Global study finds companies accelerating AI adoption despite weak leadership readiness, trust gaps and rising pressure to prove ROI from workplace AI investments.
A new global study from the Adecco Group found that 70% of workers say they are ready to collaborate with AI agents, while only 39% of business leaders believe employees would feel comfortable doing so, revealing a widening disconnect between enterprise AI adoption and leadership perception.
The findings come as companies worldwide accelerate investment in AI agents, workflow automation and generative AI tools, shifting the corporate conversation from experimentation to implementation. Nearly half of executives surveyed – 45% – said they expect AI agents to be integrated into workplace workflows within the next 12 months.
The findings come as companies worldwide expand workplace AI initiatives powered by technologies from OpenAI, Microsoft, Google and Salesforce, increasing pressure on executives to demonstrate measurable productivity gains from generative AI investments, as reported. But the report suggests many organisations may be moving faster on technology deployment than on workforce readiness, governance and trust.
The study, The Human Premium: Leadership Beyond the Algorithm, surveyed 2,000 C-suite executives across 13 countries representing more than 8.6 million workers.
AI ADOPTION ACCELERATING
While business leaders increasingly see AI as a strategic priority, only 22% said they are highly confident their organisations are developing the digital and future-ready capabilities needed to keep pace with rapid technological change. Just 31% said leadership teams possess sufficient AI skills and knowledge to fully understand the risks and opportunities associated with AI adoption.
The findings point to a broader execution challenge emerging across corporate AI transformation efforts: organisations may no longer be struggling primarily with access to technology, but with leadership alignment, workforce trust and organisational adaptability.
“AI may move at software speed, but organisational trust moves at human speed,” Denis Machuel, Chief Executive of the Adecco Group, said alongside the report’s release. “Companies that ignore that gap will struggle to turn pilots into performance. The winners will be those that pair technology with transparency, accountability and a clear path for people to adapt. Business leaders have a fundamental responsibility to ensure people and technology can work in harmony.”
The report found that only 36% of executives said their talent strategy clearly demonstrates that AI will create opportunities for workers rather than replace them. Only 39% said employees are directly involved in redesigning roles affected by AI implementation.
LEADERSHIP AI CONCERNS
That disconnect could become increasingly significant as companies face mounting pressure from boards and investors to demonstrate measurable productivity gains from generative AI investments.
Recent research has already suggested growing concern around whether companies are achieving meaningful returns from AI spending. A recent report found that seven in 10 companies could reduce AI budgets if return on investment fails to meet expectations. The findings raise growing questions about whether companies can generate sustainable returns from billions being invested into enterprise AI if leadership teams fail to align employees, redesign workflows and establish clearer governance structures around AI deployment.
The report suggests organisations risk slowing AI implementation not because workers resist the technology, but because leadership teams may lack the communication, trust and workforce strategies needed to scale adoption effectively. The findings also challenge a common assumption that workers themselves are the primary source of resistance to workplace AI adoption.
AI IMPACT ON EMPLOYEES & TRUST
In fact, the survey found workforce readiness may be stronger than many executives believe. While leaders expressed uncertainty about employee comfort with AI, workers reported significantly higher levels of preparedness to collaborate with AI systems and agents. That contrasts with broader anxiety across the global workforce around how AI could affect jobs, trust and workplace wellbeing. Another recent report found that seven in 10 workers fear AI-driven layoffs amid rising workplace distrust and burnout.
The report identifies AI agents as the dominant emerging megatrend expected to reshape organisations over the next five years, highlighting how rapidly the technology has moved from experimentation to board-level priority. That pressure is also reshaping leadership itself. A recent global survey found that eight out of 10 CEOs believe AI could ultimately threaten their own roles if they fail to adapt.
Taken together with recent CEO and workforce surveys, the findings suggest corporate AI adoption is entering a more difficult phase in which organisational trust, workforce adaptability and governance may matter as much as the technology itself. Recent reports also covered by Fair Play Talks found companies continue increasing AI investment despite economic and geopolitical uncertainty, while separate research suggested many executives themselves fear being left behind by the pace of AI transformation.
HOW AI READINESS DIFFERS ACROSS REGIONS
While the report found similar concerns across all 13 countries surveyed, regional patterns suggest organisations are approaching AI transformation with different priorities, levels of urgency and leadership challenges. Leaders in the United States and Asia-Pacific markets generally reported stronger momentum around AI adoption and automation, reflecting faster investment cycles and greater pressure to scale AI-driven productivity gains.
European organisations, meanwhile, appeared more focused on governance, workforce trust and the long-term impact of AI on jobs and organisational culture – highlighting a more cautious, human-centered approach to implementation. The research also suggests many companies globally are facing a common challenge regardless of geography: leadership capability is struggling to keep pace with AI ambition.
