What’s Next for Industry? AI, Transformation, and the Talent Imperative

The way we make, power, and move things is undergoing a seismic shift, rippling across business, consumers and the workforce itself. AI, machine learning (ML), automation, and robotics are transforming industrial processes while fundamentally reshaping who (or what) does the work and how it gets done.  Across smart factories, predictive maintenance systems, and interconnected supply chains, companies are leveraging AI to drive efficiency, innovation, and sustainability.  With the industrial sector at an inflection point, the integration of human expertise with intelligent systems is not just optimising operations, it is redefining entire industries.

This report delivers a data-driven snapshot of the industrial AI landscape today, highlighting market trends, technologies, and competitive shifts across major sector segments.  More importantly, we examine the critical role of talent: the evolving leadership demands, skill gaps, and the human-AI collaboration defining the next era of industrial progress.  Boyden’s Global Industrial Practice Members share exclusive insights on what this transformation means for executives and organisations navigating the road ahead.

“With reinvention touching almost every part of our lives, what will tomorrow’s smart environment look like – and how do we approach it from a talent and leadership perspective?

Here, we look at the extraordinary developments affecting our infrastructure, materials, manufacturing, power, supply chain, mobility and airborne capabilities to explore the impact on leadership in a synthesised, 5D world. 

In the face of industrial evolution, we leverage our collective expertise to solve every client’s pivotal talent issues; because the human factor is mission-critical in how we develop, maintain and protect our world."

- Helga Kayser-Dörr
Managing Partner, Germany
Global Leader, Industrial Practice