The IMD World Talent Ranking 2019

Now in its sixth year, the IMD World Talent Ranking scores countries across three factors of investment and development, readiness and appeal.

» Download the IMD World Talent Ranking 2019

Cultivating, attracting and retaining a skilled workforce is crucial to strengthen competitiveness and achieve long-term prosperity, particularly in the current dynamic landscape where artificial intelligence, robotics and other new technologies constantly redefine the challenges that governments, businesses and society in general will have to face in the future.

In 2019, the top of the table is still led by European small and mid-size economies. These countries all share high levels of investments in education and a superior quality of life. Switzerland in the first and Denmark in the second position firmly lead the ranking for the seventh year in a row, followed by Sweden, Austria and Luxembourg. Sweden joins the top three, advancing five positions with respect to last year, thanks to improvements in such as total public expenditure on education and the prioritization of talent attraction and retention in the private sector. With the exception of Estonia and Lithuania, Eastern European economies place in the lower half of the ranking.

“Most leading economies emphasize long-term talent development by focusing on investment and development. This emphasis, however, goes beyond purely academic aspects to encompass the effective implementation of apprenticeships and employee training. Such an approach ensures a consistent alignment between talent demand and supply,” said Professor Arturo Bris, Director of the IMD World Competitiveness Center.

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