The report shows that many organizations are facing significant challenges as they work to implement generative and agency AI.
The author, a provider of AI agents in the enterprise, has partnered with research firm Workplace Intelligence to release its second annual AI survey, ‘AI Adoption in the Enterprise’.
To collect data, the Author and Workplace Intelligence collected data from 2,400 employees and C-suite leaders from the US, UK, Ireland, Benelux, France and Germany. The findings are that organizations still face significant challenges when it comes to implementing agency and productivity AI.
The report found that nearly 80pc of executives are struggling with issues related to backlog, ROI, strategy gaps and internal power struggles, with 38 CEOs reporting a high or crippling amount of stress over their AI strategy. In fact, 64pc of CEOs are worried they could lose their jobs if they fail to navigate their organization through AI transformation.
As a result, 92pc of C-suite participants say they are cultivating a “new class of AI-elite workers” as a way to get ahead in the AI race. Almost 90pc of contributing leaders are of the opinion that “power users of AI” are five times more productive than workers who have not yet discovered AI.
“The numbers are high for those who are lagging behind”, says the report, which states that “77pc of managers warn that workers who refuse to embrace AI will not succeed. considering promotions or leadership roles and a 60pc layoff plan for employees who can’t or won’t use AI.”
“This is an important time Adoption of AI and the gap between high users and non-users is growing rapidly,” said Dan Schawbel, managing partner at Workplace Intelligence.
“We’re already seeing this play out; heavy users we surveyed were three times more likely to receive both a promotion and a raise in the past year, compared to employees who were slow to adopt these tools.
“High AI users also save about nine hours per week using AI, 4.5 times more than the two hours per week reported by AI laggards.”
For May Habib, CEO and founder of Writer, “retrenchment is not an effective strategy for AI”.
Habib said: “Leaders who do the work of re-designing how to work with people in the center are the ones who consolidate their advantage in ways that competitors cannot replicate.
“The AI revolution is ultimately about people and the future belongs to companies that put the power to build agents in the hands of the people closest to the job.”
C-suite challenges
The gap in strategy was among the challenges faced at work by C-suite employees. 39pc admitted they do not have a formal strategy in place to monetize AI tools and even in cases where strategies do exist, the quality was found to be lacking. Three-quarters of participants noted that their company’s AI strategy is more of a show rather than an actual internal direction.
Security and governance were also found to be of concern to managers. 67pc of managers said they believed their company had experienced a data breach or security breach because an employee used an unauthorized AI tool. More than a third admit that they are not confident enough to “pull the plug” on strong AI agent if it starts hurting money or reputation in their company.
There may also be an element of employee sabotage in the workplace, as the data suggests that instead of embracing AI, 29pc of employees – including 44pc of GenZ participants – are allowed to enter company information into public tools, use unauthorized tools or refuse to use AI altogether.
In addition, three-quarters said that employee attrition threatens the future of their company.
For others, missed ROI and confusion about the technology’s benefits are influencing acquisitions. Almost all participating executives (97pc) said AI has been beneficial, with a quarter predicting AI agents will be part of their organization’s C-suite within the next five years.
However, almost half said the adoption of AI in their organization has been a “big disappointment”.
Don’t miss out on the information you need to succeed. Sign up for Daily BriefSilicon Republic’s digest of must-know sci-tech news.
