Behind this reconfiguration of the labor market are forces such as the digitalization of businesses, the automation of processes and the advancement of artificial intelligence. The latter, alone, generated 1.3 million new jobs globally between 2023 and 2026, according to data from LinkedIn, the largest professional social network in the world.
In this context, the debate no longer revolves around whether technology will eliminate jobs, but rather how it is redefining the functions and skills that companies demand in this new stage, known as the ‘new collar’ era.
The transformation of employment is closely linked to the way companies incorporate artificial intelligence (AI) into their operationsleaving behind its use as a simple experimental tool, explains Mario Rodríguez, general manager of Microsoft in Peru. As a result, organizations are moving from an exploration stage to an execution stage.
“It is already understood that AI not only automates, but also expands. So, the real change occurs when it begins to transform decisions, operational models, and even when it begins to positively impact the customer experience, not only when it reduces times and tasks and is productive, which was good at the beginning. Now it is more than that,” he mentions.
From Microsoft they point out that this evolution already reaches all industries. Although sectors such as financial services are advancing at a faster pace than retail, education or health, they all share the same starting point: having previously gone through a digital transformation process.
In response to this incorporation, the most in-demand profiles are modified, giving rise to new positions linked to this technology. Diego Tala, commercial director of Bumeran.com.pe at Jobint, maintains that interest has grown in professionals capable of designing, adjusting and optimizing the ‘prompts’ that allow obtaining more precise and efficient results from AI models.
“The big trend is that companies are no longer looking only for technical specialists. They are looking for hybrid profiles: people capable of understanding technology, business, data, processes and people. That combination is today one of the rarest and best valued in Latin America,” comments Diego Cubas, CEO Peru and president of Cornerstone Latam.
A similar trend is observed by Jorge Gamero, general director of ManpowerGroup Chile – Peru & Director Experis Latam. As he explains, more than the appearance of completely new positions, companies are demanding an evolution of professional profiles, especially those capable of integrating technology and business in areas such as process automation, data management, cybersecurity, advanced operations and organizational transformation.
In the technological field, Rodríguez identifies a growing demand for AI flow designers, model trainers and, more recently, specialists in AI agent governance and agent orchestrators, tools that allow automating tasks that were previously performed manually.
“AI agents globally have grown 15 times in the last year and it is projected that by 2027 they will grow 18 times more. So we are starting to work with virtual people. To call it a certain way, the great challenge is how you govern virtual people,” Rodríguez emphasizes.
Emerging occupations include AI model trainers and technology adoption specialists. The most relevant thing is that, as these are hybrid functions, these capabilities are not exclusive to technological careers. Psychologists, sociologists, lawyers, project managers and engineers, among other professionals, can develop them.
However, talent retraining is also changing some traditional functions. From PwC they point out that the most exposed jobs are those associated with operational tasks or intensive information processing, such as administrative, back office and customer service.
Along the same lines, Bumeran indicates that graphic designers top the list of profiles that could be replaced by AI. They are followed by editors, recruitment and selection professionals, as well as manufacturing and production workers, data analysis, customer service and administrative areas.
“69% of human resources experts affirm that certain profiles will be replaced with the introduction and advancement of AI. However, only 20% mention that organizations are replacing roles,” highlights Tala, from Bumeran.
The emergence of these new roles is also transforming the way companies evaluate candidates. Although companies continue to value professional careers such as Systems Engineering, Computer Science, Communication and related disciplines, having them is not a mandatory requirement to access these positions. In many cases, practical knowledge and experience with AI tools have decisive weight.
In that sense, Cubas maintains that the university degree or the chosen career are no longer determining factors. In these profiles, demonstrable experience, specialized certifications, command of English—which has become a practically mandatory requirement—and leadership skills linked to business vision and the ability to generate concrete results become more relevant.
Gamero agrees that access to these opportunities no longer depends exclusively on a university degree. Practical experience, certifications, technical training and the capacity for permanent updating are gaining prominence as mechanisms to access jobs with greater added value.
