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Sep 17

Top Seven Takeaways from Gartner’s 2024 CIO GenAI Survey

Top Seven Takeaways from Gartner's 2024 CIO GenAI Survey

For 87% of CIOs, generative AI (GenAI) represents more than a technological advancement—it’s a career-defining opportunity.

Gartner’s 2024 CIO Generative AI Survey finds that GenAI is gaining momentum with CIOs, with 95% believing in the technology’s significant potential to improve their organizations. A significant obstacle: a gap between CIOs and their C-suite peers — tempers their optimism.

While CIOs recognize AI’s potential to unleash productivity gains and improve customer experiences, only a fraction of the C-suite sees it as an urgent priority. Closing that gap underscores CIOs’ essential role in championing GenAI by committing to excel at learning every aspect of the new technology and how it can deliver long-term value to their organizations.

The top seven takeaways from Gartner’s survey provide CIOs with a roadmap on how to take a practical, pragmatic approach to bridge the gaps across the C-suite and help their organizations get results from their GenAI strategies.

Strategic Insights from Gartner’s 2024 CIO GenAI Survey

Gartner’s latest CIO survey on GenAI provides insights into how IT leaders can capitalize on the technology’s significant impact, from career growth and expertise development to helping CIOs achieve more support across the C-suite. Each takeaway focuses on how CIOs can leverage AI to drive success for themselves and their organizations.

Here are the survey’s seven most insightful takeaways:

  • More CIOs are starting to view GenAI as a career-enhancing opportunity. Eighty-seven percent of CIOs see GenAI as a pivotal career advancement opportunity, with 44% of those proficient in AI strongly affirming this view. GenAI’s rapid adoption in organizations is proving itself a technology capable of delivering productivity gains and is increasingly becoming a skill and expertise essential for career advancement. For CIOs leading AI initiatives, it’s not just about technology—it’s about positioning themselves as visionary leaders qualified to step into more senior positions. To maximize this opportunity, CIOs need to prioritize the development of AI strategies that demonstrate clear, measurable business outcomes. Continuous learning and certification programs are given to any IT professional, especially CIOs, who want to maintain a competitive edge and have their careers capitalize on GenAI’s growth trajectory.

Source: Key findings from the 2024 Gartner CIO generative AI survey (ID G00820936). Gartner, Inc.

  • CIOs are more focused than ever on increasing their acumen about GenAI. CIOs are rapidly becoming the in-house experts on AI, with 52% now rating themselves as proficient or advanced, up from 38% nine months ago. This growing expertise is crucial, as 67% of CIOs are tasked with leading AI initiatives, often sharing this responsibility with other C-suite members. Gartner recommends that CIOs deepen their AI knowledge further and foster a culture of AI literacy across their teams to capitalize on this trend. Providing targeted training for IT and business leaders to ensure that AI strategies are fully integrated into broader business goals is quickly becoming table stakes.

Source: Key findings from the 2024 Gartner CIO generative AI survey (ID G00820936). Gartner, Inc.

  • Disconnect between CIO optimism and C-suite prioritization. Despite 95% of CIOs believing in the potential for GenAI to deliver value, the survey reveals a disconnect with the C-suite—only 21% of CIOs who consider themselves highly knowledgeable about AI believe their C-suite sees it as a high priority. This gap suggests a need for more effective communication and strategic alignment. CIOs need to focus on translating AI’s potential into language that resonates with the C-suite. Regular briefings and ROI-focused presentations can help bridge this gap and elevate AI as a top priority for all executive leaders.

Source: Key findings from the 2024 Gartner CIO generative AI survey (ID G00820936). Gartner, Inc.

  • CIOs are leading the charge in AI implementations. CIOs are increasingly in charge of GenAI initiatives, with 48% of CIOs responding to the survey indicating that they are the main executives responsible for these initiatives. Another 28% are part of the team responsible for developing AI strategy. This central role places CIOs at the forefront of digital transformation, requiring them to be strategic leaders and hands-on practitioners. CIOs need to establish clear governance frameworks and metrics for AI initiatives to ensure success and alignment with broader organizational goals. Additionally, partnering with other C-suite members, such as the CFO and CMO, can help secure the necessary resources and support for AI projects.


Source: Key findings from the 2024 Gartner CIO generative AI survey (ID G00820936). Gartner, Inc.

