Nearly three-quarters (73%) of business leaders are feeling pressure to implement AI at their organisations, but the vast majority are wary of giving up too much decision-making power, according to a study by Workday, Inc., a leader in enterprise cloud applications for finance and human resources.

In the survey of 1,000 business decision-makers from around the globe, 93% said it’s important for humans to have oversight of AI or machine learning (ML) when making significant decisions.

Despite the Case for AI Adoption, Concerns About Ethics and Data Accuracy Remain

More than 90% said they currently use artificial intelligence within their operations for managing people, money, or both, and 80% agree AI and ML helps employees work more efficiently and make better decisions. The need for investment in this area is clear – 80% of respondents agree that AI and ML are required to keep their business competitive.

But despite wide-spread adoption and broad agreement around the case for AI and ML in the enterprise, concerns remain about its accuracy, ethics, and security. In fact, 77% of respondents are concerned about the timeliness or reliability of the underlying data, 39% consider potential bias to be a top risk when considering AI, and 48% cite security and privacy concerns as the main barriers to implementation. Only 29% said they are very confident that AI/ML are being applied ethically in business right now, but they are more optimistic about the future – with more than half (52%) saying they are very confident it will be applied ethically in five years’ time.

“Our latest study confirms that AI & ML are essential for achieving success in the evolving landscape of work – this view is shared by the majority of business leaders globally. However, the organisations face difficulties with deploying these technologies because of skills deficit,” said Jens Löhmar, CTO Continental & DACH, Workday.

“Operationalisation of AI & ML Strategies also slows down due to ethical concerns, lack of data integrity and addressing employee fears that these technologies may displace jobs. To effectively embrace AI & ML, it is crucial to prioritise augmentation of human insight & decision making as well as collaborate with vendors who demonstrate a dedication to responsible AI practices and data integrity.”

Outlook for Workers is Optimistic, But New Skills Will Be Required

Business leaders are considering AI’s impact on the workforce of today and tomorrow. Nearly half (45%) believe AI and ML will benefit workers, augmenting workloads and creating new career paths. 43% are more cautious, warning that AI and ML will replace some tasks, causing some unemployment among workers. 12% are more doubtful, saying that AI and ML will replace humans completely and have a negative impact on workers.

While leaders agree it is critical for humans to be involved in AI decision making, the survey also found a critical skills gap to successful AI implementation. Nearly three-quarters (72%) of respondents said their organisation lacks the skills to fully implement AI and ML, and an even slightly higher percentage (76%) said their own knowledge of AI and ML applications needs improvement.