Employees are being actively encouraged to embrace AI, but they're not really sure what they should be doing with the technology.
That's one of the findings from a survey by Culture Amp for its How Employees Really Feel About AI at Work report. The majority (85%) of the 112,000 global respondents polled said their employer encourages "exploration and experimentation" with AI, but 42% aren't sure why they should be using it.
According to the study, a key issue facing workers lies in clear cut communication. Only 58% of respondents said leaders at their company had clearly explained the purpose of new AI tools and how it will feed into company goals.
A similar number said their managers have shared solid examples of the technology in action and how it can help them, but the study noted that still leaves a significant number left in the dark.
Despite confusion over adoption processes, 71% of those surveyed said AI tools make them feel more productive, with that rising to 93% among "power users" of the technology.
A similar pattern is seen for motivation. More than half (57%) of those polled said they're more motivated to step outside the box in their role, with that rising to 72% among AI power users.
Elsewhere, the survey also found that the C-suite had the most AI power users, at 5% points more than other groups.
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"The same leaders that employees are looking to for explicit instructions on connecting AI use to company goals are the ones most likely to be using it multiple times a day," the company said in a blog post.
Risk versus reward
Most of those using AI (86%) said they understand the risks of the technology at work, with eight-in-ten revealing they trust that their employer will use AI in a responsible way. The same figure agreed that employees will be able to shape how AI is used in the organization.
That said, the report noted that AI isn't having much impact on workloads, with employees still reverting to manual processes across a range of tasks.
"AI usage, on this evidence, has minimal impact on workload, challenging the common belief that AI saves employees loads of time," the company noted. Culture Amp added that the survey results showed little difference in workload reports across AI usage levels.
"While initial AI adoption slightly improves workload perception, increased frequency of use yields no additional relief."
One company that took part found their employees saved 11 hours a week, but then spent 6.4 hours on "botsitting", with extra time going towards "feeding" data to the AI, correcting outputs and debugging mistakes, and editing "sloppy looking" work.
"Employees are telling us they understand the risks, they are using the tools, and they feel more productive," said Amy Lavoie, VP of People Science at Culture Amp. "That is not a workforce resisting change. That is a workforce that has done its part and is waiting on leadership to do theirs."
"We do not know with certainty which roles AI reshapes, which skills hold their value, or what a career path looks like three years out," Lavoie said.
"As a result, leaders may go quiet, because saying nothing feels safer than saying something that turns out to be wrong. The most useful thing a leader can do right now is admit the plan is unfinished, and then keep talking anyway. Certainty is not what employees need from you right now. Candor is."