Respondents indicated high hopes in using AI at work to break career ceilings and gaining a competitive advantage at work
Based on a survey of 31,000 people across 31 countries, plus identifying labor and hiring trends from its LinkedIn platform, analyzing trillions of Microsoft 365 productivity signals, and also research with Fortune 500 customers, Microsoft has gleaned some workforce trends from the data.
Three insights have been deemed as “urgent”.
First, respondents wanted AI at work — and had indicated they will not wait for firms to catch up: 83% of knowledge workers surveyed in the Asia Pacific region (APAC) had indicated they now use AI at work. Employees, many of them struggling to keep up with the pace and volume of work, had noted that “AI saves time, boosts creativity, and allows them to focus on their most important work.”
Also, 84% of the respondents from APAC (leaders) indicated they believe their firm “needs to adopt AI to stay competitive”; 61% were worried that their organization’s leadership lacked a plan and vision to implement it. This led to 79% of APAC respondents (AI users) bringing their own tools to work — and missing out on the benefits that come from strategic AI use at scale and putting company data at risk.
Second, 55% of global leaders surveyed were concerned about having enough talent to fill roles this year, with leaders in cybersecurity, engineering, and creative design feeling the pinch most. Also, 76% of APAC respondents (leaders) indicated they would rather hire a less experienced candidate with AI skills than a more experienced candidate who lacked them. As of late last 2023, Microsoft has “seen a 142x increase in members globally adding AI skills like ChatGPT and Copilot to their LinkedIn profiles”, while AI mentions in LinkedIn job posts have driven a 17% bump in application growth.
Other findings
The third urgent work trend uncovered in the data was that AI power-users were reoriented their workdays, saving 30 minutes per day. Also, 88% of APAC respondents (power users) indicated they bookend their day with AI, using AI to get started in the morning and to get ready for the following workday. Also:
- To help people get started with AI, Microsoft will be making Copilot more “conversational”, by suggesting follow-up prompts or asking clarifying questions to provide the best response possible.
- A new chat interface in Copilot will proactively offer timely recommendations based on recent activity, like “You missed Tuesday’s sales meeting. Here’s a quick summary” or flagging an important email for follow up.
- The prompt box in Copilot will now have an auto complete experience, allowing users to get better results from their prompts. If the prompt has already been written, a new rewrite feature will turn basic prompts into rich ones, grounded in users’ work meetings, documents and emails.
- Updates to Copilot Lab will allow employees to create, publish, and manage prompts that are expressly tailored to their team. In addition, AI-powered coaching offers personalized content and conversational learning. Also, new AI-powered personalized takeaways on LinkedIn Feed offer premium subscribers insights, ideas and actions to take. The tools are expected to make it easier to assess a user’s fit for a role in seconds based on experience and skills. They can also get advice on how to stand out, and suggestions for skill building.
According to Feon Ang, Managing Director (Asia Pacific), LinkedIn: “The Asia Pacific region is witnessing a transformative shift at the workplace due to AI, prompting the need for fresh business approaches. With how rapidly our ecosystem is evolving, leaders who prioritize agility and invest in skill development gain a competitive edge by fostering an equipped workforce that is ready for AI.”
According to Ang, 76% of APAC leaders in the survey cited they would hire someone who is less experienced with AI skills, emphasizing the urgency and importance for them to focus on advancing their AI aptitude through upskilling.
