Skills key to successful AI adoption, says IBM

A shift in employee skills will be vital over the next five years to fully utilise artificial intelligence (AI), according to research by IBM.

IBM’s study, The enterprise in 2030, found investment in AI across the UK and Ireland will grow around 149% between now and 2030, requiring a skills shift to ensure employees are able to effectively utilise the technology.

More than half of UK executives asked by IBM claimed that their employees’ skillset will look completely different over the next five years as AI becomes an increasingly important part of businesses.

Rahul Kalia, managing partner for UK and Ireland at IBM Consulting, said: “AI is no longer just a tool for efficiency; it’s becoming a growth engine for the enterprise. With UK AI investment set to increase significantly in the next four years, success will hinge on integrating AI into core business strategies and reskilling the workforce. Organisations that act decisively, with the appropriate governance and controls in place for AI, will be the ones defining competitive advantage tomorrow.”

There is a growing AI skills gap in the UK as employees and the public alike attempt to keep up with the rapid pace of change, leaving some behind due to a lack of access to technology and training. A lack of appropriate skills is reportedly holding organisations back from fully utilising AI, and a deficit of AI-specific skills in organisations is making it an area for hiring focus in the near future.

Despite challenges, the UK government stated in its AI opportunities action plan that correct investment in AI could add £400bn to the UK economy over the next four years, and previous research from IBM claimed more than half of global consumers are excited about using AI-driven services.

But there are a number of different elements to introducing AI into an organisation that need to be put in place before a customer will even see the benefits, including governance frameworks, which will also require employees to have updates skillsets.

More than 60% of tech leaders believe introducing AI into an organisation will contribute to reducing resource and skills constraints faced by businesses, while others believe AI will create roles in firms.

IBM’s research suggested that as a result of rapid AI adoption, a quarter of boards will include an AI adviser in the next four years, and 72% of decision-makers believe leadership roles will look significantly different by 2030, with around the same number believing we’ll be seeing new leadership roles develop in the same timeline.

Tech leaders see various paths for AI adoption, with almost half believing sophistication in their AI models is what will gain them competitive advantage, while 60% think quantum-enabled AI will be transformational for the industry.

Regardless of what form it takes, AI will require new skills both in and outside of organisations for those building and using the technology.

But Aaron Levie, CEO and co-founder of Box, stated that already existing transferable skills will still be equally as important, regardless of where technology takes us: “The capabilities that transcend any particular job will remain very important: decision-making, judgement, strategy, collaboration skills, intuition and clarity of thought. Those things will become even more necessary in a world where you can delegate a lot of the underlying work to an agent.”