(June 3): Employees across industries continue to adopt artificial intelligence (AI) tools at a rapid rate, yet the technology’s impact on productivity and efficiency is uneven and muddled, according to a new study.
Some 74% of white-collar workers with no managerial duties count themselves as regular users of AI, a 23-percentage-point increase from a year earlier, according to Boston Consulting Group Inc’s latest AI at Work report. But many enterprises struggle to convert AI-driven efficiency gains into measurable value, BCG said.
More than 40% of the regular AI users among the white-collar workers not involved in management reported saving a full work day or more per week from using such tools. Still, leaders and organisations are yet to learn how to derive value from the saved time, BCG said.
“Everyone is talking about AI replacing work, but it is in fact really about rethinking the human value-add inside,” said BCG’s Vinciane Beauchene, one of the report’s authors. “This is the role of leaders.”
The findings belie the premise that companies will automatically boost productivity through AI — raising questions about the hundreds of billions of dollars in investment across the planet. The study also suggests that while AI is changing the nature of work, the change is not all positive.
Nearly half the respondents said they spend more time managing and directing AI than doing the work itself. And while about two-thirds of regular AI users said the technology has improved job satisfaction, about 41% said it had increased cognitive load. That’s creating what the authors called a “joy paradox”, where AI makes work better and harder at the same time.
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“The joy equation rewrites itself within a year of using AI,” said BCG’s Sylvain Duranton, another co-author of the report. “Early on, AI’s novelty and cognitive stretch fuel enjoyment, but that ‘AI honeymoon’ fades without strategic clarity.”
For its study, BCG surveyed nearly 12,000 workers across industries in 14 countries and regions, examining AI adoption, workforce expectations, leadership and organisational transformation.
The survey highlights the emergence of AI agents, with 30% of respondents saying such tools are now integrated into workflows — more than double the number from a year earlier. Over 60% said they believe agents could do at least half their job within three years.
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Non-managers in India, Brazil, and South Africa reported regular AI usage above the global average, while those in the US, France and Italy lagged behind, BCG said.
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