Australian employers unite to reimagine the future of skills
The 100% Human at Work ‘Australian Skills Pilot’, powered by Virgin Unite and in partnership with the Future Skills Organisation (FSO) and Capability.Co, has launched to help address this misalignment. It will now commence the first major impact trial under our ‘Australian Innovation Cluster’.
Founding employer partners in the Innovation Cluster include the Commonwealth Bank, SMEC, Hays Specialist Recruitment, SunRice Group, AMP and Deloitte Australia. The pilot they have developed reimagines how people enter and move within the workforce, focusing on human capabilities and real-world jobs, and engaging in collaborative business leadership
This is not just a hiring initiative; it’s a movement led by business to reshape how Australia builds opportunity and lays the foundations for the next generation entering the workforce. When employers collaborate around shared human values, they can create opportunities that meet both business needs and social purpose.
“The power of the Innovation Cluster is collaboration. No single person or company can solve for the impacts of AI alone, but together we can reimagine how the future of work can truly work for everyone,.” Jan Owen AM Hon DLitt.
The group’s collaboration efforts have already been recognised by The CEO Magazine’s Executive of the Year Awards, acknowledging its pioneering approach to collective business action.
The pilot comes at a pivotal moment with the World Economic Forum recently predicting that 39% of key skills in the job market will change by 2030, disrupting both work and opportunity.
At the same time, entry-level roles across Australia are disappearing, with up to half at threat of vanishing in coming years, leaving young and career-transitioning workers struggling to gain a foothold. As automation and AI accelerate, the skills that define success are increasingly human: empathy, adaptability, critical thinking, and collaboration.
“The 100% Human at Work Australian Skills Pilot showcases the power of industry-led collaboration. It brings together organisations with a shared ambition to build a future-ready workforce through a skills-first approach—one that focuses on identifying, developing, and recognising people’s capabilities rather than relying solely on job titles or qualifications. As technology continues to reshape roles and industries, human-centric skills such as adaptability, empathy, collaboration, and critical thinking are increasingly essential for people and organisations to thrive in work, learning, and life. This pilot reflects the pace and intent needed to test, learn, and identify what works, with the potential to scale impact across the broader skills and employment system”, said Patrick Kidd, OBE OAM, CEO, Future Skills Organisation.
Rather than relying on government or education systems alone, the100% Human at Work pilot is business-led and employer co-designed, putting employees at the heart of the conversation. The participating organisations are co-creating and testing new approaches to:
Identify the human capabilities most critical for their industries;
Hire real world roles based on these capabilities, and
Build shared pathways that make the job market more inclusive and future-ready.
The partnership with Future Skills Organisation (FSO) ensures alignment with national reform efforts to modernise Australia’s skills framework, bridging business innovation and policy impact.
The first cohort of employers has already begun hiring under the pilot, spanning banking, professional services, infrastructure, and agriculture. Each role contributes to an evidence base showing how business-led innovation can drive measurable social and economic outcomes.
Visit the 100% Human at Work website to learn more about Innovation Clusters and about how you can get more involved.