Companies in the Philippines are moving quickly to adopt artificial intelligence (AI), but many employees say they are not ready because they lack training, support, and clear guidance, according to a regional workplace study commissioned by productivity superapp Lark.
The report, “The Paradox of Progress – Why a Broken Employee Experience is Sabotaging Adoption of AI in the Workplace,” surveyed 900 employers and more than 5,000 employees across Southeast Asia, including the Philippines. The double-blind survey was conducted by an independent third party and covered different industries, job roles, seniority levels, and company sizes.
The findings suggest that many organizations are investing in AI before fixing everyday workplace problems. While 90% of Philippine employers said they are building workplaces that embrace new technology, only 17% consider their organizations digitally mature. More than half are still in the early stages of using AI.
“These findings should be a wake-up call. We are at a pivotal moment for AI adoption across Southeast Asia, but what this research tells us is that the foundation isn’t as solid as leadership believes,” said Olivier Adam, general manager, Asia Pacific at Lark. “Employees are overwhelmed, undertrained and increasingly disconnected from the decisions that shape their working lives. Unless organizations address that gap now, before they layer more AI on top of an already fragmented experience, they risk accelerating the wrong things.”
Three out of four Filipino employees (75%) said company leaders do not fully understand their digital needs. The report said many workers still deal with too many workplace apps, limited training, and little say in the technology they use.
Companies also appear to be investing more in business operations than in improving employees’ day-to-day work. IT (72%), marketing (61%), and finance (60%) were the departments most likely to be fully digitized. Employee experience (47%) and human resources (44%) were less likely to receive the same level of investment.
Too many digital tools are also slowing people down. More than half (52%) of employees said they lose at least three hours every week because of inefficient digital collaboration. Eight in 10 said they feel overwhelmed by the number of workplace apps they use, while 58% said they have to check several platforms every hour just to stay updated.
The study also found a gap between what employers think and what employees experience. While 77% of employers said they encourage employees to share ideas, only 27% of employees said they feel they have enough freedom to introduce new ones.
Training remains another challenge. Although 83% of employees said they need more support in cybersecurity and using AI to improve productivity, only 25% said they have received enough training to use AI with confidence.
“Technology is ready. The question is whether people expected to use it feel ready too,” Adam said.
The report also found that many employees are uncertain about how AI is being introduced in their organizations. Only 15% said their employers are very transparent about how AI and automation are being used, while 55% said leadership has not clearly explained its plans. At the same time, 65% believe AI could eventually replace their jobs, and 77% have concerns about security.
Despite those concerns, employees are not rejecting AI. In fact, 86% said they want AI to take over routine tasks so they can focus on more meaningful work. The report said organizations can improve AI adoption by giving employees better training, communicating more openly about AI, and making workplace technology simpler to use.