Gartner Says AI’s Productivity Impact Uneven Often Falls Short Of Expectations

Gartner has advised CFOs to reset assumptions about AI’s ability to improve workforce productivity and reduce headcount.

A survey of 724 business professionals conducted between June and August 2024 found that only 37% of teams using traditional AI reported high productivity gains, with generative AI teams slightly lower at 34%. Speaking at the Gartner CFO & Finance Executive Conference 2025, Randeep Rathindran noted that AI’s productivity impact remains uneven across functions and often falls short of expectations. Marketing teams saw the most benefit, while HR and legal lagged. Gartner recommends that leaders shift focus from automation alone to redesigning workflows and enabling AI adoption through collaborative and structured implementation strategies to realise productivity improvements.

Gartner also highlighted that inflated expectations and delayed implementation timelines are key factors limiting the realisation of productivity gains from AI investments.