Artificial intelligence - often still a foreign word

The attitude of most companies and their managers towards the topic of AI is still rather critical, distanced and skeptical. This is the result of the latest Leadership Trend Barometer conducted by IFIDZ, Frankfurt, in which 108 managers from German-speaking countries took part.  

For example, according to the online survey, less than half of respondents (45%) believe that AI applications would bring more advantages than disadvantages to companies. In addition, less than a third (31%) believe that managers could benefit disproportionately from AI. And in terms of business decisions, not even a quarter of respondents (21%) are convinced that AI can provide important support in this regard.

According to Barbara Liebermeister, Head of the IFIDZ, this critical and distanced attitude is not fundamentally negative: "A healthy skepticism towards new technologies is often necessary." However, skepticism becomes counterproductive if it leads to a (mental) blockade. "And we get this impression when, for example, three out of four respondents are of the opinion that AI should not be used to prepare, substantiate and derive decisions" - i.e. one of the main fields of application for AI in the corporate context.

One reason for the skeptical attitude towards AI could be a lack of expertise. Two thirds of respondents (66%) confirmed that there is very little knowledge about AI in their environment. The vast majority (78%) also stated that they themselves did not know the difference between "strong" and "weak AI". 

A "weak AI" can perform individual tasks very efficiently - for example, accepting simple orders and initiating the processing procedure. A "strong AI", on the other hand, can also analyze and solve more complex tasks and learns as it goes. Only 10 percent of respondents consider themselves to be "competent discussion partners" on the subject of artificial intelligence.

This lack of knowledge correlates with a lower understanding of AI in the sense of a deeper penetration of the topic. For example, only one in four respondents (25 percent) know what impact AI could have on their own area of work. And only just under a third (31%) state that they have already had experience with AI - for example in the form of chatbots or voice and image recognition.

"This reluctance to address the topic of AI is consistent with the results of our individual leadership diagnostics," emphasizes Patrick Merke, member of the IFIDZ Executive Board. This also shows that the majority of managers have not yet actively addressed the topic of AI. Although not every manager has to be an AI expert, such a low level of knowledge is worrying, "as AI is currently one of the most important innovation topics," says Merke.

According to Liebermeister, the results of the IFIDZ Leadership Trend Barometer confirm the findings of other studies on this topic. According to the studies, there is a lack of knowledge in many companies in German-speaking countries regarding the potential applications of AI. This needs to be rectified promptly, as research in the field of AI is currently very intensive and new AI applications are being developed at a rapid pace, which have the potential "not only to redesign business processes in companies, but also to develop completely new business models". And the IFIDZ is convinced that at least the top decision-makers in companies need to be aware of this if they want to develop sustainable strategies for their company.