Procore’s vision of the future is not one where technology replaces construction professionals. Instead, it is one where technology augments their capabilities.

In its discussion of productivity, Procore points to automation taking on dangerous or repetitive work, robotics supporting field activities, data improving preconstruction, and AI helping teams work faster and make better-informed decisions. One of the report’s key takeaways is explicit: technology will not replace workers, but will augment them.

That distinction matters because the more capable construction technology becomes, the more important it is for people to understand how, when and why to use it. A new AI tool does not automatically create better decisions, just as a new platform does not automatically improve a workflow. The value comes when people have the knowledge and skills to confidently incorporate those capabilities into the way work actually gets done.

As technology becomes a larger part of project delivery, the technology conversation also needs to become a workforce readiness conversation.

Procore identifies labor concerns as the most-cited challenge facing construction companies, but the report looks beyond simply filling open positions. It describes a workforce that will need to evolve as technology, roles and expectations change.

One finding is particularly important: 96% of construction leaders surveyed have experienced generational challenges. Procore points to the construction industry’s aging workforce and the risk that knowledge and expertise could leave organizations as experienced professionals retire. At the same time, younger generations are entering the industry with different expectations, technological experience and new perspectives.

This creates both a workforce challenge and a knowledge challenge. Construction organizations hold enormous amounts of expertise in their people, from how particular projects should be delivered and why specific workflows exist to how technology should be configured, what lessons have been learned and how teams respond when the unexpected happens. Some of that knowledge lives in standards, procedures and systems, but much of it still lives in people’s heads.

Procore describes the importance of two-way knowledge transfer, where experienced employees pass institutional knowledge to the next generation while newer employees contribute their own understanding of technology and emerging ways of working.

That creates an important question for construction organizations: How do we capture, maintain and scale that knowledge so it remains accessible to the people who need it?

Workforce transition is not simply about replacing people. It is also about ensuring that valuable organizational knowledge does not leave with them.

The relationship between technology and workforce capability becomes even clearer in Procore’s findings on training. The report says 67% of respondents currently have employee training programs for upskilling and reskilling in place, while 41% are planning to implement one within the next 12 months.

More importantly, Procore concludes that upskilling and training across all levels is necessary to engage employees and realize the value of technology investments.

Construction organizations continue to invest in increasingly sophisticated technology, but purchasing technology and successfully adopting it are two different things. Teams need to understand the tools and the workflows surrounding them, as well as how generic software capabilities connect to their company standards, project requirements and individual responsibilities. That knowledge also needs to remain current as technology and workflows continue to change.

Training, then, cannot simply be something that happens when a new employee starts or a new piece of software is introduced. It needs to become part of how an organization continuously adapts.

Procore’s report also looks at how decision-making will change as construction becomes increasingly data-driven. Rather than framing the future as human judgment versus technology, Procore describes a hybrid model in which historical and real-time data, AI, predictive analytics and automation help people make more informed and efficient decisions.

In fact, 80% of respondents agree or strongly agree that access to historical data is critical to current and future projects, access to connected data across projects is imperative for project success, and accurate historical data significantly helps reduce financial risks. 

As AI becomes more deeply embedded in construction workflows, the quality, context and accessibility of the information surrounding that technology become increasingly important. Construction organizations do not simply need more information. They need trusted information that reflects how their organization and projects actually work, including project procedures, company standards, lessons learned, technology workflows, subject-matter expertise, training content and requirements that may change from one project to another.

The opportunity is to connect that information so people can find, learn and apply the right knowledge when they need it.

That is where knowledge infrastructure becomes increasingly important.

This is where Global eTraining is focused.

Trusted by leading architecture, engineering, construction and manufacturing organizations worldwide, Global eTraining’s AI-powered digital adoption platform helps organizations elevate human potential and accelerate workforce readiness by connecting people with the trusted knowledge, skills and guidance they need to confidently put technology to work.

For construction organizations specifically, that means bringing together industry and software training with the knowledge unique to the way their own teams deliver projects. Global eTraining helps organizations convert trusted company and project-specific information into actionable knowledge, access dynamic project procedures in the flow of work and close digital skills gaps through AI assessments, insights and learning paths.

In practice, that can mean capturing the expertise of experienced subject-matter experts before it walks out the door, connecting software training to company standards and project workflows, helping project teams find trusted guidance when questions arise and identifying skills gaps so organizations can provide more targeted learning.

Instead of training, project knowledge, company standards and individual expertise remaining disconnected, organizations can bring them together into an intelligent, scalable knowledge infrastructure. And because construction technology, projects and workflows continually evolve, the knowledge surrounding them needs to evolve too.

Global eTraining empowers learners with consumable and up-to-date training that is just enough, just in time and just for them, helping organizations reduce inconsistency, reduce rework and reduce risk while giving their people the knowledge and skills they need to keep pace.

The result is more than a training program. It is the knowledge infrastructure that drives technology adoption at scale.

Procore’s report looks toward a future shaped by automation, AI, connected data, changing workforce expectations and increasingly intelligent tools. But its conclusion brings the conversation back to something much more fundamental.

Although technology, platforms and data will play a critical role in shaping construction over the next 8 to 10 years, Procore says the industry’s success will ultimately depend on people and on how well organizations adapt to and harness these technologies.

That may be one of the most important takeaways in the entire report. The future of construction will require better technology, but it will also require organizations to capture and transfer knowledge, continually build new skills and create workforces capable of confidently adapting as technology changes.

For organizations, those should no longer be separate strategies. Technology adoption, workforce readiness and organizational knowledge need to evolve together.

At Global eTraining, we believe the organizations best positioned for the future will be those that connect technology, trusted knowledge and people, creating a knowledge infrastructure that evolves alongside their workforce, projects and technology.

Because the future of construction will not be defined by technology alone.

It will be defined by what people can do with it.

Meet with us to learn more.