AI Revolutionises Workforce: Boosting productivity and transforming job skills

AI is revolutionising knowledge work, transforming how workers use information, find insights, and deliver results. PwC analysed over half a billion job ads from 15 countries to understand AI’s impact on various industry sectors and occupations. Sectors highly exposed to AI, such as financial analysts, customer service agents, and software coders, are seeing nearly five times higher growth in labor productivity. This productivity boost is a key driver of economic growth and rising living standards, providing a solution to the global issue of sluggish productivity growth.

According to PwC’s 2024 Global CEO Survey, 84% of CEOs who have adopted AI believe it enhances employee efficiency. Moreover, 70% of CEOs expect AI to significantly transform how their companies create, deliver, and capture value within the next three years. This AI-driven productivity not only accelerates traditional processes but also introduces new ways to create value.

Investors are optimistic, with 61% of respondents in PwC’s 2023 Global Investor Survey considering accelerated AI adoption crucial for generating value. Consequently, 46% of CEOs anticipate AI will boost profitability, and 41% foresee increased revenue.

Despite fears of job losses, AI-exposed occupations, from teaching to IT, are still growing, albeit 27% more slowly. This slower growth could help nations facing labor shortages and shrinking working-age populations. The data indicates a shift in required skills, with job ads for AI-exposed roles changing 25% faster than those for less-exposed roles. Demand for skills that AI can perform, such as JavaScript coding, is declining, while demand for AI-utilising or hard-to-automate skills, like sports coaching or ecological restoration, is rising.

PwC highlights the collective effort needed to upskill and reskill workers to thrive in the AI era, ensuring a balanced and productive global economy.