Follow ZDNET: Add us as a favorite source On Google.
ZDNET Highlights
- Google Workspace study reveals how young leaders use AI.
- Respondents emphasized the importance of personalized AI.
- Business development is a top use case for AI.
AI is transforming the workplace, giving professionals new ways to accomplish their tasks. To understand the impact of this change, Google Workspace has published a survey that examines how the next generation of leaders are using AI – and the results are more nuanced than you might expect.
Google Workspace’s second annual ‘Young Leaders’ study, conducted by Harris Poll, surveyed more than 1,000 full-time knowledge workers in the US aged 22 to 39 who hold or aspire to hold leadership positions at work. The research revealed how these professionals are using AI at work, and what they want from their tools.
Also: AI is shaking up IT work, careers, and professions – and here’s how to prepare
“Young leaders, they’re really the ones who show where work is going in terms of what tools people are using, how they work,” Yuli Kwon Kim, product vice president of Google Workspace, told ZDNET. “How they’re using AI now tells us where a lot of things are going.”
valuable equipment
While AI is usually associated with helping people with their hard skills, the technology is also helping them with soft skills like career development. 92% of survey respondents reported that AI has increased confidence in their professional skills. Young leaders are using technology as a thought partner and even as a career coach to challenge and provide feedback on their ideas.
Also: Want a tech job? State of IT report reveals these skills will matter most in 2026
The study found that “72% have used AI to answer a question they were hesitant to ask a coworker or manager, 71% have gotten advice for important professional conversations, and 69% have used AI to prepare for a career change, interview, or other job change.”
Kwon Kim said, “Many times you can do this with other people on your team, but sometimes people aren’t there when you need them, right away, or whenever it’s convenient for you, or sometimes you’re in such an early stage that you just want to do a little bit privately, and now everyone has a potential collaborator to work on that with.”
AI tools have become increasingly valuable for career advice, as they not only have access to large amounts of information, but can also understand a user’s subtle queries and deliver the information in an easy-to-understand format. There is also the freedom of not having to worry about being judged by another person.
Fiona Mark, principal analyst at research firm Forrester, said AI could play an important role in helping strengthen some leadership skills.
Also: Gartner says AI will cause ‘jobs chaos’ in next few years
“The goal of these AI trainers is to provide a safe space for users to practice certain leadership skills at scale and make learning more interactive and valuable,” Mark said.
“Although AI instructors do not currently have the same insight and nuance as a human instructor, they do, nevertheless, provide a form of experiential learning that can improve learning outcomes that are available to many learners at scale.”
Google’s study also found that the majority of respondents (91%) have increased confidence in being able to contribute more than just their role, and expressed an overwhelming sentiment that AI literacy will be a key skill for the future of work.
AI personalization
While young leaders value AI tools, the survey revealed that they are selective in what they want to offer, with 92% of young leaders looking for AI with personalization capabilities.
Also: Worried about AI job cuts? How white-collar workers can protect themselves – start now
AI-enabled personalization means creating content tailored to your user preferences, such as writing style, as well as providing experiences that incorporate your everyday information stores, including calendars, emails, and more.
Young leaders value this capability so much that 90% reported that they would use AI more at work if it became more personalized.
At least 90% of respondents suggested that personalized AI-generated responses would save them time, and 88% said they would improve productivity. Kwon Kim says this is a sign of how much perceptions about AI have changed in the last year.
“I think a really big learning is that expectations have gotten even higher, and that’s why you saw in the election results that personalization is really important for young leaders,” Kwon Kim said.
Also: 5 ways to give your AI the right business data – and get gold dust, not garbage
“There are many different tools that can generate email replies or simply generate something, but to make AI truly useful in someone’s everyday work, it needs to be personalized.”
According to the report, respondents are also taking responsibility for personalizing AI tools, with 77% of respondents describing themselves as “active designers” of their AI workflows, and 85% being confident in their ability to personalize their AI systems.
big picture
The results of the study come at a time when distrust in AI technologies is continuously increasing. a fresh Pew Research Study found that an average of 34% of adults say they are worried rather than excited about the increasing use of AI. According to researchers, in countries like the United States, Italy, Australia, Brazil and Greece, nearly half of adults reported being more anxious than excited.
Apart from mistrust, working professionals have also been prevented from using AI tools at work due to embarrassment or the risk of producing substandard AI results. recent research BetterUp Labs and the Stanford Social Media Lab revealed that 40% of its survey respondents reported receiving work reductions in the past month, and half view workers who receive work reductions as less creative, reliable, and competent.
Mark said, “Employees are distrustful of AI implementation into their workflows – after all, this is a technology that leaders are claiming will reduce the workforce and be highly efficient and productive, putting the long-term job prospects of many white-collar workers at risk.”
As a result, confidence in AI tools and use may seem higher among young leaders. However, Kwon Kim said this is because this demographic is most likely to fall into the early adopter category, driven by a desire to succeed.
Kwon Kim said, “I think these, in many ways, represent people who are really early adopters of their willingness to move forward, learn, find the best possible tools, and help themselves.” “In some ways, that’s why it’s interesting to me, that they show where things are going.”
