Indian Businesses Embrace Generative AI but Face Talent Development Challenges

Indian Businesses Embrace GenAI but Lag in Talent Development

The survey revealed that companies spend up to three times more on AI technology than on training and upskilling their workforce. India's businesses are speeding up investments in generative AI, with 78% of companies planning to increase their spending in 2025 to keep up with the rapid change, according to the Accenture Pulse of Change Survey -- Word Economic Forum 2025. However, most of this investment goes into technology and not the people who will use it. The survey, which included executives and employees from India's largest businesses, revealed that companies are spending three times more on AI technology than on training and upskilling their workforce. Saurabh Kumar Sahu, managing director and India business lead at Accenture, emphasised the need for a balanced approach. "While the excitement around generative AI is palpable, it is crucial for Indian businesses to balance their investments in technology with a strong focus on talent development. "By aligning people, processes, and technology, we can create a robust ecosystem that not only enhances operational efficiency but also fosters a culture of continuous learning and innovation. This is the path to staying competitive in a rapidly evolving market," he said. A significant majority (78%) of Indian C-suite leaders express confidence in increasing AI investments. This is driven primarily by the desire to capitalise on technological advancements (29%), manage business risks more effectively (23%), and maintain market competitiveness (17%). Furthermore, 67% of these leaders report that generative AI development within their organisations is progressing faster than anticipated. While most AI investments (56%) focus on streamlining processes, there is a notable gap in understanding its potential. Fewer employees (45%) than executives (66%) fully comprehend its capabilities. The survey highlights the impact AI is expected to have on work, with 77% of employees believing their roles will be affected. However, while 93% of leaders say their workforce has received adequate AI training, only 86% of employees agree. Indian businesses expect 2025 to bring more change than 2024, but only 49% of C-suite leaders feel fully prepared for disruptions. Employees are even less confident, with 54% saying their organisations are not ready for major changes.

Eight in 10 C-suite leaders feel prepared to increase investment in GenAI in 2025: Survey

Almost eight in 10 businesses in India plan to ramp up investments in artificial intelligence (AI) to ready operations for a year of rapid change in 2025. However, the investments are focused on technology rather than the people that will have to use it, highlighting the biggest challenge when it comes to unlocking the full potential of generative AI (GenAI), according to a new survey. Accenture's latest survey of executives and employees across the largest India businesses shows that adoption of generative AI is accelerating. That changes in talent are not being addressed in an appropriate way and with the required urgency is demonstrated by data from 2,000 GenAI-related projects conducted by Accenture, as per which three times more budget is spent on technology than on people. The vast majority (78%) of India C-suite leaders feel prepared to increase their investments in GenAI in 2025. The top three reasons for higher investments cited by these executives are: capitalising on advances in the technology (29%), increasing confidence in managing associated business risk (23%) and maintaining business competitiveness (17%). As per the survey, 67% of C-suite leaders feel their organisation's GenAI development is going faster than initially expected. The primary focus of Indian executives for investment in GenAI is enhancing processes by completing specific tasks or workflows (56%), which is higher than the executives in other regions. Though investments are increasing, both executives and employees are not fully sold on the potential value of GenAI - while 66% of C-suite leaders claimed they understood the potential value of GenAI "to a great extent", only 45% of employees said so. Work, too, will be significantly affected by GenAI - 77% of employees believe their roles will be impacted, as per the survey. While 93% of C-suite leaders believe people in their organisation have received the training needed to use AI or GenAI efficiently, only 86% of employees shared this sentiment. Employees who were not currently using GenAI tools cited concerns over a lack of resources (38%), the accuracy of the output (33%) and difficulty with integration (10%) as primary reasons. "While the excitement around generative AI is palpable, it is crucial for Indian businesses to balance their investments in technology with a strong focus on talent development. By aligning people, processes and technology, we can create a robust ecosystem that not only enhances operational efficiency but also fosters a culture of continuous learning and innovation. This is the path to staying competitive in a rapidly evolving market," said Saurabh Kumar Sahu, managing director and lead for India business at Accenture. Most recently fielded in November and December 2024, the Accenture Pulse of Change and Employee Surveys gathered insights from 790 C-suite executives as well as 687 non-C-suite level employees across 22 industries and five countries in the Asia-Pacific (Australia, China, India, Japan and Singapore).

People, not just technology, will unlock the business potential of generative AI

Accenture's latest survey of executives and employees across the largest India businesses shows that adoption of generative AI is accelerating. 78% of India businesses plan to ramp up AI investment to ready operations for a year of rapid change in 2025. However, that investment is focused on technology, rather than people that will have to use it. This highlights the biggest challenge when it comes to unlocking the full potential of gen AI. That changes in talent are not being addressed in the appropriate way and with the required urgency, is demonstrated by data from 2,000 gen AI related projects conducted by Accenture, three times more budget is spent on technology than on people. TECHNOLOGY The vast majority (78%) of India C-suite leaders feel prepared to up their investment in gen AI in 2025. The top three reasons for higher investment in gen AI executives cite are: o Capitalizing on advances in the technology (29%) o Increasing confidence in managing associated business risk (23%) o Maintaining business competitiveness (17%) 67% of C-suite leaders feel their organization's gen AI development is going faster than initially expected. India executives' primary focus for investment in gen AI is enhancing processes by completing specific tasks or workflows (56%), which is higher than the executives in other regions. Though investment is increasing, both executives and employees are not fully sold on the potential value of gen AI: While 66% of C-suite leaders claim they understand the potential value of gen AI "to a great extent", only 45% of employees say the same. TALENT Work will be significantly affected by gen AI: 77% of employees believe their roles will be impacted. Training is occurring, but perhaps not at the right level or on the right topics: o While 93% of C-suite leaders believe people in their organization have received the training needed to use AI / gen AI efficiently, only 86% of employees agree with this sentiment. o Employees who are not currently using gen AI tools cite concerns over a lack of resources (38%), the accuracy of the output (33%), and difficulty with integration (10%) as primary reasons. CHANGE When asked about the current business environment, most India executives (84%) expect a higher level of change in 2025 than in 2024. At the same time C-suite leaders (49%) say their organizations are less prepared for disruption in 2025 than in 2024 - across every dimension of change we measured. Geopolitical disruption: 51% are not fully prepared (38% somewhat prepared, 11% not very prepared, 2% not at all prepared).Talent disruption: 44% are not fully prepared (41% somewhat prepared, 2% not very prepared, 1% not at all prepared).Economic disruption: 48% are not fully prepared (45% somewhat prepared, 3% not very prepared, 1% not at all prepared). Employees are even less confident in their organization's preparedness to respond to any changes in the business environment with 54% reporting their company is not fully prepared. Saurabh Kumar Sahu, MD and Lead for India Business at Accenture said, "While the excitement around generative AI is palpable, it is crucial for Indian businesses to balance their investments in technology with a strong focus on talent development. By aligning people, processes, and technology, we can create a robust ecosystem that not only enhances operational efficiency but also fosters a culture of continuous learning and innovation. This is the path to staying competitive in a rapidly evolving market." Survey Methodology Most recently fielded in November/December 2024, the Accenture Pulse of Change and Employee Surveys gathered insights from 790 C-suite executives as well as 687 non-C-suite level employees across 22 industries and 5 countries in Asia-Pacific (Australia, China, India, Japan, and Singapore).