Nine in 10 U.S. business leaders expect AI adoption to change some manual roles, with three-quarters (74%) expecting such roles to be replaced, finds newly published research from BSI. This comes amid widespread optimism about the positive impact of AI tools on productivity and recognition, in which 79% say companies will be at a competitive disadvantage if they do not invest in them.
Based on insights from nearly 1,000 business leaders across nine countries, BSI’s report examines AI’s prospective impact on work. In the U.S., 76% of business leaders say AI tools should be embraced even if some jobs change or are lost as a result and two-thirds (65%) agree innovation is more important than protecting existing jobs. Notably, U.S. leaders are more inclined to see AI as an opportunity than a risk, with 77% seeing the matter in this way. Approximately 38% of Japanese business leaders, 35% in France, and 34% in the U.K. took a different view, saying that AI is more of a risk for employees than an opportunity.
Over half (62%) of U.S. respondents expect AI to be used in the next five years to improve productivity and efficiency, rising to 64% in China and 65% in India. A quarter (22%) expect AI to reduce reliance on external contractors, while 8% of U.S. leaders are optimistic about the creation of specialist roles in AI transformation, training, or innovation.
“The world of work is changing, shaped by demographic shifts bringing growing age diversity alongside new attitudes and expectations of when, how, and where work is done,” says Kate Field, global head of human and social sustainability at BSI. “AI-powered technologies have the power to transform the way we work across the U.S., and we can expect them to shape how companies recruit staff, manage performance, train employees, and more.”
With nine in 10 leaders globally (91%) saying their business will invest in AI in the next five years, the report looks at the prospects for AI to be used in management, job redesign, training, and recruitment, finding that even now three-fourths in the U.S. (74%) say their organization is using AI tools to support candidate recruitment process and a higher proportion (78%) are aware of their business using AI to support any aspect of performance management. Despite this, HR is not one of the functions expected to be most impacted by AI in the U.S., with only 41% saying they anticipate this, compared with 74% for operations, 64% for marketing, and 56% for sales.
Training is identified as being key, with three-quarters (74%) in the U.S. saying that if people do not have the skills to manage AI tools this will have a negative impact on their career progression. Overall, four-fifths of U.S. businesses are offering some form of training (82%) but only a third (37%) are aware of a significant amount of formal or informal training being offered by their firm to guide employees in how to use AI tools safely, ethically, and effectively and manage risk. Despite this, 83% of U.S. leaders say their business should be doing more to build trust in AI amongst employees.
Currently, only 32% of U.S. businesses have AI deployment as a board-level priority. Just 13% have a chief AI officer or equivalent, while less than half (45%) have no formal AI business strategy in place. Yet, there is a clear opportunity for businesses to show leadership, with approximately four in five (83%) saying business should be doing more to build trust in AI amongst employees. Further, 86% say businesses have a responsibility to ensure the gains from incorporating AI are shared across society.
BSI’s research draws together four key takeaways exploring how business leaders can act to shape trust in AI across their ecosystems and wider society, so AI can be realized as a force for good. These include:
- using AI to strengthen performance management and boost organizational culture;
- leveraging AI to recruit a more diverse candidate pool;
- considering how AI could help job redesign to enhance flexibility and boost productivity;
- prioritizing the delivery of continuous AI training while recognizing that this alone does not guarantee competency; and
- building trust by engaging employees on every step of the AI journey.
