• 85% of employees are being encouraged to use AI in the workplace
• Incredibly, 42% don’t know why AI is being used in the first place, raising questions about company strategies with the technology
• Some 112,000 people responded to the survey globally

“Why are we using AI?” That seems to be the view of almost half (48%) of employees, according to new research that looks at AI adoption in business. While a majority (85%) of workers are being encouraged to rely on AI for tasks, many don’t know why.

While employees certainly seem to feel the benefits of AI, citing benefits of increased productivity and motivation, the big question appears to surround their managers. The survey, by Culture Amp, points at a disconnect between corporate strategy around AI and how managers are (or are not) communicating this to their teams.

The survey also emphasizes that it is still early days in the AI revolution, and that the impact of the technology on workforces and individual roles is yet to become apparent.

Decisive insights

Culture Amp’s report, How Employees Really Feel About AI at Work, is described as a benchmark, and as the inaugaural publication looks set to chart the path of AI in the workplace over the coming years.

Its initial findings raise questions about how AI is really being introduced and used in businesses around the world. With 112,000 survey respondents questioned, situated within 123 businesses around the globe, the report offers one of the most decisive insights into business AI use yet.

The unfinished plan

Employees are telling us they understand the risks, they are using the tools, and they feel more productive,” notes Amy Lavoie VP of People Science at Culture Amp. “That is not a workforce resisting change. That is a workforce that has done its part and is waiting on leadership to do theirs.”

The lack of decisive direction from management may not be entirely the fault of individual managers. In some cases, the corporate direction for AI use may be “in development” with leaders waiting on clearer instructions to communicate to their teams.

“We do not know with certainty which roles AI reshapes, which skills hold their value, or what a career path looks like three years out,” says Lavoie. “As a result, leaders may go quiet, because saying nothing feels safer than saying something that turns out to be wrong.”

So what is the answer? How do employees struggling to find the sense in using AI come to terms with the lack of direction concerning its use?

Lavoie concludes: “The most useful thing a leader can do right now is admit the plan is unfinished, and then keep talking anyway. Certainty is not what employees need from you right now. Candor is.”