A 740 Percent Increase in What?

Would workers be less fearful of AI if they were paid to use it? A handful of companies are trying to find out.

One law firm will give its employees a $1,000 bonus if the firm collectively uses Microsoft’s AI tool, Copilot, one million times during the fiscal year. A business-software firm has given out hundreds of bonuses this year to employees who’ve incorporated AI into projects. A Big Pharma firm is handing out gift cards to workers who experiment with AI. Even Big Tech firms are getting in on the act: One is awarding points—redeemable for big-ticket appliances or pricey concert tickets—to those who use AI in innovative ways.

The practice of paying for AI use certainly isn’t widespread, though, and the amounts being handed out are only a drip in the $360 billion tidal wave of firms’ projected expenditures on AI hardware, software, and infrastructure this year. More importantly, some observers have expressed skepticism about whether incentivizing workers like this is even effective. “The concept brings up a lot of questions,” says Mirka Kowalczuk, Korn Ferry’s senior vice president of global change enablement for AI strategy and transformation.

Indeed, some observers are reminded of how firms tried to incentivize employees to work at the office after the worst of the pandemic. Back then, leaders also tried to tempt workers with redesigned offices (to encourage collaboration), free lunches, and other perks. But many bosses found that none of it made much of a difference, as many employees valued the flexibility of remote work more than they valued extra money. Ultimately, office occupancy rose significantly only after companies made it a prerequisite for keeping, or being hired for, a job.

Millions of workers are afraid that AI could potentially replace them. In a poll over the summer, 71% of Americans surveyed said they were concerned that AI will be “putting too many people out of work permanently.” This fear isn’t just a US phenomenon; about 40% of workers globally also say they’re scared AI will take their jobs, according to a survey done this spring.

Less clear, however, is whether employees are actually scared of using AI for their jobs. Since 2023, the percentage of US employees who report using AI in their role at least a few times a year has nearly doubled, from 21% to 40%, according to one study. But for many, a significant barrier remains: the feeling that they don’t have the necessary training to use the technology, says Craig Rowley, a Korn Ferry senior client partner specializing in retail. “I know how to do things, and to stop and use AI for it takes time,” he says.

In a sense, the pay-for-AI use approach is essentially giving money to employees to use a tool, says Ron Seifert, a Korn Ferry senior client partner and the firm’s North America Workforce Reward and Benefits leader. He appreciates the principle: Some companies are trying to use a carrot to encourage employees to do something. However, in the AI age, companies want—and need— employees to work differently, not just to deploy a different technology. “The activity isn’t really the incentive,” he says.

Rather than pay employees for AI usage, companies might consider paying for outcomes, says Kowalczuk. “Otherwise, an employee could ask AI for anything, and it will show as usage,” she notes. As an alternative, she suggests firms establish self-funded bonus pools and pay employees a share if their use of AI results in big cost savings or profit growth.

On the other hand, leaders might consider how their predecessors responded to another massive technology disruptor: computer spreadsheets. When the first spreadsheet software for personal computers was released in the late 1970s, companies quickly realized that the software did more than simply automate certain tasks: It opened up a whole new set of complex calculations and analysis, making possible previously unseen opportunities to grow businesses. Organizations spent hundreds of millions of dollars on computers and software—but they didn’t pay employees to actually use them. Instead, they poured money into training and required employees to be able to read and build spreadsheets. In order to hire and retain computer-savvy workers, however, they did pay higher salaries.

Learn more about Korn Ferry’s AI in the Workplace capabilities.

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