Using AI to full potential could unlock £119bn in productivity

Business leaders could unlock more than four hours a day if AI tools were used to their full potential, according to a report by Workday.

The HR software company asked employees and leaders how much time could be saved each day if AI was used to its maximum potential. Employees believed they would save 2.9 hours each day and business leaders almost doubled this estimate at 4.4 hours.

The report, The UK Productivity Gap: How AI can unlock workplace potential, calculated that employees would save 737 hours per year (92 days) based on how much time they thought they would save, and leaders 1,117 (140 days a year).

If employees could be productive for an additional 2.9 hours of work per day, this would unlock the equivalent of £11,058 a year of added work based on reported salaries, it estimated.

This would mean that, across 10 million employees in large businesses across the UK, £119 billion worth of productive work each year could be unlocked.

However, concerns around trust and privacy remain a barrier to companies' adoption of AI tools, and this was the case for 93% of both employees and leaders.

Among leaders, 38% had fears over safety, privacy or bias, while 34% felt they needed more time to educate their teams. Almost a third (32%) blamed lack of investment.

In an 8-hour work day, the study found employees and business leaders being genuinely productive for 5.8 and 5.9 hours respectively, leaving over a quarter of the day unproductive and not generating business value.

However, Daniel Pell, vice president and country manager for UK & Ireland at Workday, warned that AI would only reach its full potential if companies can build trust and align its use to business outcomes.

"We encourage businesses to take a two-pronged approach when it comes to deploying AI: a concrete analysis of the efficiencies AI can drive, alongside a transparent strategy to tackle the material and cultural barriers to its adoption."

Workday found that unengaged employees were the biggest barrier to productivity, and advised organisations to prioritise team motivation in order to unlock the full potential of AI.

Last week, HR software company Lattice announced it would become the first business to 'onboard' digital employees in the same way as human workers.