December 26, 2024
2025 was the year AI, already a force in business, became an all-encompassing, unignorable technology. Indeed, firms spent billions more on it, and a recent survey finds that seven in ten CEOs plan to keep up their spending 2026.
But as the bill keeps rising, an overwhelming number of leaders have a simple question: When is AI going to fulfill its promise of boosting profits? They feel caught: If they pull back on their spend, they risk falling behind competitors. But how should they use the tech at scale to grow? Meanwhile, AI’s ability to embed in the workplace has created a series of unprecedented disruptions—from cutbacks to intense lessons. Like their leaders, workers feel caught and afraid that if they don’t learn to use the technology, it may take their job.
In this Essentials, Korn Ferry’s experts dive into the thorny issues around AI at the ground level, and how leaders can overcome them to make the technology work best for their organizations and people.
As AI bursts onto the scene, firms are grappling with how to bring in the missing link: humans.
AI Saves Time: Do You Work More—or Take Fridays Off?
A new study shows AI saves employees an average of 7.5 hours per week. Should firms use it to boost productivity or reduce burnout?
As employees are asked to use AI, some are feeling pressure to fake or exaggerate their skills. But at what cost to firms?
Nearly three-quarters of CEOs worry that AI blunders will lead to their own firings in the next two years.
Best-selling author Dan Goleman explains why, contrary to what some leaders expect, just adding AI into the workplace won’t generate amazing results.
Click out all the stories in The 2025 Essentials.
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