An annual global study of 3 000 CEOs in over 30 countries and 26 industries, including South Africa, has found that 64% of those surveyed believe succeeding with GenAI depends more on people’s adoption than the technology. However, 57% of local respondents are pushing to adopt GenAI at an uncomfortable pace.

The study, conducted by the IBM Institute for Business Value in cooperation with Oxford Economics, focused on business priorities, leadership, technology, talent, partnering, regulation, industry disruption and enterprise transformation. The IBM Institute for Business Value and IBM’s thought leadership think tank combine global research and performance data with expertise from industry thinkers and leading academics to deliver insights for business leaders.

The findings also revealed that nearly two thirds (65%) of surveyed South African CEOs believe their teams have the skills and knowledge to incorporate GenAI but few understand how GenAI adoption impacts the organisation’s workforce and culture. More than half (57%) of respondents have not yet assessed the impact of GenAI on their employees. Yet 53% of local CEOs surveyed say they are hiring for GenAI roles that did not exist last year while 43% expect to reduce or redeploy their workforce in the next 12 months because of GenAI. More than half (51%) of CEOs identified regulatory constraints as the greatest barrier to innovation in their organisations.

More South African organisations are embracing GenAI in their enterprise strategies to drive significant results and achieve sustainable impacts on their bottom line, according to Ria Pinto, general manager and technology leader, IBM South Africa. “By integrating cutting-edge AI solutions in their workflows, local companies can enhance operational efficiency and unlock new opportunities for growth and innovation. As more businesses digitise their business models, it is critical to understand the impact of new technologies on the workforce culture and upskill employees to grow their confidence, ensuring the company stays competitive in an ever-evolving market.”

Other key South African study findings includ

• Workforces are straining under the pressure of GenAI adoption
  • 57% of local CEOs say their recruiting and retention efforts deliver skills and expertise needed to achieve business objectives
  • 51% of respondents say they are struggling to fill key technology roles
  • Surveyed CEOs say 36% of their workforce will require retraining and reskilling over the next three years
• Product and service innovation and forecast accuracy are top priorities
• 49% of surveyed CEOs ranked product and service innovation as their highest priority for the next three years – higher than the global average of 37%
• 43% of CEOs prioritise forecast accuracy to understand volumes of sale
• 49% of South African CEOs say their competitors would view them as leading in innovation

To view the full study, including actionable strategies to help organisations navigate the complexity of GenAI adoption, click here.