their organization's ability to navigate tech innovation over the next 12 months, and 80% remain confident in navigating broader macroeconomic conditions.
• The On-Demand Talent Explosion: To maintain agility, 64% of organizations expect to accelerate their reliance on non-traditional talent—including freelancers, contractors and fractional workers—over the coming year.
• Borderlands of Collaboration: Cross-border teamwork is no longer optional: 72% of professionals view international collaboration as essential or critical to their daily job performance, positioning global fluid talent networks as the core pillar of business speed and innovation (46%).
• Human Centricity in an Automated Age: As AI automates routine tasks, human capabilities are surging in value. Critical thinking (42%), creativity (37%), communication (35%), and leadership (34%) are named the most essential human skills required to thrive over the next two years.
• The Rise of "AI Coworkers": Emerging as the single most impactful workplace trend of the next ten years, 35% of workers identify AI teammates as the primary driver reshaping business.

Section I. The New Engines of Growth: Innovation, AI & Borderless Talent

As professionals actively evaluate their future career moves, corporate AI strategy and innovation velocity have evolved from backend IT decisions into key talent acquisition and retention tools. Corporate AI policies are no longer internal governance matters, they are public-facing recruitment criteria. 

AI, Talent and the Innovation Divide

The majority (80%) of the global workforce feels confident in navigating macroeconomic shifts over the next 12 months, though tenured executives report feeling "very confident" at nearly twice the rate of employees (49% vs. 27%).

So what’s driving this optimism?Speed of Innovation (46%) ranked as the primary competitive moat for modern enterprises, while AI Adoption (27%) and Access to Global Talent (27%) were recognized as the two main drivers of growth.

However, a strategic gap exists: executives prioritize AI Adoption twice as much as employees, whereas employees view Speed of Innovation as a greater long-term advantage.

Drivers of Long-Term Competitive Advantage:

• • Executives: AI Adoption (37%), Speed of Innovation (40%), and Access to Global Talent (23%).
  • Employees: Speed of Innovation (51%), Access to Global Talent (30%), and AI Adoption (19%).

Beneath the executive optimism lies a looming quiet attrition risk - despite high confidence among leaders, more than half of all respondents (62%) report being actively or likely to search for a new job in the next six months.

Tech Values are the New Talent Currency

Corporate AI strategy has also become a central pillar of employer branding and influencing where candidates choose to work.

More than three quarters (77%) of workers confirm their company actively innovates to stay ahead of market change, establishing agility as a primary signal of organizational stability and competitive growth. Alongside that 92% of executives agree that their organization's AI strategy impacts their ability to attract and retain top talent—with 58% stating it plays "a great deal" in talent decisions. 

With over 60% of the workforce considering job moves in the next year, companies that fail to articulate clear, forward-thinking and ethically aligned AI strategies risk losing top-tier talent to tech-embracing competitors. Being seen as an innovative tech leader is now essential for hiring as 73% explicitly want their next employer to embrace AI and emerging technology as a core part of how the company operates.

Further,  AI alignment is non-negotiable as 58% of employees state they would turn down a job offer if a company’s AI values and ethical standards did not align with their own.

Enterprise Readiness: Resiliency & Tech Adaptation

Despite the constant pace of change, the majority (91%) of the workforce feel confident in navigating tech innovations that alter or eliminate existing workflows, and 64% are able to keep up when learning and adapting to new tools. 

Agility Meets Velocity:

• • Confidence in adapting to digital tools: 58% Executives are "very confident" vs. 32% Employees.
  • Pace of Tech Introduction vs. Adaptation Pace: 34% of executives feel tech moves faster than they can adapt, compared to 27% of employees.

Even as workers of all levels are readily embracing the AI learning curve, there are still points of friction impeding the AI adoption process. Data privacy concerns and security risks, weigh heaviest, drowning out most lingering concerns around ROI and data quality. 

