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(TNND) — Company leaders and frontline workers aren’t on the same page with the rapidly growing presence of artificial intelligence, a new Gallup report shows.
Over 90% of chief human resources officers at Fortune 500 companies surveyed by Gallup said their companies have started using AI tools.
But Gallup surveys found just 33% of all U.S. employees say their organizations have begun integrating AI into their business practices.
Just 21% of production or frontline workers said that, as did 44% of white-collar employees.
And just 15% of employees said their companies have communicated clear plans or strategies for integrating AI.
If leaders want to achieve the productivity and innovation gains that AI promises, they need to clearly communicate their plans and provide more intentional training and guidance for employees who feel unprepared for this new era of work, Gallup’s Kate Den Houter wrote for a report published Tuesday.
“AI in the workplace is a tricky area,” AI expert Anton Dahbura said Tuesday.
AI comes in lots of forms.
It can be a standalone or integrated tool.
It can be a third-party or proprietary tool.
Dahbura, the co-director of the Johns Hopkins Institute for Assured Autonomy, said he’s tried a new AI tool that sits in on Zoom meetings and takes notes for him.
“Even when I’m not on a call, if there’s a meeting that I’m invited to, it sort of invites itself, and it gives me a report,” he described.
Gallup found just 4% of employees use AI daily. At least that’s what they said in the survey.
Two-thirds said they never use AI, though that “never” figure dropped to about 50% among just white-collar workers.
Most employees are using AI for idea generation, task automation, or to consolidate information or data.
Nearly half of employees said their productivity or efficiency improved because of AI.
Just 14% said AI offered no improvements in their jobs.
HP’s recent Work Relationship Index report, which focused on “knowledge workers,” found higher levels of AI use.
Knowledge workers fall into a wide net of anyone using computing and technology tools for their job, Anneliese Olson, the senior vice president and managing director of HP’s North America market, previously told The National News Desk.
AI usage among knowledge workers jumped from 38% last year to 66% this year, she said. And those who used AI scored 11 points higher on HP’s Work Relationship Index, which essentially means they’re happier on the job.
But there are plenty of folks who are wary of AI in the workplace.
Gallup previously found that 75% of Americans believe AI will take away jobs, and 77% don’t trust businesses to use AI responsibly.
HP’s Olson said that workers crave guidance and training on AI – a similar takeaway as Gallup’s new report.
“When you train your folks, that fear level goes down, (and) engagement and productivity and things go up,” Olson said.
Dahbura said there are going to be a lot of ethical challenges along the way to reaping the benefits of AI in the workplace.
He was working with a business intelligence software company a while back when he had one such ethical discussion, he said.
The company was excited about AI’s potential to assimilate a bunch of information and spit out strategic advice.
So, Dahbura said he brought up the scenario of a retail chain looking to boost profits using such a tool. And what if the AI advised the retail chain to shut down locations in economically challenged areas with large minority populations?
He said the business intelligence software company “quickly circled the wagons,” saying they didn’t make the AI model, nor did they control how their customers used the AI model.
“So, everybody’s just kind of pointing fingers,” he said.
To that company’s credit, Dahbura said, its leaders then held an AI workshop to weigh such issues.
“So, it created awareness. But I’m sure that that company’s is in the distinct minority, where at least they’re trying to do something about it,” Dahbura said.
“But if a company’s just letting AI happen, that’s problematic,” he said.
The challenges of AI integration in workplaces won’t be solved overnight, Dahbura said.
And it’s going to be a mixed bag of results, depending on the nature of the applications and the cultures of various companies.
We’ll still be talking about these issues in 10 years, and in some cases with more urgency, he said.
“It best not be allowed to happen organically,” Dahbura said of business adoption of AI. “It needs to be strategic at the highest levels and throughout the organization.”