  • Focus on productivity gains. GenAI is proving effective in streamlining operations and improving efficiencies organization-wide, with 74% of CIOs citing productivity as its top business value. AI also improves customer experience (49%) and helps streamline digital transformation (31%). These priorities demonstrate AI’s multifaceted role in modern businesses. Gartner recommends that CIOs integrate AI into crucial or core organizational areas, ensuring that AI initiatives align with organizational objectives and are designed to deliver measurable, scalable outcomes.


Source: Key findings from the 2024 Gartner CIO generative AI survey (ID G00820936). Gartner, Inc.

  • Concerns over AI hallucinations. Although GenAI holds great potential, there are significant risks. According to 59% of CIOs, the biggest worry is “hallucinations” or misleading or incorrect outputs. In close succession, 44% and 48% of CIOs express concern about privacy violations and false information spread by malicious attackers. These dangers highlight the importance of solid governance, ongoing oversight, and continued investments in cybersecurity. According to Gartner, CIOs need to prioritize creating AI ethics guidelines and investing in auditing tools. Gartner also notes that reducing these risks will require cultivating a culture of accountability and transparency.


Source: Key findings from the 2024 Gartner CIO generative AI survey (ID G00820936). Gartner, Inc.

  • C-Suite engagement in AI is growing but still lags. The survey shows that while C-suite engagement with AI is growing, 42% of CIOs note increased investment in understanding AI, and 53% still consider their peers novices, highlighting a critical need for further education and alignment. CIOs need to take the lead and champion targeted AI education and strategy sessions to close this gap, ensuring AI initiatives are fully supported and integrated into the organization’s strategic goals.

Conclusion

In Gartner’s 2024 CIO Generative AI Survey, GenAI is more than a technological advancement—it’s a strategic imperative for CIOs seeking business transformation and career advancement. GenAI is rapidly becoming a cornerstone of modern enterprise strategy, with 87% of CIOs seeing it as a career-enhancing tool and 95% as a business value driver.

With only 21% of CIOs seeing AI as a high priority for their executive peers, the journey is difficult. 74% of CIOs are focused on productivity gains, but the C-suite is cautious. CIOs must gain AI expertise and lead the way in aligning AI initiatives with organizational goals to mitigate risks like AI hallucinations through robust governance. CIOs can use GenAI to achieve business success and career growth by strategically navigating these dynamics to cement their role as digital visionaries.

Bibliography:

Struckman, C. (2024). Key findings from the 2024 Gartner CIO generative AI survey (ID G00820936). Gartner, Inc. https://www.gartner.com/document/820936  (Client access required).

Sep 15

Capgemini report finds top 10 ways enterprises are harnessing the value of GenAI

Capgemini report finds top 10 ways enterprises are harnessing the value of GenAI

 

Eighty percent of enterprises have increased their investment in GenAI over the past year, with nearly one-quarter (24%) now integrating the technology into their operations, up from just 6% in the previous year.

Capgemini Research Institute’s recent report, Harnessing the value of generative AI: 2nd edition: Top use cases across sectors, highlights enterprises’ accelerating pace of GenAI adoption and growing importance across their operations and industries.

“Generative AI is not just a technological innovation; it’s a catalyst for transformative change across multiple sectors, driving productivity gains, operational efficiency, and strategic shifts in business models,” write the report’s authors. Enterprise leaders’ sentiment underscores the increasing recognition of GenAI as a critical technology for staying competitive in an increasingly turbulent economic environment.

According to the report, GenAI’s rapid adoption across IT and marketing indicates that companies are actively integrating it into their core operations to drive tangible, measurable benefits. Capgemini’s findings highlight the need for a strong data governance framework, strategic talent development, and vigilant cybersecurity to maximize GenAI’s potential as companies scale their initiatives.

How enterprises are maximizing GenAI’s value

Capgemini found ten key ways enterprises are positioning themselves to maximize GenAI’s potential. These strategies demonstrate how all companies can potentially invest in and integrate GenAI to boost growth, efficiency, and innovation across departments and industries.

Investment surge reflects growing confidence in GenAI. 89% of large businesses with annual revenues over $20 billion are leading this investment surge, highlighting GenAI’s significance for future growth. Additionally, 73% of companies with revenues between $1 billion and $5 billion have significantly increased their GenAI budgets, showing that this trend is not limited to the largest companies. This investment trend indicates that many companies believe GenAI can drive enterprise evolution and deliver substantial returns, with many expecting double-digit productivity and customer engagement growth.