• Key AI Adoption Barriers:

• Data Privacy Concerns (36%)
• Security Risks (34%)
• Integration with Legacy Systems (25%)
• Compliance & Legal Risks (24%)
• Lack of Employee Skills (24%)
• ROI Uncertainty (19%) 
• Poor Data Quality (19%)

Section II: Global Expansion: Flexibility vs. Friction

The borderless workplace creates mutual benefit. Companies tap into global talent pools, while professionals gain access to career opportunities far beyond their local markets. 

But as companies chase global talent, they’re still running into the oldest problem in global hiring: complying with local laws and regulations.

Cross-Border Collaboration & Daily Operations

Nearly three-quarters (72%) of professionals report cross-border collaboration is essential or significantly enhances their daily work. In fact, 87% of executives consider cross-border collaboration imperative compared to 60% of employees. 

However, a  fundamental disconnect persists around the motivation for borderless hiring: Nearly a third of employees believe it is primarily driven by cost-cutting, yet leaders rank lower labor costs fourth, prioritizing access to talent and market expansion above “cheap labor.”

Among employees, a perception of proximity bias was exposed. One-third (36%) of workers reported they feel HQ-based employees receive a distinct edge in visibility and promotions, and 1 in 10 say there is a definitive career ceiling for those located outside of headquarters. 

The Agile Workforce & Borderless Talent Expansion 

To maintain speed and agility amid economic shifts, 64% of organizations expect to accelerate their reliance on non-traditional talent, including freelancers, contractors, and fractional workers, over the coming year.

However, as organizations scale these flexible talent networks globally, they face increasing red tape: 85% of enterprise executives report that managing cross-border HR and compliance has grown significantly more complex in the past 12 months.

International regulatory friction directly impacts growth, with 63% of executives stating cross-border regulatory complexity has delayed or slowed their company's market expansion.

Compliance Confidence vs. Corporate Enforcement:

Although most executives express strong confidence in their global compliance, a clear disconnect remains between leadership's optimism and operational reality, as a notable share of dual-income and unregulated remote employees bypass corporate policies.

The disconnect between corporate policy and employee behavior is striking. While 79% of organizations have formal policies against secondary employment, and 47% actively monitor and enforce them, employees are increasingly ignoring these mandates. 

The trend is likely heavily influenced by cultural and economic factors: the U.S. leads globally with 20% holding second jobs and 20% freelancing, whereas France remains a stark outlier with only 5% holding a second job and 42% aren’t even considering a side hustle. 

The Compliance Canyon

93% of business leaders express confidence that their distributed workforce complies with local tax and labor laws. 

28% of remote workers admit to working outside their home country or state for over 30 consecutive days without notifying HR.

79% of organizations enforce formal policies against holding secondary employment. 

43% of employees hold a secondary income stream, while another 31% are actively considering it.

EOR Partners as the Global Talent Lifeline:

Compliance challenges create a significant barrier to business growth, requiring an innovative approach to international hiring. 

When finding a top candidate in a country without a legal entity, 55% of executives use an Employer of Record (EOR) or third-party partner, while 35% set up a local legal entity.

Companies across all industries and growth stages face similar challenges when it comes to talent acquisition and retention. 

• Local talent shortages. Talent shortages, particularly in specialized skills, lead to operational inefficiencies and productivity bottlenecks. 
• Rising costs and inflation. Inflation pressures companies to reassess wage structures and compensation packages. 
• Efficiency and competition. The competition for skilled workers pushes up labor costs and requires companies to differentiate themselves through employer branding and benefits.
• Economic uncertainty. Economic uncertainty often leads to reduced recruitment budgets, necessitating cost-effective hiring strategies.

The world’s most trusted global employment platform

G-P is the world’s first agentic Global Employment Platform built to turn global HR and compliance into a revenue engine. We’ve embedded 14+ years of cross-border legal and HR intelligence into a secure tech stack that supports compliant employment across 180+ countries. Designed to integrate seamlessly with your existing tools, G-P allows you to scale your global workforce in minutes, eliminate liability, and compete locally anywhere on Earth.

Section III: The Workplace 2.0

Economic shifts, technological advancement and expanding globalization have fundamentally transformed the modern workplace. Beyond reshaping work culture, these shifts require organizations to rethink how they operate and prepare for what’s next. 

