Switzerland continues to lead the world in talent competitiveness according to the Adecco Group’s Global Talent Competitiveness Index 2020, released at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Switzerland has held the number one spot since the Index was launched in 2013. Meanwhile the US moved from third place to second, pushing Singapore down one place compared to 2019. 

The index's top rankings are still dominated by Europe, with only seven non-European countries in the top 20: US, Singapore, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Japan and Israel.

The top three were followed by Sweden (4th), Denmark (5th), Netherlands (6th) and Finland (7th).

Yemen finished at the bottom of this year's index at 132^nd as they had in 2019, just below Congo (130^th) and Angola (131^st). 

As with previous years, higher rankings are associated with higher income economies. 

“Policies and practices that bring about talent competitiveness in developed nations are less susceptible to political and socioeconomic instability,” the report stated. “Higher income countries have the steady infrastructure to invest in the likes of lifelong learning, re-/upskilling and attracting and retaining global talent.”

Overall, high income countries dominate the top 25 and the index shows that these top 'talent champions' are accelerating further away from the rest of the world. This divide is being intensified by the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the associated digital skills gap that has emerged between industries, sectors and nations.

Here are the top 10 countries:

1. Switzerland
2. United States
3. Singapore
4. Sweden
5. Denmark
6. Netherlands
7. Finland
8. Luxembourg
9. Norway
10. Australia

Germany and the UK ranked 11th and 12th, respectively.

Compared to previous editions, the 2020 index shows a continued strong performance by larger cities, in particular in the US, which accounted for seven of the top 20. Here are the top 10 cities:

1. New York
2. London
3. Singapore
4. San Francisco
5. Boston
6. Hong Kong
7. Paris
8. Tokyo
9. Los Angeles
10. Munich

The Adecco Group's Chief Executive Officer, Alain Dehaze said, "As machines and algorithms continue to affect a multiplicity of tasks and responsibilities and almost every job gets reinvented, having the right talent has never been more critical.”

“Today, robots and algorithms have travelled beyond the factory floor and are functioning at front of house, the back office and company headquarters,” Dehaze said. “At all levels, workers need training to hone quintessential "human skills" - adaptability, social intelligence, communication, problem solving and leadership - that will complement technology.”