The WEF Predicts Major Workforce Disruption By 2030. Here’s How B-Schools Will React

The World Economic Forum released its The Future of Jobs Report 2025 this month. It predicts job disruption equivalent to 22% of jobs by 2030, with 170 million new roles created and 92 million displaced — a net increase of 78 million jobs.

Major upheaval looms if the WEF is right: Nearly 40% of the skills required for jobs will need to change, with 63% of employers citing skills shortages as a key barrier to transformation. Technology-related skills in AI, big data, and cybersecurity are expected to grow exponentially in demand. 

What will this mean for graduate business education? We asked a few B-school deans to comment.

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Artificial intelligence & emotional intelligence 

We are living in a DISRUPTED world: Digitalized, Inclusive, Sustainable, Rapid, Unpredictable, Polarized, Tangled, Empowered, and Dynamic. This emerging paradigm is driven by three major transformations—environmental, technological, and societal—reshaping our collective future, including the global jobs market.

At the forefront of these changes is generative artificial intelligence (GenAI), which is bringing the capabilities of AI into everyday life. When used responsibly, GenAI empowers individuals and transforms industries, including education, by amplifying creativity and making innovation more accessible and faster than ever.

Globalization 4.0, accelerated by the fourth industrial revolution, is characterized by the convergence of digital technologies, AI, and cyber-physical systems. Big data is shared almost instantaneously, and industries are leveraging these technologies to advance their objectives. This trend is reflected in the rise of terms like Fintech, Edtech, Proptech, Biotech, and Foodtech, signalling the integration of technology into diverse sectors. AI and big data, networks and cybersecurity, and technological literacy are anticipated to be the top three fastest growing skills in the WEF report.

As a higher education institution, we at ESCP Business School have a responsibility to prepare our community—students, alumni, staff, faculty, and corporate partners—for this new world. Thriving in a rapidly changing technological landscape requires more than just familiarity with tools; it demands mastery, ethical application, and a focus on societal benefit. At ESCP, we emphasize the responsible use of GenAI, ensuring it addresses challenges such as inclusion and biodiversity while upholding ethical standards.

In line with this mission, we have appointed an AI Initiative Coordinator and, in October 2024, announced a ground-breaking partnership with OpenAI. This collaboration, one of the first of its kind in France and Europe, extends beyond a simple usage license. Together with OpenAI, we are developing ChatGPT Edu and a platform aligned with our school’s values, emphasizing environmental responsibility and broadening access to GenAI. During a six-month proof-of-concept phase, 1,000 AI champions from among our students, faculty, and staff will explore ways to augment creativity, enhance productivity, and create value. This initiative lays the groundwork for a strategic roadmap to integrate GenAI into various facets of our community—from improving student experience and advancing research innovation to optimizing administrative processes and identifying new business opportunities.

Yet, embracing AI is not just about technology. It’s equally about cultivating Emotional Intelligence (EI) to navigate the complexities of this transformation. By integrating AI and EI, we aim to develop well-rounded individuals equipped with both hard and soft skills, fostering critical thinking, discernment, and ethical decision-making. In this context, professors play a pivotal role in encouraging students to ask essential questions: Why? What? When? How? These questions guide problem-solving and help students approach challenges from diverse perspectives.

The true value of AI lies not in replacing human insight but in amplifying it. At ESCP, we see this technological transformation as an opportunity to enhance our core strengths, empowering our community to think more deeply, innovate further, and make human-centred decisions. This aligns with our vision of creating a fairer, more sustainable, and innovative society.

Our approach draws inspiration from stakeholder capitalism, as articulated by Edward Freeman et al. (2007). This model shifts the focus of value creation from shareholders to a broader group of stakeholders—managers, employees, investors, clients, suppliers, governments, and communities. Similarly, in the context of AI, value creation must consider its impact on all these groups, ensuring that it contributes positively to society.

Social and emotional skills are central to this vision. Business schools must prepare students to develop leadership capabilities, a sense of purpose, and a deep understanding of societal obligations. Effective leaders need a combination of aptitudes: resilience in the face of adversity, cultural and interpersonal awareness, negotiation and communication skills, stakeholder engagement, and the ability to inspire and unite multicultural teams. These skills are underpinned by key concepts like power, respect, and trust, which vary across cultural contexts.

The recent global challenges have underscored the importance of forming interpersonal bonds, even in remote settings. Future leaders will be tasked with creating, uniting, and steering communities within their organizations. Social bonding, therefore, is more critical than ever. By integrating AI and EI, we prepare students not just to adapt but to lead in this disrupted world.

In this vein, we are also developing the Art Thinking method, which brings together concepts from both art and entrepreneurship, helping participants unlock hidden creativity, but also stimulating collaboration, leadership, and negotiation. Participants challenge themselves, learn to build on failure, establish partnerships and develop an agile approach to uncertainty—a necessary skill amidst global challenges.

As we embrace the opportunities and challenges of technological and societal transformations, ESCP Business School is committed to empowering our community with the tools, knowledge, culture and emotional intelligence needed to navigate an increasingly complex world. Together, we can ensure the integration of AI and EI creates a brighter, more inclusive, and sustainable future.

—Léon Laulusa, Dean of ESCP Business School

Next page: Rodrigo Cetina, Associate Dean for Education & Academic Affairs at UPF-Barcelona School of Management

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