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.

• 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.

• 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.

• 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.

• 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.

• 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.

• 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).