When you’re in need of suggestions at work, who do you turn to first? An increasing number of workers are turning to ChatGPT for work advice over their bosses and managers. Some leaders might sigh with relief at being freed from the duties of answering questions both big and small, no longer seeing as many interruptions to their day, but if employees solely rely on AI for workplace guidance, who’s to blame if they are led astray?
A new survey from Resume Now found that 97% of employees have asked ChatGPT for advice instead of their bosses, and 63% admit to doing so regularly. Dubbing this trend the “AI Boss Effect,” the research found that the technology is now replacing managers as a go-to resource, with employees often doing so due to fear of retaliation. Not only do workers increasingly rely on the advice, but many find the guidance to be invaluable. About 72% of respondents state that ChatGPT gives them better advice than their managers do, while 49% add that the tool has proved to be more emotionally supportive than their managers. This isn’t the only ChatGPT vs. manager standoff that AI appears to be winning.
What happens when employees turn to ChatGPT instead of their bosses and managers for work advice? It’s a slippery slope to head down. (Image: Pexels)
Why Are Employees Turning to ChatGPT for Work Advice? Understanding the Data
One of the biggest reasons for employees to seek work advice from ChatGPT over managers appears to be a result of users seeing the technology as more competent. About 70% of employees believe the tech understands their challenges better, with 37% expressing a lack of faith in their manager’s judgement. Some of this switch is due to convenience as well, as 47% find it easier and quicker to reach a bot over contacting their supervisors. There is also the matter of perception in the workplace.
Resume Now found that 57% of employees fear retaliation over asking the wrong question, with 38% adding that they fear being seen as incompetent. For 32% of respondents, this preference for ChatGPT is all about comfort, with it being much easier to turn to AI over a person. We have seen evidence of this trend before in how employees engage within the workplace. Other studies have shown that employees find AI to present them with a judgement-free zone as compared to communicating and asking colleagues questions, which has led to many workers working in isolation more than ever before.
Organizations that are determined to use more AI in the workplace as a pathway to productivity may see this as a win, but there are many reasons why this data is concerning. For one, the overreliance on the technology is causing a decline in workplace connections and relationships, fueling a culture of individual work over teamwork. For another, this loss of trust in bosses and managers is likely to show up in unpleasant ways, from disregard for their authority in the workplace to eventually trusting in ChatGPT’s advice over explicit instructions offered by managers. Unregulated AI overuse could have many unintended consequences in the long run.
Apart from Seeking Workplace Advice, How Are Employees Using AI?
If there were any doubts that connections at work have been growing more inauthentic, the data from the survey confirms as much. Even when employees do communicate with managers and bosses, they now rely on AI to either write or perfect their messages. About 93% use AI to prepare for a conversation with their bosses. Similarly, 61% send ChatGPT-written messages to their managers, while 35% edit their messages with AI.
This connection with AI extends to emotional support as well. Ninety-three percent of respondents would feel comfortable discussing their mental health with AI, while 49% have already found ChatGPT to be more emotionally supportive with work-related stress than their managers. In a battle between ChatGPT and managers, it’s clear that the technology might soon gain an irreversible edge.
Beyond relying on AI for communication, 57% use it to write and edit their reports, 52% use it for coding and debugging, and 40% turn to it for research summaries. Not even creative, human-centric tasks are free from the shadow of AI, as 53% use the technology for brainstorming and generating creative ideas.
Managers Must Step Up and Lead From Within
The erosion of communication with managers is a sign of a much larger problem, one that heralds an eventual erosion of connection, trust, respect, and harmony in the workplace. Employees who see no reason to communicate with their managers or ask them questions are likely to turn to AI with increasing frequency, graduating from small queries to ones that have greater consequences. Not only is this concerning from the point of view of relationships at work, but also in terms of privacy and security of data.
Employers that encourage such use of chatbots and AI tools may eventually be held accountable for the detrimental effect it has on employees, considering they are holding the careers of employees hostage. It may be common to joke about AI psychosis online, but we could see a greater number of regulations eventually introduced to keep the damaging effect of AI at bay.
Rather than waiting for these policy updates to make themselves known, it’s best that employers begin setting some limitations and regulations around AI use and workplace interaction to ensure that when the workforce comes into work, they are actively present and not just tethered to a screen.
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