- 84% of business leaders agree their organization should have a deployment roadmap with specific return on investment targets.
- 32% say not understanding how to make AI work is a barrier to successful deployment.
- 57% of business leaders say they deployed AI because their competitors had.
New research released today by Orgvue, the organizational design and planning software platform, reveals that 78% of organizations have had AI projects either fail (35%) or remain stuck in pilot (43%) despite record investment.
The research shows that while investment is accelerating, organizations are struggling to derive value from AI. 32% say they still don’t understand how to make AI work and 49% have committed to upskilling programs because they lack the talent to deploy it successfully.
This is the third year that Orgvue has conducted its international survey of more than 1,000 C-suite and senior decision makers at medium and large organizations. In 2024, organizations invested in AI despite being unclear on its business impact or how to deploy the technology. In 2025, business leaders expressed caution as 55% admitted making the wrong decision over redundancies because of AI.
AI investment keeps rising, but so do the stakes
92% of organizations have invested in AI (88% in 2025 and 82% in 2024), while 83% plan to increase their investment this year (80% in 2025 and 77% in 2024). The share of organizations that increased investment by 50% or more rose by 4% compared to 2025 (27% to 31%), while those planning a 50% or more increase this year compared to last also rose by 4% (31% to 35%).
But expectations are tightening too, with 84% saying their organization should have an AI roadmap with clear targets for return on investment. Yet 57% of business leaders say the main reason they deployed AI is because their competitors had and that projects had stalled or failed because deployments were rushed.
Sentiment has shifted from caution to control
The latest findings show organizations are more focused on how AI is being used and whether it derives value. In 2025, 47% said their biggest fear with workforce adoption was employees using AI without proper oversight. This remains their top concern in 2026 (45%).
28% say they fear choosing the wrong solution when deploying AI, leading to wasted investment (23% in 2025), while 23% fear their organization will be left behind if they don’t develop a better understanding of the technology (22% in 2025).
In addressing these concerns, 44% of organizations have increased their learning and development budgets to ensure employees have the right training and 49% said they are reskilling employees to prepare for AI. Additionally, 52% have committed to policies to inform how AI is used in the workplace, rising from 46% in 2024.
Oliver Shaw, CEO of Orgvue, commented:
“2024 was the year of optimism for AI, while in 2025 we saw more caution from businesses that learnt the hard way that AI deployment can go badly wrong. In 2026, we see an urgency from business leaders to begin delivering value and to reshape the workforce before their competitors do.
“Rising investment shows that organizations still believe in the transformative power of AI, but few businesses are taking the time to understand their workforce structure as it is today. Failed AI deployments are not a technology problem; they’re a workforce design problem.
Three years on, businesses still struggle with the same challenges
65% of organizations expect workforce change from AI in the next 12 months, but 34% say they lack the expertise to manage this change (39% in 2025), while 26% say structural issues are a barrier to organizational readiness (no change).
Over the three years that Orgvue has run the survey, there has been little progress in overcoming these challenges. In 2025, 27% of organizations said they did not have a clearly defined roadmap for AI and 25% admitted they did not understand which roles and jobs would benefit from AI. Yet confidence remains high, with 73% saying they expect to be taking full advantage of AI by the end of this year (69% in 2025 and 71% in 2024).
Shaw concluded:
“Too many organizations are rushing into workforce automation before they understand what they’re trying to automate. They haven’t thought through how new technology and processes will change work, the roles needed to do that work, and the skills needed to perform it. Smart leaders understand their current roles, skills, costs, and capacity before they make decisions like this.
“The stakes are high but only workforce design can turn AI into an engine for growth. 90% of business leaders told us they’re deploying AI as part of their growth strategy, yet a third admit they still don’t know how to make it work for their organization.
“AI will not deliver long-term growth on its own. But when deployed intentionally, grounded in workforce data, role clarity, and human capability, it becomes one of the most powerful tools leaders have to shape the organization’s future.”
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