Clarity of AI implementation is a primary concern for UK employees

UK employees are open to businesses bringing artificial intelligence (AI) into the workplace, but want greater transparency from business leaders on what their plans to implement this technology looks like.

This is according to a survey of 2,741 UK employees conducted by work management platform Asana’s Work Innovation Lab. 

Those surveyed are largely open to the use of AI in the workplace, with 92% saying they want to use the technology to help improve efficiency and reclaim time in their job. This correlates with the findings of research carried out by Microsoft in mid 2023, which found people were more focused on the potential benefits AI could bring them in their role than job security.

This general positive feeling towards AI is hampered by a perceived lack of transparency from senior management, however; only 30% of employees surveyed said they had sufficient clarity on their organization’s plans to use AI. In contrast, 39% of senior leaders said they believe they have been transparent on this matter.

The data also suggests that the use of AI in businesses are now significant factors that contribute to career planning in the UK. For example, 56% of workers said how transparent a company is about its use of AI will influence their career planning, with 40% saying whether or not they are offered training on AI would have an impact on their decision.

Reflecting on the results of the survey, Rebecca Hinds,Head of the Work Innovation Lab at Asana, said: “In order to harness the promise and the potential of AI in our workplace we need to adopt a deeply human approach. Decades of research show that the implementation of new technology fails in most cases not because the technology isn’t efficient, but because humans naturally resist change. We need to prioritize change management, upskilling and reskilling, and experimentation in order to make AI successful.”

Hinds is not alone in her concern. In a global survey of over 3,000 business leaders by professional services company Avanade, 63% of respondents said they believe employees will need some new skills or a completely new set of skills to work with generative AI. An overwhelming majority –98% – said support will be needed to train employees in the use of generative AI tools, while 50% foresee this as requiring significant support.

The leaders that participated in Avanade’s research are also optimistic about AI’s impact on the workplace as the technology is scaled. For example, 64% of respondents believe AI will maintain or increase the number of human roles at their organization in 2024, with most expecting the headcount to increase by up to 9%.