A recent report should serve as a wake-up call to businesses everywhere. As they turn to AI technologies, many are not getting the productivity boosts they expect. And many leaders don’t realize this.
To be clear, AI-powered tools have the potential to provide unprecedented productivity improvement. But in order to tap into that potential, organizations need to follow crucial steps. That’s where things are often lacking.
The findings came from an Upwork survey of 2,500 C-suite executives, employees and freelancers in the United States, the UK, Australia and Canada. Virtually all the executives surveyed (96%) said they expect the use of AI tools will increase their company’s overall productivity levels. But, the research found, “Nearly half (47%) of employees using AI say they have no idea how to achieve the productivity gains their employers expect.”
It gets worse. More than three quarters of employees (77%) said the AI-powered tools they’re using have had detrimental effects, decreasing their productivity while increasing their workload.
And many can’t avoid these problems because they aren’t given a choice about whether or not to use these new AI technologies. Thirty-nine percent of the companies surveyed are mandating the use of AI tools, while another 46% are encouraging their use.
As CNBC put it, “The gap between AI expectations and outcomes in the workplace are wide.” That gap can be closed. I see it happen all the time. Because my work involves helping businesses transform their communications to deliver personalized experiences throughout the customer journey, I see where the problems lie. It’s not just in how they adopt these new technologies; it’s in how they help their staff adapt, taking advantage of what this new world of opportunity has to offer.
Begin with the end
Anytime an organization enacts a change with the aim of improving productivity, it should start with clarity about the outcome it’s seeking. This outcome — the goal — should be specific. For example, it could be a percentage increase in the number of customers the company helps in a day or week; a decrease in the time it takes to solve a customer’s problem; a dollar savings in marketing expenses; or a cultural shift, such as lifting the number of employees who report feeling engaged at work.
Executives and managers should present the desired outcome to the staff so that everyone is on the same page about what they’re looking to achieve. Once the technology is up and running internally, use leading and lagging indicators to track whether the organization is approaching that outcome. (In simple terms, think of leading indicators as the initial signals that demonstrate how things are trending, while lagging indicators are the ultimate results.)
By following results closely, the organization can see whether the new AI tools are moving things in the right or wrong direction. And when necessary, they can course correct.
Train for the outcomes
Because so many AI tools are new, organizations often don’t know a great deal about how they work or everything they’re capable of doing. And because many tools are marketed as intuitive, many leaders hope that employees will largely be able to figure them out as they go. This is a mistake.
To adapt to this new technology, organizations need training. That training should be focused on specific ways that these tools can help staff achieve the desired outcome. People with deep knowledge should introduce employees to different possibilities for how to use and manage these tools effectively in pursuit of the goal.
Be sure to tell employees about various interfaces and functions. Go over which workflows to automate, and which not to. As my company explained in a blog post, “Implementing these AI systems often requires specialized expertise. You may have someone internally who can take this on; if not, you’ll want to work with a service provider who can help you through onboarding and setup and provide the support you need.” After an initial training period is complete, provide teams with resources they need, collect feedback, and have experts at the ready to answer any questions.
Managers should also be sure to offer encouragement and help. The Upwork research, conducted by Walr on behalf of Upwork and Workplace Intelligence, found that, “Many workers feel overwhelmed by the added workload and complexity” that these new tools bring. A crucial part of avoiding this sense of overwhelm is to make sure that employees know how valued they are. As I’ve explained previously, these tools can also make them fear for their own careers, but showing them their worth helps to combat those fears and improve their mental health.
Businesses that follow these steps will “mind the gap,” and do the best job of harnessing the potential of AI.