COMP NEWS – A survey of senior executives reveals a chilling statistic: 41% of them expect to cull their workforce in the next five years and replace workers with AI technologies.
A survey of senior biz executives reveals that 41 percent expect to have a smaller workforce in five years due to the implementation of AI technologies.
Not concerning themselves with the hallucinations of generative AI and the refusal of vendors to take responsibility for the output of AI in the workplace, the study involving execs at 2,000 large companies worldwide has already discovered an appetite for job cuts via investment in the somewhat unproven technology.
The research from staffing provider and recruitment agency Adecco Group found a “buy mindset” around AI, which “could exacerbate skills scarcity and create a two-speed workforce.”
“Only half of leaders say they will redeploy employees affected by AI. Organisations must urgently rethink this approach, building relevant skills within the organisation to ensure continued employability of today’s workforce,” the report says.
Conversely, seventy-eight percent of those surveyed said that AI will help employers provide further upskilling and development opportunities.
The figure is highest in Germany and France, where 49 percent of respondents say their company will employ fewer people in five years because of AI. It is lowest in Singapore where the figure is 32 percent. In the United States, the figure is 36 percent.
We might be reassured that 57 percent of respondents think human skills will remain more influential than AI in the workplace. A glass-half-empty reader might wonder about the remaining 43 percent who don’t agree.
It’s not all bad for humans though, according to the report. Seventy-eight percent of respondents say GenAI will play a “critical role in providing upskilling and development opportunities.”
Whether AI will actually result in a reduced workforce is another matter, but the result shows that in a certain segment of the business community, the hype around AI has filtered through into expectations. IT professionals in some companies may well see these expectations turn into projects, whether or not AI harbors the capacity to replace human work.
To read more about how AI could lead to a culling of the workforce, click here.
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