90% of leaders want to hire staff equipped with AI know-how: Microsoft report

The Microsoft Work Trend Index Report 2023 throws some interesting insights on the AI wave and what Indian employees think about it.

Microsoft's Work Trend Index 2023 Report

The tech behemoth’s report asserts that AI is on its way to redefining the way organisations work, amplifying productivity for everyone. (Express Image)

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Even as Artificial Intelligence makes strides across industries, there has been a growing pandemonium around its abilities and potential to replace human jobs. Google, Meta, and Microsoft have been scampering to unveil their AI-powered tech. The new wave of AI has raised pertinent questions related to jobs that AI is likely to take over. Amid the tectonic shift in terms of productivity, Microsoft has unveiled its latest report throwing light on the impact of AI and how employees are responding to it.

The tech behemoth’s report asserts that AI is on its way to redefining the way organisations work, amplifying productivity for everyone. In its flagship report Work Trend Index Report 2023, as many as 83 per cent of Indian employees demonstrated a willingness to delegate as much work as possible to AI to lighten the workload.

The latest report surveyed as many as 31,000 people across industries in 31 countries and observations from emails, meetings, chats across Microsoft 365, and labour trends on LinkedIn.

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According to Bhaskar Basu, country head of Modern Work, Microsoft India, AI promises to be the biggest transformation to work in our lifetimes. Basu feels that the next generation of AI will unlock a new wave of productivity growth and eliminate the drudgery from jobs, freeing most employees to rediscover their creativity.

“The opportunity and responsibility for every organisation and leader is to get AI right—testing and experimenting with new ways of working to build a brighter future of work for everyone. This will require not just investing in AI, but also ensuring that every employee has the necessary AI aptitude to thrive in the new world of work,” Basu said on the occasion of the release of the report.

Below are some key insights from the report:

Drudgery impairing innovation

The report highlights how the volume of data, emails, and chats has shadowed our ability to process all of it. As many as 76 per cent of Indian workers said that they did not have enough time and energy to accomplish their work and they were 3.1 times more likely to admit that they struggled with being innovative. 78 per cent said that they lacked uninterrupted focus during their workday. Three in four leaders said that they were concerned about the lack of innovation. According to 46 per cent of Indian workers, the primary culprit impacting productivity was inefficient meetings.

AI the new ally

While 83 per cent said that they would delegate as much work as possible to AI, 74 per cent said that they were worried about AI replacing them. Over three in four Indian workers said that they would be comfortable using AI not just for administrative tasks but also analytical work, and even some creative aspects of their roles. The report also said that managers are 1.6 times more likely to say that AI would add value to the workplace by boosting productivity.

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An aptitude for AI

Among leaders, 90 per cent said that the employees they will hire will need new skills to be prepared for the AI boom. As many as 78 per cent of workers said that they did not possess the right skills to get their work done. This calls for the need for employees to develop an aptitude for AI.