New research shows that workers across industries continue to rapidly adopt AI tools, but the technology’s impact on productivity and efficiency is uneven and complex.
According to Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Inc’s latest AI at Work report, approximately 74% of white-collar workers in non-management roles consider themselves regular users of artificial intelligence, an increase of 23 points from the previous year. However, many companies struggle to translate AI-driven efficiency gains into measurable value, BCG said.
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More than 40% of regular non-executive white-collar AI users report that using these tools saves them one or more workdays per week.
Still, BCG said, leaders and organizations have yet to learn how to derive value from the time saved.
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“Everyone is talking about AI replacing jobs, but it’s really about rethinking the value-add inside humans,” said BCG’s Vinciane Beauchene, one of the report’s authors.
“This is the role of a leader.”
The findings belie the assumption that companies will automatically improve productivity through AI, raising questions about the hundreds of billions of dollars in investments being made across the planet. The study also suggests that while AI is changing the nature of work, the changes aren’t all for the better.
cognitive load
Nearly half of respondents said they spend more time managing and directing AI than the work itself. Additionally, around two-thirds of regular AI users say the technology has increased their job satisfaction, while around 41% say it has increased their cognitive load. This creates what the authors call the “paradox of joy,” where AI can make jobs both better and harder.
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“The joy equation can be rewritten within a year of using AI,” said BCG’s Sylvain Duranton, another co-author of the report. “While the novelty of AI and enhanced cognitive capabilities stimulated excitement in the early days, that ‘AI honeymoon’ fades when strategy is not clear.”
For the study, BCG surveyed approximately 12,000 employees across industries in 14 countries and regions to examine AI adoption, employee expectations, leadership, and organizational change.
The survey highlights the rise of AI agents, with 30% of respondents saying such tools are integrated into their workflows, more than double the number from the previous year. More than 60% said they believe agents can do at least half of their jobs within three years.
According to BCG, regular AI usage among non-executives in India, Brazil and South Africa is higher than the global average, while non-executive usage lags behind in the United States, France and Italy.
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