Dive Brief:
- Artificial intelligence is driving productivity for companies, but translating those gains into measurable financial results remains a challenge, Big Four accounting and consulting firm EY said in a report released Thursday.
- Half of CEOs surveyed said AI was the biggest driver of material productivity gains during the past 12 months, ahead of business-process redesign at 46%. Yet nearly a quarter said their organizations struggle to convert those gains into measurable financial outcomes, according to EY's latest CEO Outlook Survey.
- “AI is creating real productivity gains, but productivity alone is not a strategy,” Andrea Guerzoni, EY-Parthenon global vice chair, said in a press release. “The leaders who will pull ahead will be those that can create long-term sustainable growth by redesigning how people and technology work together, transforming their operating models and making smart choices about where they deploy capital.”
Dive Insight:
EY said its survey points to a broader increase in workplace productivity, with almost all CEOs reporting that their companies generated more output per employee during the past year.
Yet the findings underscore the challenge of realizing additional payoffs from AI investments, such as stronger growth and profitability.
“Productivity becomes value only when management makes a second decision about whether they should raise output, shorten cycle time, improve quality, strengthen resilience or redirect capacity to higher-value work,” the report said.
Nearly half (48%) of respondents said they are putting additional capacity toward growth, innovation and transformation. But 23% said productivity improvements are being absorbed by operational complexity, regulatory requirements, risk management and additional work demands.
Only 16% of CEOs said they have clear, real-time visibility into AI return on investment, EY found.
The consulting firm surveyed 1,200 CEOs across 21 countries in August and September.
