While 72% of hiring managers surveyed said their companies are using artificial intelligence tools — an increase from last fall by 6 percentage points — more than half also said their companies don’t have the resources to train their employees to use it effectively, according to an Oct. 22 report from Express Employment Professional and Harris Poll.
More companies (34%) also reported using AI technology more regularly than the year before (25%), and 76% of hiring decision-makers agreed that employees need to be trained on AI tools for company success.
But even currently employed job seekers agree that their companies lack resources or training for AI, Express Employment Professionals said.
Before employers begin to offer such resources, however, they may need to address fears regarding AI at work that still remain, the report noted. Nearly two-thirds of job seekers surveyed said they “worry AI will significantly limit job opportunities,” with nearly half saying they fear their jobs could be eliminated entirely.
Other reports have potentially corroborated those fears. A study from SHRM released this month noted that 15% of US jobs are at a heightened risk of automation. Computer and mathematics jobs saw the largest potential for automation at 32%.
Perhaps the largest aspect of the AI boom of note is the looming skills gap. Numerous reports from this month noted that while leaders and executives agreed upon the importance of AI, workers still lacked the skills necessary to adopt the tools on hand. Workers also questioned whether employers would be able to adopt the technology fairly.
Employees also told the American Management Association in a March report that they felt behind regarding AI use; only half said they received training. A Pew Research Center report from February also noted that while half of workers underwent training in the past year, only around 12% actually had training on AI.