CEOs Identified AI as Top Theme of the Next Business Transformation After Digital.
Sixty-two percent of CEO's selected growth as their top business priority in 2024, according to a new survey by
'Along with the increased focus on growth, the survey showed a relatively weak position for cost management, suggesting that most CEOs and senior business executives believe the most challenging economic times are past,' said
The 2024 Gartner CEO and Senior Business Executive Survey was conducted from July through
Source: Gartner (
AI is Captivating CEOs
When asked about digital transformation, 34% of CEOs identified AI as the top theme of the next business transformation after digital, followed by operations efficiency at 9%.
''AI' is displacing 'digital' as the keyword CEOs mention the most, due in no small part to generative AI (GenAI),' said
CEOs Must Approach AI, including GenAI, with Caution
CEOs are not deterred by any negative prospects around AI, as 87% of CEOs agreed that the benefits of AI to their business outweigh its risks. Another 90% of CEOs agreed the idea that AI is an existential threat to humanity is hype and exaggeration.
However, CEOs are not approaching AI with an entirely positive outlook. Fifty-six percent of CEOs said disinformation, misinformation and deep fakes will create operating problems. Twenty-nine percent see constrained electricity supply and 53% see general supply chain issues as a problem, in large part due to GenAI and the demand the technology creates.
'CEOs should tolerate low-cost GenAI projects,' said Scheibenreif. 'But they should avoid the temptation to try and control GenAI's use from the center. The excitement and energy will be almost impossible to handle.
'CEOs must let the hype cycle do its work for them. The trough of disillusionment in GenAI will arrive soon enough - probably before the end of 2024. CEOs should clamp down only on experiments that they believe are dangerous for the company's reputation and allow the herd to police itself this time.'
Gartner clients can read more in '2024 CEO Survey - The Year of Strategy Relaunches.'
Additional analysis on leadership trends will be presented during Gartner IT Symposium/Xpo, the world's most important conferences for CIOs and other IT executives. Gartner analysts and attendees will explore the technology, insights and trends shaping the future of IT and business, including how to unleash the possibility of generative AI, business transformation, cybersecurity, customer experience, data analytics, executive leadership and more. Follow news and updates from the conferences on X using #GartnerSYM.
Upcoming dates and locations for Gartner IT Symposium/Xpo include:
9 -
21 -
28 -
4 -7 November 2024 |Barcelona, Spain
11 -
About Gartner for Information Technology Executives
Gartner for Information Technology Executives provides actionable, objective insight to CIOs and IT leaders to help them drive their organizations through digital transformation and lead business growth. Additional information is available at www.gartner.com/en/information-technology.
Follow news and updates from Gartner for IT Executives on X and LinkedIn using #GartnerIT. Visit the IT Newsroom for more information and insights.
Media contact
Gartner
matt.lodolce@gartner.com
Gartner
catherine.howley@gartner.com
(C) 2024 Electronic News Publishing, source