Employees and leaders not seeing eye to eye on AI

Workers across the globe are placing low levels of trust in their bosses to implement AI effectively according to new research from Qualtrics, with findings also revealing differing views on the technology’s immediate benefits.

To equip leaders with the insights about the state of AI adoption in the workplace and the steps they can take to optimize their programs, Qualtrics analyzed responses from more than 35,000 employees across the globe in the State of AI in Employee Experience report.

For businesses focused on lifting productivity, improving employee experience, and tapping into the value of AI in 2025, the Qualtrics study reveals a number of challenges that must be addressed if they’re going to achieve their potential - including cultivating higher levels of trust in the workplace, shifting perceptions and expectations of AI, and providing more enablement and training.

Employees do not trust leaders to implement AI effectively

Just 53% of employees of managers and individual contributors trust leaders to implement AI effectively - a figure nearly 20 points lower than senior leaders. Added to this, only half of employees at manager level and below (52%) believe their boss will prioritize their wellbeing over profits when making decisions regarding new technologies - 17% lower than senior leaders; and 47% say new technology is being deployed with clear principles, ethics, and guidelines - compared to 69% of senior leaders.

"We’re seeing sizable perception gaps between employees and their senior leaders, which reveals a lack of trust. We also know that trust can be harder to earn during times of change and disruption, exacerbating this gap," said Dr. Benjamin Granger, Chief Workplace Psychologist at Qualtrics. "AI is a prominent source of change right now and the importance of building trust to unlock AI’s full potential cannot be overstated. For organizations to bring their employees along, they must prioritize the leadership behaviors that build trust - including demonstrating care for employees, acknowledging and listening to their concerns (even if unfounded), and over-communicating the rationale for change."

AI expectation management: Workers see AI as a way to improve work quality, not quantity

Bosses hoping for a surge in productivity after introducing AI may need to reset expectations. Just 27% of employees say they will use the time saved from using AI to increase the amount of work they produce. Instead, they’re far more likely to use that extra time to improve the quality (47%) and efficiency (42%) of their work.

A closer look at how employees in different countries use AI reveals regional patterns. Workers in the United States are some of the most likely to use AI to increase their productivity, although only one-third said they would use it for that. European workers are most likely to prioritize improving work quality, and efficiency is the top benefit for workers in Asia.

The misalignment between bosses and their teams about AI is once again apparent. Senior directors are more optimistic about how AI can help them at work. More than half (54%) of senior directors and above say they’ll use the time saved by AI to increase the quality of their work, which is slightly higher than what managers and below say (45%); and 32% say they’ll use it to increase their amount of work compared to 25% of managers and below.

"On the surface, there appears to be another point of misalignment on the value of AI - while executives are bullish about productivity and efficiency boosts, employees don’t necessarily see it that way,” said Granger. “This is an area ripe for discussion and expectation setting. At a deeper level, however, these insights are good news for organizations as it shows employees are focused on improving the services, products, and experiences they deliver!"

What people are using AI for is also instructive in understanding where they are comfortable with it: for data analysis and search more than resolving customer and requests or generating outputs like code, presentations, video or images.

A strong employee experience is a competitive advantage for realizing AI’s impact

Workers who have a positive employee experience – they are engaged, have their expectations exceeded by the organization and have the opportunity to share feedback – are more trusting of their bosses to implement AI, more excited by it, and use it more frequently. These findings are in stark contrast to employees who have poor employee experiences.

When employees have their expectations at work met they are 3.8 times more likely to trust their leaders to implement AI, 2.2 times more likely to have a positive perception toward AI, and 2.7 times more likely to use AI on at least a weekly basis compared to those whose expectations are unmet. It’s similar for highly engaged workers, who are 2.1 times more likely to trust their bosses with AI, 1.6 times more likely to have a positive perception, and 1.7 times more likely to be using AI weekly.

How often organizations capture feedback also influences their AI comfort levels. Workers asked to provide feedback at least monthly are 1.7 times more trusting of their bosses and positive toward AI compared to those giving feedback on a two-year cycle or more. Those with an opportunity to provide monthly feedback are also 2.3 times more likely to use AI on a weekly basis.

"There is a deep, intrinsic link between good employee experience and employees' comfort with and adoption of AI,” according to Granger. “This reality heightens the need for organizations to address the tensions that exist between leaders and their teams and focus on trust-building. Ultimately, frequent and ongoing dialogue is the vehicle of organizational trust that’s key to building a competitive business advantage.”

Tips for successful employee adoption and use of AI

• Align on the purpose and goals of AI. An early hurdle is ensuring everyone is on the same page with what the expectations are. Confirming this early avoids potential issues down the road.
• Support employees with guidance. Workers are outpacing their leaders on AI adoption, creating significant operational, security, and financial risks. Organizations must address this by providing the necessary frameworks, guidelines, principles, ethics and training.
• Identify internal champions of AI. To ensure employees follow policy and use approved AI tools, having champions to lead, teach, and demonstrate the potency of such solutions is absolutely critical.
• Use the right AI tools for the job. Before rushing too far ahead and risking low-quality results, evaluate the available options and identify the ones best suited for the organization’s specific needs.
• HR working in lockstep with IT. IT has the expertise to make sure an organization is investing in the right tools, while HR ensures that the employees actually engage with and use it effectively.