Gartner Report: Only 44% of CIOs Seen as AI-Savvy by CEOs

AI is truly revolutionising businesses and their strategy.

However, according to Gartner, there is a striking disconnect at the top of the corporate hierarchy.

Its research reveals that while 77% of CEOs believe AI will shape the future of business, only 44% consider their CIOs to be “AI-savvy”.

So why are business leaders losing faith and confidence in CIOs’ AI readiness?

Gartner and the AI readiness gap

With a perceived expertise gap extending across the C-suite, CISOs and Chief Data Officers (CDOs) are also falling short in the eyes of their CEOs.

Gartner’s survey, which polled 456 CEOs and other senior executives worldwide, highlights a growing sense of urgency. 

CEOs overwhelmingly view AI not as an incremental upgrade but as a “step change” in how business and society operate. 

Yet, two-thirds admit their business models are not ready for AI, with the majority doubting their leadership teams have the skills to harness its transformative potential.

This is not a new concern, however.

Even before the current AI boom, CEOs rated their executives’ digital savvy as suboptimal, according to Gartner.

Now, as AI adoption accelerates across sectors, the stakes are higher, and the readiness gap is widening.

“CEOs have shifted their view of AI from just a tool to a transformative way of working,” says Jennifer Carter, Principal Analyst at Gartner. 

“This change has highlighted the importance of upskilling. As leaders recognise AI’s potential and its impact on their organisations, they understand that success isn’t just about hiring new talent. 

“Instead, it’s about equipping their current employees with the skills needed to seamlessly incorporate AI into everyday tasks.”

Challenges with AI deployment

The top obstacles to successful AI deployment, according to CEOs, centre on two main areas.

Despite heavy investment in AI, many organisations struggle to quantify the return on these initiatives, with only a minority reporting meaningful revenue gains. 

This uncertainty — coupled with a shortage of AI-literate talent — threatens to slow progress and erode competitiveness.

It also means that upskilling is mission critical.

And it’s not just Gartner that is emphasising the need for this shift.

The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs report, for example, found that 77% of organisations see reskilling and upskilling as the most important workforce strategy for dealing with AI disruption. 

For software engineers alone, Gartner predicts that four in five will need to upskill by 2027 as generative AI transforms workflows and job functions.

“While AI will transform the future role of software engineers, human expertise and creativity will always be essential for delivering complex, innovative software,” says Philip Walsh, Director Analyst in Gartner’s Software Engineering Practice.

Building a culture of continuous AI learning

Effective upskilling requires a dedicated roadmap, rather than ad hoc training.

PwC emphasises that “cultivating specific mindsets will be key to success”, stating that “understanding your unique mindsets — and those of your workforce — can help you accelerate the adoption of AI tools, stay open to growth and sustain new AI-enabled ways of working”.

The consultancy’s Global Investor Survey finds that 61% of investors believe faster adoption is very or extremely important. 

However, more than a fifth of workers believe that AI will not impact their job at all in the next five years, with many feeling uncertain or indifferent towards its transformative potential.

With this in mind, PwC says as businesses become more AI-enabled, “leaders have an opportunity to drive the conversation and help employees adapt to an AI era”.

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