Every quarter brings new skills gap data, and the September 2025 numbers tell a clear story: Australia has significant capability deficits that aren’t closing fast enough. For L&D professionals, this data should drive prioritisation.

Data from Jobs and Skills Australia confirms the trends many of us have been observing in our organisations. Let me walk through what the numbers show and what they mean for workforce development strategy.

The Big Picture

Australia’s skills gap continues to widen in specific areas while narrowing in others. Understanding both trends matters.

Gaps widening:

• Advanced digital skills (AI, data science, automation)
• Cybersecurity expertise
• Green economy capabilities
• Healthcare specialisations
• Trade skills (electricians, plumbers, builders)

Gaps narrowing:

• Basic digital literacy (finally)
• General project management
• Standard software proficiency
• Entry-level business skills

The pattern is clear: foundational skills are more widely available, while advanced and specialised skills remain scarce. This has significant implications for where L&D investment should focus.

AI and Digital Skills

The most pressing gap remains advanced digital capability, particularly AI-related skills.

Current state:

• Only 23% of Australian workers rate themselves as proficient in AI tools
• Only 8% have received structured AI training from their employers
• Demand for AI skills in job postings has increased 340% since 2023

The gap isn’t just about using AI tools—it’s about using them effectively. Basic familiarity is spreading, but genuine fluency that improves work outcomes remains uncommon.

What this means for L&D:

• AI training remains top priority
• Focus should shift from awareness to proficiency
• Measurement should emphasise application, not just completion
• Programs need to reach beyond early adopters to the broader workforce

Data and Analytics

Data capability gaps persist despite years of attention:

• 67% of organisations report insufficient data analysis capability
• Most data roles remain unfilled for 90+ days
• Self-reported data literacy averages only 2.8 out of 5

The challenge is that data skills exist on a spectrum. Basic data interpretation is different from statistical analysis, which is different from machine learning. Organisations need to specify what level of capability they’re developing.

What this means for L&D:

• Define data capability needs specifically
• Build foundational data literacy broadly
• Develop advanced analytics capability in targeted populations
• Connect data training to actual business decisions

Cybersecurity

The cybersecurity skills shortage has reached crisis levels:

• Australia faces a shortage of over 30,000 cybersecurity professionals
• Average time to fill cybersecurity roles exceeds 120 days
• 78% of organisations report inadequate security capability

This isn’t primarily an L&D challenge—it requires pipeline development through education and immigration. But L&D can contribute:

What this means for L&D:

• Build security awareness broadly across the workforce
• Develop security-adjacent skills in IT teams
• Support career pathways into cybersecurity from related roles
• Partner with external training providers for specialised development

Green Skills

Sustainability creates emerging skills demands:

• Green job postings have increased 85% year over year
• Only 15% of workers have received sustainability training
• Most organisations lack clear green skills frameworks

This is a gap that’s only beginning to be recognised. Regulatory pressure and market demands will intensify it.

What this means for L&D:

• Start building green skills awareness now
• Identify role-specific sustainability requirements
• Develop capability frameworks before urgent need forces reactive response
• Partner with sustainability experts to build content

Healthcare Skills

Healthcare faces acute and worsening shortages:

• Nursing shortages exceed 15,000 positions nationally
• Allied health vacancies have doubled since 2020
• Mental health professional demand far exceeds supply

These gaps can’t be filled through short-term training—they require years of professional development. But L&D can address adjacent needs.

What this means for L&D:

• Support healthcare workforce retention through development opportunities
• Build capability in healthcare-adjacent roles
• Develop mental health literacy across all workforces
• Partner with healthcare education providers

Trade Skills

The skilled trades shortage continues to worsen:

• Average tradesperson age continues to increase
• Apprenticeship completion rates remain below targets
• Trade vacancy rates are at decade highs

Again, these are pipeline challenges requiring systemic response. L&D’s role is limited but not absent.

What this means for L&D:

• Support apprenticeship programs with supplementary training
• Build trade-adjacent skills in relevant workforces
• Develop supervisory capability as experienced tradespeople age out

Human and Soft Skills

Amid focus on technical skills, human capabilities remain important:

• Communication skills remain top employer priority
• Adaptability and resilience increasingly valued
• Leadership capability gaps persist at all levels

The good news is these skills can be developed through L&D intervention. The challenge is measurement and prioritisation amid competing demands.

What this means for L&D:

• Don’t abandon human skills development for technical skills
• Integrate human and technical capability development
• Focus on skills that complement technical capability
• Measure behaviour change, not just knowledge acquisition

Priority Matrix

Based on September 2025 data, here’s how I’d prioritise L&D investment:

Immediate priority:

• AI fluency for broad workforce
• Data literacy foundations
• Security awareness

High priority:

• Advanced AI capability for power users
• Leadership for technology-driven change
• Communication and collaboration skills

Building priority:

• Green skills awareness
• Healthcare workforce support
• Trade-adjacent capability

Monitor:

• Basic digital literacy (improving)
• Standard project management (adequate supply)

Your specific priorities depend on your industry and organisation, but this framework reflects broad Australian workforce needs.

From Data to Action

Skills gap data is only useful if it drives action. Converting analysis to strategy:

1. Benchmark your organisation. How do your workforce capabilities compare to the gaps identified? Where are you ahead? Behind?

2. Prioritise ruthlessly. You can’t address every gap. Focus on those most critical to your strategy.

3. Allocate resources accordingly. Budget and effort should concentrate on priority gaps.

4. Measure progress. Track whether your interventions are closing targeted gaps.

5. Adjust based on data. Skills needs evolve. Your strategy should too.

The Systemic View

Skills gaps aren’t just L&D problems—they’re systemic challenges requiring coordinated response across education, immigration, industry, and government.

L&D’s role is important but bounded. We can develop existing workforce capability, but we can’t single-handedly solve pipeline problems that require years of professional development.

What we can do:

• Develop the skills we can develop
• Make the case for broader investment
• Partner with other players in the skills ecosystem
• Focus effort where L&D intervention can actually make difference

The September 2025 data shows where gaps exist. The question is what we do about them.

Start with what’s in your control. Build capability where you can. Advocate for systemic response where individual intervention isn’t sufficient.

That’s the L&D leader’s job in a skills-constrained economy.