Capgemini report finds top 10 ways enterprises are harnessing the value of GenAI

GenAI maturity grows steadily across industries. GenAI implementations have continued to mature across industry sectors over the past year. Up from 6% in 2023, 18% of organizations will fully integrate GenAI into most or all functions in 2024. With 64% and 53% of companies enabling GenAI, high-tech and financial services lead. Retail grew 17%–40% and industrial manufacturing 14%–35%. With 53% and 47% of telecom and energy/utilities adopting GenAI, respectively, progress has been made.

Capgemini report finds top 10 ways enterprises are harnessing the value of GenAI

GenAI’s integration across organizational functions is growing. In one year, GenAI IT adoption rose from 4% to 27% across organizational functions. GenAI is improving enterprise productivity and innovation through this broad integration across sales, marketing, operations, and R&D. Capgemini also found that GenAI is transforming operations and creating value across all business areas.

Capgemini report finds top 10 ways enterprises are harnessing the value of GenAI

Productivity and customer engagement gains. Over the last year, organizations that have implemented GenAI have reported a 7.8% increase in productivity and a 6.7% increase in customer engagement. These tangible benefits demonstrate GenAI’s ability to provide real, measurable value to enterprises. Early adopters report significant improvements in key performance metrics, highlighting the strategic importance of incorporating GenAI into business operations.

Capgemini report finds top 10 ways enterprises are harnessing the value of GenAI

Small Language Models (SLM) are gaining momentum. 24% of organizations have implemented SLMs, and 56% plan to do so within three years. These models are cheaper and less computationally intensive than larger AI models, so many companies are piloting and eventually moving them into production. SLMs excel in industry-specific applications, allowing businesses to harness AI’s potential without the infrastructure and resource demands of larger models. SLMs are becoming a good option for companies trying to compete in an AI-driven market as they seek efficient and scalable AI solutions.

Capgemini report finds top 10 ways enterprises are harnessing the value of GenAI

GenAI is enabling enterprises to advance from chatbots to autonomous multi-agent systems. GenAI is helping 62% of organizations upgrade from chatbots to AI agents that autonomously manage complex goals. 48% of users use multi-agent systems, where AI agents operate independently in changing environments. As businesses automate and optimize complex processes with these systems, decision-making and operational efficiency improve across industries. AI has evolved from simple user interactions to complex, agentic use cases, as shown in the image.

Capgemini report finds top 10 ways enterprises are harnessing the value of GenAI

GenAI agents are accelerating the shift to autonomous operations. GenAI agents are increasingly used in enterprise automation, with 82% of companies planning to implement them in 1–3 years. These agents are evolving from supportive tools to autonomous entities that can perform complex tasks without interaction. This shift is significant, with 71% of organizations expecting AI agents to automate workflows and 64% expecting customer service and productivity improvements. AI agents are not just efficient; they are a radical shift toward fully autonomous, AI-driven operations that will transform enterprise productivity and strategic decision-making.

Capgemini report finds top 10 ways enterprises are harnessing the value of GenAI

GenAI is forcing major business strategy shifts. 54% of companies expect GenAI to improve their strategies, up from 39% in 2023. 40% of companies are revising their business models to stay competitive as GenAI becomes more important. As GenAI becomes more important, 74% of businesses believe they must use it to grow revenue and stay ahead of the competition.

Capgemini report finds top 10 ways enterprises are harnessing the value of GenAI

Strengthening data foundations is crucial for GenAI’s success. More than 60% of companies realize GenAI’s potential depends on solid data foundations. Only 51% have documented data integration processes and 46% have AI data management policies. Even enterprises that have adopted GenAI still struggle to make the most of all their external data sources. Capgemini makes it clear that for GenAI initiatives to succeed, companies need scalable, secure data infrastructure.

Tighten AI controls or risk trust and compliance. Ethics in AI deployment is a priority for 57% of organizations, which recognize the need for control mechanisms that can flex and adapt as their business goals change. While 46% have clear AI governance frameworks, 73% agree that human oversight is necessary to validate AI-driven decisions. Without strong governance, bias, and accountability issues could counteract GenAI’s benefits, so organizations must act now.

Conclusion

With 80% of organizations increasing their investment and almost a quarter already including it in their operations, GenAI is fast changing how businesses run. This general acceptance emphasizes GenAI’s importance as a main engine of efficiency and creativity, providing real advantages in customer interaction and output.

Organizations are not only embracing GenAI as AI agents and Small Language Models (SLMs) acquire traction; they are also including GenAI in their basic strategies. Those who match GenAI with their business models, make investments in solid data foundations, and develop the knowledge required to maximize its possibilities will inherit the future. They will lead in the era of artificial intelligence by doing this, establishing new benchmarks for operational excellence and creativity.