As more U.S. companies incorporate generative AI tools into the workplace, job posts related to the technology are increasing, including a new type of job title: generative AI management consultant, according to a Feb. 27 report by Indeed’s Hiring Lab.
About 3 in every 1,000 job postings now mention generative AI terms, an increase of 170% from January 2024 to January 2025. Gen AI management consultant roles now account for 12.4% of those postings.
“Consulting jobs have seen major job requirement transformations in the last year — driven by growing business demand for GenAI implementation,” Cory Stahle, a Hiring Lab economist, wrote in the report.
“These shifts represent the first jobs to see major increases in GenAI mentions outside of tech and data science and are an important signal of where businesses are headed,” he wrote. “As companies implement GenAI and transform, many knowledge work roles are also likely to change. For workers whose skills overlap with GenAI capabilities, these shifts represent a significant opportunity to invest in AI skills now, and stay ahead of the curve.”
Software development, data science, machine learning and related developer roles still dominate generative AI job postings, according to Indeed data. However, the increase in consultant roles indicates a growing focus on AI implementation rather than development alone.
In January 2024, only .2% of generative AI job postings were for management consultant roles, as compared to 6.9% for machine learning engineers, 5.7% for data scientists, and 5.3% for software architects. By January 2025, 12.4% of generative AI-related postings were for management consultants, as compared to 5.4% for machine learning engineers, 4.7% for software architects, and 4.4% for data scientists.
Despite the growth in consulting roles, demand in developer and engineer fields continues to grow rapidly, according to the report. During the past year, generative AI mentions increased by 9.5 percentage points for machine learning engineers and 9 points for data scientists, reflecting a major change in job requirements for these technical roles, Hiring Lab said.
As generative AI use continues to grow in 2025, companies should treat AI as a new kind of talent to realize productivity gains, one expert previously wrote for HR Dive. HR should think of AI as an intern for every employee, he said, where tools can perform repetitive tasks that consume valuable time, such as summarizing meeting notes and outcomes, synthesizing key points from interviews or conducting research for a project.
New training may be key, too. Although half of workers received training during the past year, only 12% learned about AI tools or technology, according to a Pew Research Center survey. More than a third of respondents said AI skills are extremely or very important for workers today, although skills such as communication and critical thinking ranked much higher.
