Salesforce Survey: Leaders Prioritize GenAI, IT Wants Data Security

A recent survey involving 600 IT professionals unveils a fresh directive from their leaders: rapidly integrate generative AI into the technology infrastructure. However, IT departments are expressing reservations, citing concerns regarding resource allocation, data security, and data quality. Nearly three out of five IT professionals report that business stakeholders have impractical expectations regarding the pace and flexibility of implementing new technologies. In reality, 88% of IT professionals admit to being overwhelmed by the volume of AI-related requests they receive, indicating a significant inability to meet organizational demands.

Why it matters: The current landscape is witnessing a productivity and efficiency revolution with the advent of generative AI. Businesses are experiencing productivity enhancements, prompting executives to seek a share of the benefits. However, the rush to adopt generative AI may lead to diminishing returns if adequate infrastructure, resources, and partnerships are lacking. IT teams must collaborate with their leadership to ensure that the swift integration of generative AI does not compromise data security and quality.

Salesforce perspective: “Executives are understandably excited about the promise of AI – and productivity gains are a big part of that. CIOs and IT teams can either hang back and potentially miss the opportunity to take advantage of the technology before their competitors, or they can lead the way, rethinking how companies implement trusted AI responsibly and sustainably.” – Juan Perez, EVP, and Chief Information Officer, Salesforce.

The Salesforce Research found:

IT is in the hot seat as pressure mounts to implement generative AI quickly 

The majority of surveyed IT professionals (87%) hold the view that generative AI has lived up to or surpassed its expectations. Consequently, IT is under pressure to swiftly implement the technology.

As demand increases, IT is at the front lines. 

• The majority of surveyed IT professionals (87%) hold the view that generative AI has lived up to or surpassed its expectations. Consequently, IT is under pressure to swiftly implement the technology.
• Since the introduction of generative AI, 86% of IT professionals report that their roles have increased in significance.
• Sixty-eight percent of IT professionals indicate that their leadership anticipates them to possess expertise in generative AI.

Company leadership prioritizes speed above security and data quality, IT says

As per the research findings, IT teams have identified the C-suite as the primary influencer pushing for rapid implementation of generative AI. In comparing their team's priorities with those of their leadership, IT professionals emphasize their focus on data security and quality, whereas they perceive their leadership as prioritizing speed.

IT faces AI challenges, putting fast implementation at risk

Amidst the imperative to meet demands, IT grapples with mounting concerns regarding the effective allocation of budget and resources for the implementation of new technologies such as AI. 

IT Teams’ Top 5 AI Challenges 

• Lack of AI skills in workforce
• Data security
• Data quality
• Implementing AI slows down other initiatives
• Increased cost of programming/tools

Furthermore, nearly one-third (31%) of IT professionals express a shortage of time for implementing and training AI models and algorithms, while almost half report that their infrastructure struggles to meet demand:

• 48% express concern that their organization's security infrastructure may not meet the demands for innovation.
• 45% express concern that their organization's data management infrastructure may not meet the demands for innovation.

“For those who are ready to lead, approaches like retrieval augmented generation (RAG) can help, both reducing costs from training LLMs while keeping data safe and secure and giving companies a faster time to market with AI-powered solutions.” – Juan Perez, EVP and Chief Information Officer.