Presidio’s AI Readiness Report identifies AI challenges, risks, and barriers to success across industries

Presidio, a leading technology services and digital solutions provider, today released its 2024 AI Readiness Report: Greatest Risks and Ways to Avoid Them. The comprehensive study, which surveyed over 1,000 CIOs, CTOs, and IT decision-makers across industries, reveals major concerns about artificial intelligence (AI) implementation, critical risks, and readiness gaps. Notably, 80% of companies have already adopted GenAI, but 50% admit to launching GenAI initiatives before they were thoroughly prepared to do so.

“While there’s undeniable momentum behind AI adoption, our findings show that some organizations are not fully prepared for the complexities involved,” said Rob Kim, Chief Technology Officer at Presidio. “CIOs are eager to unlock AI’s potential but face critical challenges, particularly around data quality, security, and operational integration. Moving too quickly without the right infrastructure and skill sets in place can lead to costly setbacks.”

AI investment is a top priority, and AI offers a competitive advantage according to 96% of IT leaders, plus 71% identify it as their company’s biggest area of investment. Looking exclusively at senior leadership, a striking 90% of CIOs express concerns about integrating AI into their operations. However, data related barriers and cybersecurity top their list of AI adoption hurdles, especially in the financial services and healthcare sectors.

Additional key findings include:

• Data-related barriers: Over 86% of respondents report significant data challenges, from gaining meaningful insights to ensuring real-time access. Among those who have already adopted GenAI, 84% experienced issues with their data sources.
• High stakes in security: Cybersecurity is a key focus for CIOs, with 69% leveraging AI to bolster their security programs. However, many IT leaders worry about the security risks associated with AI use. The report brings attention to widespread concerns over data exposure, regulatory compliance, and the risk of employees independently adopting AI tools. 37% cite data privacy and security as their primary concern with AI adoption.
• Public sector lags behind in readiness and adoption: The report underscores stark differences in GenAI readiness and adoption rates across industries. 85% of IT leaders in the private sector have adopted GenAI, while 38% of government respondents have yet to do so. The financial services industry demonstrates a higher level of readiness than other sectors.

“The pressure to adopt AI is escalating, and high implementation costs mean that organizations want to get it right the first time. By better understanding AI risks and pitfalls, companies can work to avoid them,” said Kim. “The data reinforces the importance of internal guardrails and governance policies. Putting as much emphasis on guardrails as you do on innovation, starting with smaller proof-of-concept AI projects before scaling, and setting realistic expectations with stakeholders about outcomes and ROI are critical to integrating AI smoothly and effectively.”

As organizations continue to adopt AI, there is a strong need for more education. In fact, every survey respondent expressed a desire to learn more about AI. Training, resources, and technology partners that help fill knowledge and skills gaps will become increasingly important. For more information on AI risks and ways to avoid them and to download the full report.

Methodology

The research was conducted between July 24 and Aug. 5, 2024 by Censuswide. The survey was conducted with a sample of 1,001 US-based IT decision-makers (aged 25+) from medium to large enterprises across several industry sectors, including healthcare, financial services, state and local government, and others.

About Presidio

At Presidio, speed and quality meet technology and innovation. Presidio is a trusted ally for organizations across industries with a decades-long history of building traditional IT foundations and deep expertise in automation, security, networking, digital transformation, and cloud computing. Presidio fills gaps, removes hurdles, optimizes costs, and reduces risk. Presidio’s expert technical team develops custom applications, provides managed services, enables actionable data insights, and builds forward-thinking solutions that drive strategic outcomes for customers globally. For more information, visit www.presidio.com.

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