en
Skip to main contentMost CEOs know it. They just don’t want to admit it: They and their board will imminently have to make a critical decision on the most promising—and most expensive—technology of this generation.
Two years after the release of ChatGPT rocked the world, a slew of companies have brought us to what experts say is essentially artificial intelligence’s fork in the road. Last year alone, big tech poured over $200 billion into AI, but for many firms, the ROI remains a long way out. The technology is not reliable enough to use without human oversight, or clever enough to invent new products or map out market strategies wholesale. So boardrooms and C-suites must decide if they need to fend off shareholders who are questioning the costs, or ratchet down investment until AI is more developed.
“There’s a ton of experimentation, but not a lot of broad enterprise deployment,” says Bryan Ackermann, head of AI strategy and transformation at Korn Ferry. “People are asking if the gap AI is filling gives us enough juice to justify the squeeze.”
According to one survey, almost half of companies say it will take one to three years for gen AI to transform their organizations. Thus far, AI has been adopted most widely in customer-service chatbots, process automation (such as appointment scheduling in healthcare systems), and personalization, be it on a social-media app or your favorite e-tail website. But the technology still needs a lot of guidance from human hands. An article drafted by a generative-AI platform might require users to spend considerable time editing for tone, accuracy, and style, for example. The promise of seamless productivity often doesn’t materialize, leaving users questioning the effort involved.
At the same time, leaders are grappling with trust and transparency concerns among employees who may view AI adoption suspiciously. If they’re on high alert when it comes to job security, achieving broad AI integration may be harder for companies.
Truth be told—as Korn Ferry’s report on CEO Breaking Points found—few leaders really know how AI will disrupt their firms. And yet, if they wait to see how this all plays out, they may fall behind competitors. “You feel like you have to invest in it, even if you don’t believe in it,” says Dave Rossi, president of Korn Ferry’s Global Industrial Manufacturing Advisory practice.
Despite these barriers, there are glimmers of progress. The advent of agentic AI—which can move beyond passive recommendations to active execution—could affect adoption momentum. Microsoft’s Copilot in Teams, for example, already assists in tasks like summarizing meetings or generating action items. But extending this capability to book the next meeting or set a new project management deadline could enhance its appeal.
Experts say it will be paramount for leaders’ AI strategies to identify where AI can drive meaningful differences and present the best business scenarios. It will also be critical to task dedicated small teams with experimenting with gen AI and adopting a “fail fast” philosophy, rather than trying to deploy multiple initiatives at once. Finally, leaders must make sure not to neglect the human side of adoption: They need to show employees that AI can be a tool for empowerment instead of a threat.
And when in doubt, recognize that most companies are in the same situation. “It’s a bit of a razor’s edge,” Ackerman says. “You think you’re okay where you are with AI, and then, in the next moment, you’re behind your competitor.”
AI is just one of the daunting pressure points facing today's CEOs. To discover the others, read our Briefings feature, The Breaking Point.
