The Executive AI Skills Gap: What You’re Missing in 2025
Why CDOs, CIOs, and CHROs Must Rethink Leadership in the Age of Elevated Collaborative Intelligence™
By Carsten Krause — June 4, 2025
The New Leadership Divide in the Age of AI
AI is no longer a tool—it’s an organizational disruptor. As of 2025, over 80% of enterprises report integrating AI into at least one business function, according to McKinsey’s Global AI Survey. Yet only 22% of executives say they feel “very prepared” to lead their teams through AI transformation.
Source: https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/mckinsey-digital/our-insights/superagency-in-the-workplace-empowering-people-to-unlock-ais-full-potential-at-work
That number should terrify any boardroom!
We’re witnessing a seismic shift not in technology, but in leadership capability. The AI arms race is on—but many organizations are sending their leaders into the battlefield unarmed.
Welcome to the AI Skills Gap at the C-Suite—where knowledge silos, outdated leadership models, and lack of data literacy are quietly sabotaging your enterprise transformation. And no, this isn’t just about Python or prompt engineering.
It’s about your ability to orchestrate Human Intelligence (HI) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) into what I call Elevated Collaborative Intelligence™ (ECI).
Why “IQ” Leaders Are Failing AI Transformations
Let’s confront an uncomfortable truth: traditional intelligence, pedigree, and tenure are no longer reliable indicators of transformation success.
In a 2024 Deloitte study, 68% of failed AI initiatives cited “executive misunderstanding or misalignment” as a top factor.
These failures don’t happen because executives aren’t smart. They fail because many leaders cling to obsolete mental models. They delegate AI to IT, wait for perfect data, or implement governance frameworks modeled after legacy ERP deployments.
The result? AI pilots stagnate. Data teams burn out. Change agents leave.
From Skills Gap to Strategy Gap
AI transformation isn’t just about training employees—it’s about retooling leadership. Here’s what’s often missing:
| Leadership Capability | Traditional Executive Approach | ECI-Aligned Approach |
|---|---|---|
| Decision-making | Intuition-based, post-hoc analysis | Augmented with predictive modeling and real-time data |
| Talent development | Hierarchical, compliance-driven | AI-powered, skills-mapped, continuous learning |
| Risk management | Static policies, reactive | Adaptive, bias-aware, algorithmically audited |
| Stakeholder alignment | Functional silos | Cross-domain collaboration through shared intelligence |
So what does a successful transformation look like in practice?
Let’s examine Henkel’s global digital upskilling initiative—a blueprint for closing the executive AI gap with precision, not platitudes.
Case Study: Henkel’s Digital Skills Transformation – A Masterclass in Human + AI Readiness
Before: A Legacy Giant at Risk
Henkel, a 147-year-old German conglomerate known for brands like Loctite and Persil, operates in over 79 countries. By 2021, it was clear that AI, automation, and digital workflows were redefining how products were developed, sold, and supported.
Yet internal audits revealed:
- Low digital fluency among business leaders
- Fragmented data literacy across HR, marketing, and procurement
- Prolonged hiring cycles for digital roles
- Misalignment between L&D investments and enterprise strategy
Strategy: Reinventing Talent as a Platform
Henkel partnered with Accenture to launch a transformation rooted in HI + AI thinking. Their strategy included:
- AI-powered diagnostics to assess digital readiness across 7 key functions
- Personalized learning journeys from foundational digital skills to AI ethics
- AI-enhanced recruiting tools that screened applicants in 60 seconds
- Executive bootcamps focused on applied digital fluency, including algorithmic bias and explainability
Source: https://www.accenture.com/us-en/case-studies/consulting/henkel-cultivates-in-house-talent
Execution: Moving at Speed and Scale
In just 18 weeks, Henkel deployed a fully integrated Learning Experience Platform (LXP) across global markets. Learning content was sourced from internal SMEs, third-party providers like Coursera, and custom-built AI modules.
Local digital champions ensured cultural fit, and data dashboards provided real-time feedback to the CHRO, CDIO, and line-of-business leaders.
Metrics That Matter
Source: https://www.accenture.com/us-en/case-studies/consulting/henkel-cultivates-in-house-talent
Additional source: https://consumergoods.com/henkel-digital-upskilling-program-cuts-application-process-60-seconds
Challenges and Lessons
Despite its success, Henkel had to overcome:
- Middle manager resistance, mitigated through storytelling and peer learning
- Content fatigue, managed with quarterly updates
- Executive skepticism, countered by benchmarking ECI-readiness metrics
Where the CDO and CHRO Must Now Lead
The Henkel example isn’t just a one-off. It’s a signal for what future-ready organizations must do:
- Align skills, hiring, and culture to measurable digital business outcomes
- Make executives accountable for their own AI literacy
- Embrace the HI + AI = ECI™ framework as a strategic design principle
We’re already seeing similar moves from firms like:
- Pfizer, investing in AI to detect patients with a risk for caridac arrest:
Source: https://www.pfizer.com/news/articles/harnessing_the_power_of_ai_to_detect_attr_cmhttps://www.pfizer.com/news/articles/harnessing_the_power_of_ai_to_detect_attr_cm
The CDO TIMES Bottom Line
In the age of AI, it’s not the algorithm that determines success—it’s the intelligence behind how AI is applied.
Closing the executive AI skills gap is no longer optional. It’s the difference between building an autonomous enterprise—or becoming a cautionary tale.
Elevated Collaborative Intelligence™ (ECI) isn’t just a framework. It’s your survival strategy.
Next Steps for Executives:
- Run a leadership AI fluency audit — identify gaps in your top 50 leaders
- Create cross-functional “ECI Pods” — mix business, data, and tech talent into agile squads
- Tie learning to business outcomes — measure upskilling impact in terms of revenue, speed, and retention
- Pre-order the HI + AI = ECI™ Book — and access exclusive frameworks, toolkits, and assessments
👉 Visit https://cdotimes.com to pre-order and subscribe for the next release in this series:
“ECI vs. IQ: Why Smart Leaders Fail at AI”
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