The End of the 9-to-5 Era: 

Employees and executives share a strong consensus on how workplace norms will change over the next decade.

Strict desk requirements, static organizational hierarchies and traditional career trajectories are quickly giving way to dynamic, skills-focused operating models tailored for agility and responsiveness.

• Evolving Workplace Traditions:
• 45% predict the dissolution of the rigid 9-to-5 workday.
• 32% anticipate the removal of individually assigned office spaces.
• 29% expect college degree requirements to be phased out in favor of skills.
• 28% foresee the collapse of traditional top-down organizational charts.
• 24% predict the phase-out of annual performance reviews and linear career ladders.

There’s Now an AI in Team

Arguably the most significant technological shift of the century, AI has moved beyond improving efficiency and is changing how organizations operate, make decisions and manage their workforce. A third (35%) of respondents identify AI Coworkers as the single most impactful business trend over the next ten years, outranking skills-based hiring (32%) and the four-day workweek (24%).

Workplace Trends Defining the Next Decade:

1. 1. Integration of AI Coworkers (35%)
   2. Shift toward Skills-Based Hiring (32%)
   3. Embedding Continuous Learning (28%)
   4. Implementation of the Four-Day Workweek (24%)
   5. Expansion of Global Hiring (22%)
   6. Normalization of Longer Careers (20%)

The High-Value Human Skills

Your AI coworker is good at analyzing data sets, automating repetitive tasks and powering digital tools, but there’s no doubt that human capabilities are still needed to handle tech-driven workflow shifts. When thinking about how the workplace may evolve over the next two years, core soft skills like critical thinking, creativity and leadership rank the most sought after. 

As the pivot toward skills-based hiring accelerates and traditional college degree requirements fade, organizations face a critical new hurdle: verification. Verifying skills has emerged as the second highest hiring challenge to solve, trailing only the difficulty of finding skilled talent.

Most Critical Human Skills for the Automated Workplace:

• • Critical Thinking (42%): Ranked as the single most valuable human skill.
  • Creativity (37%): Essential for driving novel strategies alongside AI.
  • Communication (35%) & Leadership (34%): Crucial for leading distributed, tech-enabled teams.
  • Emotional Intelligence (32%) & Agility (23%): Vital for navigating continuous change.
  • Cross-Cultural Collaboration (21%): Necessary for effective global execution.

Section IV: The Future of Work Playbook 

Ambitious enterprises today look at growth through a global lens. However, the operational reality of international expansion often stalls momentum.

The question for organizations is no longer “if” or “when” to transform, but “how.” Several fundamental hurdles continue to impede operational readiness and slow strategic progress, with Leadership Mindset reported as the top barrier to modern agility and execution, followed by Outdated Technology, Government Regulation and Employee Resistance.

To bridge the gap between high-level vision and daily operations, enterprise leaders must turn workforce disruption into an advantage, with clear action on AI deployment, risk management and the required to operate across borders:

1. Bridge the AI Value & Purpose Gap: Reframe AI investments from executive-driven tech adoption to employee-focused enablement and innovation tools.  
2. Mitigate the Compliance Canyon: Modernize risk frameworks to account for distributed and non-traditional talent models. Integrate real-time compliance mechanisms rather than relying on legacy policy enforcement through solutions like an EOR.
3. Build for the Flexible, Skills-Based Workplace: Formally retire rigid and outdated structures and restructure job architecture around critical thinking, cross-cultural execution and hybrid human-AI workflows.

 

Methodology:

G-P’s 2026 World at Work Report  brings together perspectives from 7,100 professionals across the global workforce including 3,100 Executives, (VP+ at companies of 500 or more employees): U.S. (1000), U.K. (500), Australia (500), France (500), Germany (500) and Singapore (100); and 4,000 Employed Professionals (Employees): U.S. (1000), U.K. (1000), France (500), Germany (500), Singapore (500) and Australia (500), to examine the current state and sentiment of global employment and how to navigate global business priorities, technology implementation, talent trends. This random double-opt-in survey was conducted by market research company Talker Research, whose team members are members of the Market Research Society (MRS) and the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR).