AI's adoption gap is becoming a comms problem
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The biggest AI challenge many communications leaders face is getting employees to use the technology internally.
Why it matters: AI may promise massive efficiency gains, but without trust and adoption inside organizations, those gains will stall.
By the numbers: Roughly 1 in 4 comms leaders plan to spend more than 10% of their budget on AI, yet 88% say they are not prepared to lead an AI transformation, according to a recent BCG report.
- And only 31% of comms chiefs say they are meaningfully scaling GenAI beyond pilots.
Driving the news: Axios convened roughly 20 communications and public affairs leaders in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday to discuss the role of human connection and storytelling in the age of AI.
- The event took place alongside Axios' AI+DC Summit, where the friction of Silicon Valley's confidence in AI and Washington's anxiety over the new technology was ever-present.
- Meanwhile, comms chiefs identified internal storytelling as a key sticking point.
State of play: Communications teams are increasingly responsible for framing AI as a tool for growth, not just efficiency, inside their companies, but they're still feeling resistance.
- Leaders said employee anxiety about job loss, role changes and the pace of disruption is shaping how companies introduce AI and how workforces deploy it.
Yes, but: Several executives said adoption works best when leaders are candid about what is changing, while also emphasizing upskilling and long-term career development.
- Marni Puente, chief marketing and communications officer at SAIC, said the message to employees has been that learning AI is a way to "future-proof" their careers.
- At KPMG, Holly Skillin said the opportunity is not just to use AI to work faster, but to free up time for stronger client relationships and more human-centered work, which resonates with most employees.
Zoom in: Peer influence and ownership over one's work matter more than top-down mandates.
- Many described identifying internal "AI champions" who can coach colleagues, share practical use cases and make adoption feel relevant to day-to-day work.
- Others said experimentation challenges and internal task forces have helped surface super-users and lower the fear factor.
What they're saying: "I find that a lot of times we try to communicate down to an organization, as opposed to letting individuals communicate out," said executive coach and founder of Ferrazzi Greenlight, Keith Ferrazzi.
- "We're finding that if you could anoint 'black belts of AI' inside your company, the people who are out ahead of others, they become the best spokespeople," he said.
The bottom line: For communicators, AI adoption is becoming as much a change-management story as a technology story, and the companies that do it well will be the ones that make employees feel included, equipped and heard.
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