84% of employees are confused about what AI is – despite using it

Generative AI is (seemingly) everywhere and is revolutionizing the world around us – the workplace included.

This being said, although 84% of workers have used Gen AI in some way, shape, or form, they still report being confused about what it actually is and how it works, according to a new report from technology analyst firm Valoir.

This blurred line has caused a number of uncertainties for employees, with 17% sharing they don’t believe that it can help them at work, meaning vendors still need to make a compelling case for the benefits for individual users.

Concerns continue, with 51% worried that Gen AI has the potential to violate their privacy, 45% believing that it would act on its own without human intervention, and 38% concerned that AI could replace them.

There also seems to be disagreement about what individual users want from AI, with respondents divided on what they expect training to look like; 50% believe it should require some type of training but not specific expertise, such as prompt writing. And 40% believe AI should be intuitive to use, requiring minimal training – if any.

HR leaders must organize business to make room for AI

Although the response to AI may seem like it differs greatly, there are numerous ways in which HR leaders can tackle these issues to ensure the technology is being utilized to the best of its ability.

In an exclusive interview with UNLEASH, Rebecca Wettemann, CEO of Valoir explains that although there’s been a lot of conversation about HR's need to organize data and take advantage of AI, it’s even more important that they get their people, policies, and practices in order.

“HR departments will need to work with other business leaders to build out clear and effective policies for the ethical and appropriate use of AI for employees with varying technical aptitudes,” she says.

“Those policies will have to have clear guidelines to protect individuals and the organization from risk, but also be flexible enough to allow for some experimentation and evolution as the technology continues to evolve.”

Yet once these guidelines in set in place, employees will need to receive various different levels of training needed to ensure the tool is successfully adopted.

HR will need not just training to help employees effectively adopt AI, but training that helps employees adapt to the changing (and sometimes disappearing) job demands of an AI-enabled organization,” Wettemann concludes.HR will need not just training to help employees effectively adopt AI, but training that helps employees adapt to the changing (and sometimes disappearing) job demands of an AI-enabled organization,” Wettemann concludes.

“For many employees, using AI will require a level of critical thinking that they're not necessarily used to, so more soft skills training will be key as well.”

Overall, the study shows that employees are somewhat impressionable to AI.

HR leaders, therefore, need to take advantage of this time to ensure both the business and it’s employees are fully prepared.