The scarcity of these profiles is also reflected in their salaries. According to Cornerstone Peru’s Salary Guide 2026, a Digital Transformation manager can earn from S/15,000 in a medium-sized company or a startup with potential, up to S/60,000 per month in a corporation or a company with a turnover of more than US$500 million. Meanwhile, Supply Chain management can range between S/23,000 and S/60,000 per month in vice-presidential or senior management positions within large corporations.
At the same time, the growing demand for specialized talent has also raised salary expectations in several South American markets. According to the Regional Report of the first semester of the HR Tech Jobint, made up of Bumeran, between April 2025 and April 2026 salary expectations increased 15.9% in Peru, 17.43% in Chile and 53.08% in Argentina, while in Panama they registered a slight decline.
Although digital transformation is simplifying processes and automating tasks, it has not displaced capabilities such as critical thinking, empathy, judgment or the ability to analyze. On the contrary, it is precisely these skills that are becoming increasingly scarce in the labor market.
From Bumeran they point out that 69% of human resources specialists identify social skills as the most sought after and, at the same time, the most difficult to find. In Peru, 58% mention teamwork as the most in-demand skill, while 47% highlight problem solving.
For its part, Cornerstone identifies the largest gaps in adaptability and change management (43%), leadership and team development (32%) and emotional intelligence (26%). Added to this are competencies such as strategic vision, execution capacity and technological understanding, which have gained relevance in an environment where transformation cycles are increasingly accelerated, according to their study. Talent Insights 2026 Latam.
From ManpowerGroup’s perspective, organizations also face increasing difficulties in finding professionals with critical thinking, leadership, social influence, continuous learning capacity and effective communication skills. According to Gamero, these skills are especially valuable because they allow one to function in environments marked by uncertainty and constant change.
Along the same lines, Úrsula Maco, Compensation Manager at PwC Peru, agrees that these skills continue to be scarce, although she highlights that teamwork and communication are the skills most frequently found in Peruvian professionals.
Although digital transformation has reached practically all markets, labor dynamics in South America present particularities depending on each country. According to data from ManpowerGroup, Brazil currently leads hiring intentions in the region, followed by Peru, Colombia and Chile. Argentina, for its part, continues to show signs of recovery after several periods of lower dynamism.
Talent needs also respond to the economic characteristics of each market. From Cornerstone they explain that Brazil registers a growing demand for executives capable of leading digitalization and innovation processes, driven by the migration of large regional technology hubs to that country.
In other cases, demand is directly linked to the local productive structure. In Panama, for example, the growth of corporate offices responds to its consolidation as a regional hub for logistics, international trade and financial services companies.
In Peru, demand continues to be driven by traditional and extractive sectors, although it also responds to a growing process of professionalization of family businesses, explains Cubas, from Cornerstone.
However, the Peruvian market still faces challenges in fully adapting to some of the trends that are already gaining ground in other countries. According to Úrsula Maco, Compensation Manager at PwC Peru, although the hiring approach based on skills over academic degrees is beginning to make its way, its application is still limited. The same occurs with modalities such as transnational remote work.
Even so, specialists agree that the country has significant potential to enter this new stage of the labor market. The challenge, they maintain, is to convert that potential into higher levels of productivity, formality and highly qualified employability.
Along these lines, Rosa María Fuchs, senior professor and head of the Academic Department of Administration at the Universidad del Pacífico, recalls that in the Global Talent Competitiveness Index 2025, Peru ranks 73rd among 135 countries and eighth place among 18 economies in Latin America and the Caribbean. “We are in a regional intermediate position, not among the leaders,” he warns.
For the academic, the problem does not lie in the lack of individual capabilities. On the contrary, it stands out that the Peruvian usually shows adaptation, creativity and a strong entrepreneurial vocation. The limitations are more structural and are associated with high informality, educational gaps, low productivity and the persistent disconnection between the training offered by institutions and the skills demanded by the labor market.
