Hiring or training? Innovation and skills acquisition in the green transition

This study investigates how green innovation relates to firms’ skill acquisition and whether this acquisition is achieved through hiring or training. Using a representative sample of 934 Italian companies from a unique two-wave survey, we show that green product innovation is linked to greater demand for business skills, which firms predominantly source through hiring. In contrast, green process innovation is associated with the acquisition of new technical skills mainly achieved through training. These findings can assist both firms and policymakers in anticipating skill needs and improving the alignment between labour demand and supply.