Slalom, the global business and technology consulting company, today released new data which shows that only 48% of UK businesses are allocating time for employees to experiment with AI tools. I
n contrast, 70% of the 400+ UK businesses admitted that they are giving employees access to AI tools and technologies.
Monetary investment is there for AI, but the time and training haven’t caught up to make the investment worth it.
The data showed that 54% of respondents identified the workforce skills gap as the biggest barrier to AI ROI.
Previously released data from the same project found that 41% of employees said a lack of effective, structured AI training or time to learn was holding them back.
Employees are calling out for time to understand what AI at work could mean for them, but this data shows a trend towards not giving employees space to learn how to actually extract value from AI.
Pressure continues to grow to show ROI from AI investments, and any business that isn’t seeing this should be able to look at this research and observe that it might be time to give employees some more time with AI. It’s a simple fix, but one that is growing in urgency as businesses continue to spend on tools that are not being utilised.
“This research showed movement in the market, as there is high investment in AI tools for the workforce. Businesses are clearly no longer waiting at the sidelines to see if AI is something they should spend on. Now they are facing a new problem: an AI skills gap. This research shows the UK has yet to do enough to fix this and give employees time to experiment with a technology that could transform the way they work. Once this adjustment has been made, allowing employees to feel engaged and in control of AI at work, the potential for UK businesses is huge” says Caroline Grant, Slalom UK’s Senior Managing Director.
“What stands out in this research is not the level of investment in AI tools, but the lack of protected time for people to actually work out how to use them well. At TP ICAP, we made a conscious decision to give colleagues the space to explore, test and challenge how AI could support their day‑to‑day work. That time investment proved critical. It accelerated adoption, built real ownership, and helped us translate technology into tangible business benefits. If organisations want to close the gap between AI ambition and AI return, giving people time, not just tools, has to be part of the equation,” said Shahen Bokhari, AI Product Portfolio Lead at TP ICAP.
Leave a Comment