Employees are not considering artificial intelligence tools as their teammates, according to a new report, despite leadership’s widespread push to introduce the technology in the workplace.
Findings from Slingshot’s Digital Work Trends Report highlighted a massive gap between employers’ and employees’ sentiments when it comes to AI tools.
It found that 52% of employees don’t actually recognise AI as a teammate at work, but acknowledged that it is a very helpful tool.
The findings come despite recent research saying AI is emerging as a “new kind of team member” that employees can reach out to for things that humans cannot provide.
But Slingshot’s findings show that just 20% of employees consider AI as a teammate that can support and enhance their work.
Even among the youngest members of the workforce, just 28% of Gen Zs and 24% of Millennials acknowledge AI as a teammate in the workforce.
Around half of Gen Zs (47%) and Millennials (50%) just consider the technology as a helpful tool. In fact, nearly 20% of them are even worried that it will potentially replace them at work.
Disconnect with leadership
Employees’ sentiments are widely disconnected from their leaders, according to the findings.
More than four in 10 managers (41%) said they consider AI as a teammate, which can support and enhance their employees’ work.
In the C-suite, 48% of executives believe that AI is already mandatory for specific tasks, while 38% believe it is required in general for their organisation.
But this is not the case in the lower end of the hierarchy – just 26% of mid-level management said AI is required for specific tasks, while 23% said the technology is mandated in general at work.
The gaps in AI perception indicate that the workforce remains disconnected when it comes to the technology’s implementation in the workplace.
“While the top office may be putting AI at the centre of business processes and decision making, this ‘teammate mentality’ doesn’t automatically trickle down to the entire organisation,” said Dean Guida, CEO of Infragistics and founder of Slingshot.
‘Bottom-up approach’ needed
The disconnect on the “teammate mentality” likely stems from a variety of factors that influence the use of AI tools at work.
According to the report, 54% of employees only use AI occasionally, meaning they think the technology is helpful but not critical for their job.
More than a third of employees also don’t think they have adequate training on the AI tools that they’re using at work.
An approach that begins from the bottom of the organisation will be necessary to ensure that AI is harnessed across a company’s workforce, according to Guida.
“For a company to truly harness AI’s full potential, a bottom-up approach needs to be instituted, focusing on employee’s AI education, clear AI policies and AI transparency,” Guida said.