AI is transforming the nature of work, and not in the ways that many people assume. As former IBM CEO Ginni Rometty famously observed, “AI will not replace humans, but those who use AI will replace those who don’t.” We already see lots of instances of AI remaking roles by automating processes and assisting employees so they can be less frustrated by repetitive activities and more productive.

When work is streamlined, employees tend to be more positive and engaged. Better engagement improves operational efficiency, and that allows employers to realize more value from their workforce. Many companies already use some type of AI automation, and now forward-thinking employers are exploring agentic AI—AI that can complete tasks and make proactive suggestions like a personal assistant—as a lever to unleash even more of their workers’ creativity and problem solving skills.

How can AI improve employee engagement and creativity?

AI’s growing ability to automate processes and support employee effectiveness represents a huge amount of value over the long term, with AI-related productivity growth forecasted at $4.4 trillion per year. The biggest gains in this area may come from using agentic AI to remake the way employees work by automating some of the complex processes people have to do manually now.

Combining agentic AI with AI automation can create ripple effects that deliver a positive impact across the company:

•  AI agents can make individual employees more effective by acting as a personal assistant — handling daily tasks like annotating meeting transcripts and setting up meetings.

• This kind of help can free up employees’ time and mental energy to work on more complex projects and come up with the kinds of ideas that lead to innovation.

• Agentic assistants can also give employees more freedom to collaborate with team members and other departments. Those collaborations can also lead to greater innovation.

By allowing employees to spend more of their time on high value creative work instead of repetitive or basic tasks, agentic AI assistants can boost job satisfaction and employee engagement. Who among us wouldn’t feel better about our jobs if we had a smart assistant (or even a team of assistants) always ready to help us out so we can thrive?

More engaged employees create additional value for their employers. Gallup found that high employee engagement correlates with 18% higher productivity than at companies with less engaged workforces. The gains in productivity and efficiency created by agentic AI and strong employee engagement can reinforce each other to give organizations a real competitive advantage over companies that lag on AI implementation, employee experience, or both.

Agentic AI can turbocharge productivity in other ways, too.

• When people can turn over multi-step workflows like processing expense reports or invoices to AI agents, those processes get done faster than when human employees handle every step from end to end.

• AI-run processes are also less likely to contain data entry mistakes and other types of human error, so less time gets spent correcting mistakes.

• AI agents can be trained to handle more complex sets of tasks, too. For example, specialized agents can analyze sales strategy to identify next best steps for sales team members, so the team can close more deals more efficiently.

• Leaders and managers facing complicated decisions can get input from agentic AI designed specifically for deep reasoning.

Embracing the AI-related skills transformation

Rolling out AI use cases requires some of the same groundwork as a typical technology deployment. In addition to a strategy for testing and scaling the technology, AI programs need a commitment from the top of the organization to succeed. However, unlike standard tech rollouts that may only require employees to learn a new app or platform, AI requires that companies rethink how their employees work and the skills they use.

For example, customer service representatives who get real-time guidance and next-step recommendations from AI agents during customer interactions are suddenly free to focus more on the human elements of those interactions instead of focusing on finding information. If they have the interpersonal communication and emotional intelligence skills to do this well, they can build customer trust and loyalty. To set these employees up for success, they may need training on active listening and other communication strategies.

These changing requirements mean that organizations will also have to rethink the skills they hire for, train for, and reward as they add more AI capabilities. Beyond helping employees adapt to new ways of working, companies that cultivate better communication and people skills can elevate their culture, engage employees even more, and reap the benefits of efficiency and productivity gains.

Building a stronger workforce and organization with AI

When employees are engaged, informed, and advancing their skills, the organization gets stronger in multiple ways. Customers get faster, more empathetic support from employees who are motivated to go the extra mile. Processes run more smoothly and at lower cost. Talent retention and recruitment are easier when employees have positive and rewarding experiences. Organizations that are willing to rethink what their workforce does and the skills they need can make the most of the benefits that agentic AI and AI automation are ready to deliver.