The report found only a minority of organizations worldwide qualify as genuinely “future-ready,” with those companies more likely to prioritise workforce trust, transparent communication, adaptability and ethical leadership alongside technology investment. Across regions, executives also reported growing pressure to demonstrate measurable returns from AI investment while balancing workforce expectations, reskilling demands and concerns around trust, inclusion and transparency.
Taken together, the findings suggest the next phase of enterprise AI adoption may depend less on which countries or companies move fastest on technology, and more on which organisations can successfully align leadership, workforce strategy and organisational trust.
TRUST, TRANSPARENCY AND ETHICAL LEADERSHIP MATTER
A smaller group of “future-ready” organisations identified in the research appeared significantly better positioned to capture business value from AI transformation. Among those companies, 49% reported having a mature approach to measuring workforce trust, compared with just 18% among other organisations. They were also far more likely to report a highly adaptable workforce, at 76% versus 42%.
The findings suggest organisations systematically measuring trust, communication and workforce adaptability may be better positioned to scale AI successfully while avoiding employee resistance, stalled implementation or leadership misalignment. The report found that trust, transparency and ethical leadership are emerging as critical execution factors in enterprise AI adoption.
Executives ranked ethical leadership among the most important capabilities needed to navigate AI transformation successfully, alongside adaptability, workforce trust and stronger communication around how AI decisions are made. Future-ready organisations were significantly more likely to prioritise transparent governance structures, clearly communicate how AI would affect employee roles and establish accountability around AI-driven decision-making.
The findings suggest companies treating AI governance and transparency as strategic priorities – rather than compliance exercises – may be better positioned to accelerate adoption while maintaining workforce trust and adaptability.
GUIDANCE FOR EMPLOYERS: THE WAY FORWARD
The report recommends several priorities for employers as workplace AI adoption accelerates.
1. Communicate a clear AI roadmap
Organisations should clearly explain how AI supports business priorities while also creating opportunities for employees. Leaders should communicate how roles may evolve, where human judgment remains essential and how workers can adapt alongside AI systems. The findings suggest uncertainty around AI’s long-term impact on jobs remains one of the biggest barriers to workforce trust.
2. Involve employees earlier in AI transformation
The report recommends engaging workers earlier in workforce redesign and AI implementation decisions rather than imposing systems from the top down. Organisations with stronger workforce trust and transparency were significantly more adaptable and better positioned to convert AI investment into measurable business outcomes.
3. Prioritise AI governance and transparency
Researchers found future-ready organisations were far more likely to embed transparent governance structures, communicate openly about AI decision-making and establish accountability around how AI affects employees and workflows. The report argues organisations treating AI governance and transparency as strategic priorities may be better positioned to scale adoption responsibly and sustainably.
4. Invest in leadership AI literacy
Only 31% of leaders said leadership teams currently possess sufficient AI knowledge to understand the risks and opportunities associated with AI transformation. The findings suggest organisations need to invest more heavily in leadership capability-building so executives can make informed strategic decisions around workforce transformation, ethics and implementation.
5. Measure workforce trust and adaptability
Future-ready organisations were significantly more likely to systematically measure workforce trust, adaptability and communication effectiveness. The report suggests companies should treat workforce trust as a measurable business performance factor rather than a soft cultural issue.
6. Build workforce skills before gaps widen
Researchers warned many organisations are still underinvesting in future-ready workforce capabilities despite rapidly accelerating AI adoption. The report recommends targeted skills investment, reskilling programmes and clearer career development pathways to help employees adapt alongside emerging AI systems and workflows.
THE MAIN TAKEAWAY: TRUST AND TRANSPARENCY MATTER
In short, the report’s findings reinforce growing concern across the business community that many organisations still lack the workforce strategies needed to fully realise value from AI transformation.
The report suggests the companies most likely to succeed in the AI economy may not be those deploying AI fastest, but those building enough trust, transparency and workforce adaptability to scale the technology successfully across their organisations.
Click here to read the full report.
RELATED ARTICLES
A new global survey shows that nearly 70% of companies are prepared to scale back AI budgets this year if projects fail to deliver measurable business results.
Global business leaders are prioritising long-term growth, AI investment and strategic resilience despite mounting geopolitical instability and economic uncertainty, according to a new CEO survey.
A new survey reveals that eight in 10 believe failed AI strategies could threaten their jobs as boards demand measurable AI results and stronger governance.
Nearly seven in 10 US employees now fear artificial intelligence (AI) will lead to layoffs at their company within the next three years, according to a new report.
Sign up for our newsletter
