Multiverse research finds leaders overestimate how much employees use AI at work

Survey of more than 2,000 workers highlights a growing gap between executive expectations and real AI adoption across organizations.

New research from AI upskilling platform Multiverse suggests many senior leaders are overestimating how widely artificial intelligence is being used across their organizations, highlighting a potential blind spot as companies attempt to manage AI transformation.

The study finds that 59 percent of leaders believe employees collaborate with AI every day, while only 42 percent of employees report doing so. The 17 percentage point difference suggests executives may not have full visibility into how AI tools are being used in daily work.

Researchers say the gap could complicate how organizations plan technology adoption, particularly if leadership assumptions about AI usage do not reflect operational reality.

Leaders assume higher levels of AI usage

The perception gap becomes clearer when examining how AI is used in specific workplace activities.

According to the research, 23 percent of CEOs believe employees are already delegating entire tasks to AI systems. In contrast, only 8 percent of employees report doing so.

Across several common use cases, leaders consistently estimate higher levels of AI use than employees report. These include automating repetitive tasks, using AI for data analysis, optimizing multi-stage processes, and handling routine administrative work.

For example, leaders estimate that 60 percent of employees automate repetitive tasks using AI, while 36 percent of employees report doing so. Leaders believe 58 percent of employees use AI to analyze data for decision making, compared with 33 percent who say they actually do. Similarly, leaders estimate that 52 percent of employees use AI to optimize multi-step processes, while employees report a figure of 34 percent.

The findings suggest that many executives may not have a clear view of how AI tools are being used across frontline roles.

Adoption varies widely by job seniority

The research also identifies a clear divide in AI adoption depending on job level. More than half of mid-level employees say they collaborate with AI on a daily basis, while only around one fifth of junior employees report doing the same. A similar pattern appears within management structures. Nearly half of middle managers report daily AI use, compared with a smaller share of individual contributors.

Gary Eimerman, Chief Learning Officer at Multiverse, says the findings show that organizations may need to rethink how they approach AI training:

“AI is not a monolithic tool, and its application varies wildly between a junior developer, a middle manager, and a CEO. The 30% gap in adoption we see between seniority levels is a clear signal that the one-size-fits-all approach to AI is failing. To bridge this divide, businesses must move beyond generic training and implement custom AI upskilling paths tailored to the unique daily workflows of every individual.”.

Training gaps slow AI adoption

The survey also indicates that many leaders have limited formal training in AI. More than half of leaders say they have received fewer than five hours of structured AI training from their organization. Instead, many report learning through informal experimentation with tools such as ChatGPT.

This lack of formal training appears to contribute to wider challenges around adoption. Both leaders and employees cite resistance to change and negative attitudes toward AI as barriers to wider use.

Respondents also say they want more structured support. The survey finds that a large majority of leaders and employees believe more frequent training will be required to keep pace with the speed of AI development.

The research was conducted by Coleman Parkes and surveyed 810 technology leaders and 1,190 employees in the United Kingdom and the United States to examine how AI tools are being adopted across organizations.

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