EY survey reveals ‘huge uptick’ in global AI adoption
The global use and adoption of artificial intelligence has risen exponentially during 2024 with the tech sector contributing the highest usage, EY has revealed.
Research by EY has highlighted the significant increase of AI in the workplace, which experienced a 53 per cent increase from 2023 to 2024.
In 2023, only 22 per cent of global organisations leveraged AI, which increased to 75 per cent in 2024.
The EY 2024 Work Reimagined survey included 17,350 employees and 1,595 employers across 23 countries and 27 industry sectors worldwide.
The highest usage of AI at 90 per cent was attributed to the tech sector, while the lowest usage rate of 60 per cent was attributed to the government and public sector.
EY said the survey explored how a reset in the tech landscape and a dynamic talent market created a unique opportunity for employers to achieve superior business outcomes.
Based on survey results, more than one-third of employee respondents recorded net positive scores about the impact of AI usage on improved productivity and the ability to focus on high-value work.
Fifty-eight per cent of employees said AI had improved their business development and training programs to ‘above average’ or ‘excellent.’
EY global and EY Americas people consulting leader, Kim Billeter, said the speed of adoption of AI brought important workforce considerations to the forefront, such as technology and skills investment.
“It’s a key determinant of how organisations can build strategic talent capabilities and employers that have been most willing to adopt AI could be among the top destinations for the best talent,” Billeter said.
“As this trend evolves, organisations should consider meeting employees where they are with AI, tailoring technology adoption to each role and recognising the significant potential of productivity gains across all levels of organisation.”
EY noted the survey highlighted a need for consistent generational adoption of AI, as a large discrepancy between Millennials’ usage at 27 per cent and Baby Boomers’ usage at 7 per cent was stark.
According to EY, talent retention and attraction are foundational and the survey pointed to the imperative for employers to measure it.
This allowed employers to enable aligned strategies for culture, total rewards and learning to achieve “key business outcomes.”
The survey also found a rise in ‘quit intent’ among Gen Z and Millennials.
Employee quit intent increased 4 per cent year on year, with 38 per cent of employee respondents saying they were likely to quit their job in the next 12 months.
EY global work reimagined leader, people consulting, Roselyn Feinsod, said the global workforce had evolved into one with personalised expectations.
“Individuals now aspire to move more fluidly between employers to gain new experiences, different skills and flexible working practices and legacy talent strategies no longer cut it,” Feinsod said.
“Talent leads should focus less on how long an employee stays with them and more on their values, the quality of their experience and contribution to the organisation.”
EY suggested that global companies reach a ‘talent advantage’ measured by the five dimensions of talent health and flow, work technology and AI, total rewards priorities, learning, skills and career pathways, and culture and workplaces.
Seventy per cent of employer respondents were yet to achieve a talent advantage.
Billeter said organisations with a talent-advantaged people function are nearly seven times more likely to experience a productivity improvement.
“If companies don’t act on this, they risk a range of varying engagement outcomes, including the inability to attract and retain key talent; ineffective tech adoption across the business; and an inability to advance culture with distributed ways of working,” she said.
“Ultimately, organisations that take steps to create a cohesive, positive culture for a diverse and dispersed workforce may avoid these pitfalls and define a future-ready people strategy.”
About the author
