The bottleneck has moved. It isn't the technology anymore, it's the people who can put it to work. Over 50% of manufacturers cite skills shortages as the main barrier to AI adoption, and only 2% say AI is widely embedded across their operations The Manufacturer and Make UK's 2026 report on AI, skills and the future of UK manufacturing. That gap between ambition and embedded reality is exactly where integrators live, and it shapes who they hire.
The scale of the shortfall is hard to ignore. In 2025 there were 55,000 unfilled long-term vacancies in UK manufacturing, costing the economy £6bn in lost output every year Make UK's Industrial Strategy Skills Commission report 2025. On the engineering side the picture is similar, with 76% of engineering employers struggling to recruit for key roles and technical and specialist sustainability skills topping the list the Institution of Engineering and Technology's 2025 skills statistics. When skills are this scarce, speed to a working system becomes the thing firms compete on.
There's a prize attached to getting this right. Targeted innovation and digital investment could add £150 billion to the UK's GDP by 2035, yet the UK ranks just 24th in global robotics density Make UK's 2025 report on accelerating automation and digital adoption. Integrators are the ones turning that potential into live lines, and the faster they commission, the sooner clients see the payback. That's why commissioning speed is becoming a hiring criterion in its own right.
Commissioning rewards people who can span disciplines. Six in ten (59%) manufacturers cited automation and half (50%) cited wider digitalisation as trends changing jobs and skills needs, and 74% expect demand for cognitive and meta-cognitive skills to increase by 2030 Make UK's 2030 Skills: Closing the Gap report. In plain terms, that means problem-solvers who can read a PLC, question a process and adapt on site, not just follow a wiring diagram.
The roles that carry commissioning are the ones under most pressure: controls and automation engineers, systems integrators, robotics specialists and software-literate maintenance leads. With 76% of engineering employers struggling to recruit for key roles the IET's 2025 skills statistics, these people are rarely sitting idle. And they're mobile: 79% of UK technical professionals plan to change employers in 2026 Rise Technical's 2025/26 Insights Report, which surveyed over 500 employers and 1,000 candidates. That churn is both the risk and the opening for integrators building a team.
Many firms are also growing this capability from within. 40% of manufacturers are looking to upskill their existing workforce, specifically for redeployment as a result of automation and digitalisation, a figure that increases for firms with more than 1,000 employees Make UK's Executive Survey 2026. For integrators, that's a reminder that commissioning talent can be built as well as bought, and the best hiring plans do both.
Start by hiring for behaviour, not just the tool stack. Because 74% of employers expect demand for cognitive and meta-cognitive skills to rise by 2030 Make UK's 2030 Skills report, your interviews should test how someone diagnoses a stalled line, prioritises under time pressure and explains a fix to a client. Those are the traits that shorten commissioning, and they're harder to screen for than a software certificate.
Move quickly, because your shortlist won't wait. With 79% of technical professionals planning to move in 2026 Rise Technical's 2025/26 Insights Report, a slow process loses the people you most want. Set out the project, the on-site expectations and the growth path early. Skills shortages (75%), recruitment (36%) and talent retention (32%) rank as manufacturers' top barriers to growth Barclays Corporate's 2024 analysis of the skills shortage in UK manufacturing, so treat retention as part of the hire from day one.
Then widen your view. With 55,000 unfilled long-term vacancies in UK manufacturing Make UK's Industrial Strategy Skills Commission report 2025, a narrow search rarely fills a specialist commissioning role. Look across adjacent sectors, consider upskilling alongside external hires, and keep a live pipeline rather than starting cold each time a project lands. Speed to commission starts with speed to the right shortlist.
When commissioning speed depends on finding scarce controls and automation talent fast, we can help you move at the pace the work demands. Our recruitment agent manages recruitment end to end for 8% on a successful hire, with no monthly fee and no upfront cost. That keeps your focus where it belongs: on finding the right person and getting the system live. If you're building a commissioning team for 2026, start your search with us today.
