New Slack Workforce Index Finds Half of Workers in Singapore Feel Uncomfortable Admitting AI Usage at Work
Research Reveals a Ripe Opportunity for AI Agents to Address Key Blockers and Help Accelerate AI Adoption Among Workers
Artificial Intelligence (AI) adoption is on the rise in Singapore, with 52% of workers in The Lion City using AI in their jobs and 53% excited about the prospect of AI replacing some tasks, according to Slack’s new Workforce Index. Despite business leaders continuing to emphasise urgency in leveraging the technology and the traction seen in Singapore, global AI adoption rates have slowed over the last three months—growing from 32% to just 36%.
In addition to a lack of training from employers, Slack’s Workforce Index points to uncertainty and discomfort around AI usage. 45% of workers in Singapore report feeling uncomfortable admitting AI use to their managers for fear they might be seen as incompetent, lazy, or cheating.
Why These Workforce Index Findings Matter
According to McKinsey, AI could increase corporate profits by USD $4.4 trillion a year, and Salesforce research finds that sales teams using AI are 1.3x more likely to see revenue increase than those who do not use it. To realise the benefits of AI, however, employers need to encourage employees to use the technology and equip them with the training and guidance needed to work successfully in this new era.
“Too much of the burden today has been put on workers to figure out AI. It’s important that leaders not only train workers to use AI, but encourage employees to talk about it and experiment with AI out in the open,” said Christina Janzer, SVP of Research and Analytics at Slack. “The arrival of AI agents—with clearly defined roles and guidelines—will also help with this, alleviating the ambiguity and anxiety many workers feel around using AI at work.”
Workers Hide AI Use Out of Fear, Confusion
Without clear guidance, workers are confused about when it is socially and professionally acceptable to use AI at work—and are keeping their usage under wraps.
- 45%of desk workers in Singapore said they are uncomfortable admitting to their manager that they used AI for common workplace tasks.
- Among workers in Singapore who reported feeling uncomfortable, the top reasons include:
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- Fear of being seen as less competent
- Fear of being seen as lazy
- Feel like using AI is cheating
On the other hand, global workers who are comfortable sharing AI use with their manager are 67% more likely to have used it for work.
Workers Are not Using AI to Focus on Executive Priorities
The Workforce Index data reveals a disconnect between what leadership wants employees to focus on and what workers expect they’ll focus on with the time saved by AI. Globally, execs want employees to prioritise upskilling and innovation, while employees expect to use the time saved by AI to catch up on busy work and existing projects.
According to the Workforce Index, the top areas that execs want employees to prioritise to move the business forward are:
- Learning and skill-building
- Innovation
- More work on existing projects
The Workforce Index found that what employees in Singapore expect they will do with the time AI helps them to save include:
- More work on existing core projects
- Administrative tasks
- Learning and skill-building
Workers Expect AI-Savvy Employers
Despite uncertainty around AI in their current workplace, the Workforce Index found that workers in Singapore want to skill up on AI as 88% feel an urgency to become an AI expert. However, 63% of workers in Singapore have spent less than five hours total learning how to use AI, and 30% of global workers say they have had no AI training at all, including no self-directed learning or experimentation.
As Slack points out in the Workforce Index, Employers will need to solve the gap in training and get clear about AI guidelines, as current employees and new professionals entering the workforce will gravitate to more supportive workplaces.
- Global workers with guidance to use AI saw a 13 percentage point increase in AI adoption since January, while global workers with no guidance to use AI only saw a 2 percentage point increase, from 8% to 10% since January.
- 87% of workers in Singapore say that a prospective employer’s ability to provide and enable workers with AI tools is a factor in their job search.
- Nearly 2 in 5 workers, globally, say they would prefer working for companies that provide AI tools and enable their use.
- Globally, people in their first job are 1.8x times more likely to say AI enablement is a “very important factor” in their job search.
More Information
- Dig deeper into the Slack Workforce Index results and learn how leaders can encourage employee adoption.
- Read about the five distinct AI personas that employers need to understand.
- Find more stats and data on worker AI adoption in the Salesforce stat library.
- Get more insights on AI agent trends.
Methodology
The Workforce Index survey included 17,372 workers in Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the U.K., and the U.S., including 1,008 in Singapore. It was fielded between August 2 and August 30, 2024.
The Workforce Index survey was administered by Qualtrics and did not target Slack or Salesforce employees or customers. Respondents were all desk workers, defined as employed full-time (30 or more hours per week) and either having one of the roles listed below or saying they “work with data, analyse information or think creatively”: executive management (e.g., president/partner, CEO, CFO, C-suite), senior management (e.g., executive VP, senior VP), middle management (e.g. department/group manager, VP), junior management (e.g., manager, team leader), senior staff (i.e. non-management), skilled office worker (e.g., analyst, graphic designer).
