Eighty-nine percent of executives surveyed believe their organization’s ethical frameworks and governance structures encourage and support technological innovation
DeloitteA recently published study, “Leadership, Governance, and Employee Decision-Making for Ethical AI,” found that C-level leaders are implementing strategic governance around AI to ensure the ethical use and development of the technology, and most (89%) believe these ethical governance structures will support their organization’s ability to innovate with the technology.
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Deloitte’s Technology Ethics practice surveyed 100 senior executives to understand their decision-making priorities around artificial intelligence (AI), while assessing confidence in their organizations’ existing ethical frameworks and the impact of applying systematic governance to AI use. The survey results highlight a human-centric approach to regulation, with leaders largely focused on equipping their workforce with the skills needed to ensure responsible use of AI.
The main conclusions are as follows:
- Seventy-seven percent of senior executives surveyed are confident their staff are well equipped to make ethical decisions about AI, but less than a quarter (24%) empower professionals to make these decisions independently. This figure rises to 52% in companies that win 1 billion dollars or more annual revenue, while companies earning less than 1 billion dollars mainly submit to the directives of descending leaders.
- The training paves the way for governance structures related to ethical AI, More than three-quarters (76%) of respondents reported that their organization provides AI ethics training to its employees, and 63% reported that they provide AI ethics training to their organization’s board of directors. Trainings were completed by AI ethics review boards (46%) and ethical AI risk management frameworks (44%).
- When it comes to the development and deployment of AI, the balance between innovation and regulation appears to be an absolute priority. Balancing innovation and regulation (62%) emerged as the top priority among respondents regarding ethical issues in the development and use of AI, followed by ensuring transparency in data collection and use (59%) and addressing user concerns and data privacy (56%).
- Organizations primarily rely on employee development programs to fill new AI-related positions and then recruit experienced people. More than half of respondents say their organization has hired or plans to hire AI researchers (59%) and policy analysts (53%) for roles related to ethical decision-making in AI. Specifically, they are recruiting qualified employees through internal training (63%) rather than through experienced and academic hires.
- According to the responses, AI is expected to have the greatest positive impact on factors such as supply chain accountability and employee retention. Respondents cite supply chain responsibility (77%), brand reputation (75%), and revenue growth (73%) as the top three operational areas where AI could have a positive impact within their organization. When it comes to their workforce, respondents anticipate AI will have a positive impact on employee retention (82%), followed by worker well-being (77%) and accessibility to professional training (77%).
Key Quotes
“As organizations continue to explore the opportunities presented by AI, it is encouraging to observe how governance frameworks have emerged in tandem, to enable the workforce to advance ethical outcomes and generate positive impact,” said Kwasi Mitchell, Lead for Purpose and DEI at Deloitte US. “By adopting processes designed to promote accountability and preserve trust, leaders can build a culture of integrity and innovation that allows them to effectively harness the power of AI, while advancing equity and creating impact.”
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“The widespread development and use of emerging technologies like AI requires governance systems that encourage the ethical application of these tools,” said Mrs. Beena Ammanath, Executive Director of the Global Deloitte AI Institute and Trustworthy AI Leader at Deloitte LLP. “As leaders seek to balance innovation and regulation, ethically designed governance structures are important to hold leaders and employees accountable for the responsible use of this technology. Recruiting and upskilling to build a prepared talent pipeline, training employees, and establishing leadership structures are some of the tactics that have emerged to drive AI innovation with an ethical focus.”
