Dive Brief:
- Technology employers are poised to grow, in a couple of ways. For one, they plan to boost automation and machine learning deployment across several functions. In addition, they expect to boost their workforce numbers over the next three years, according to a new survey of 138 U.S. technology CEOs.
- The survey, from KPMG LLP, found that the CEOs surveyed believe the strong bond between employees and cognitive systems is creating a new class of digital labor that can enhance skills and expertise, allowing employees to innovate constantly.
- In fact, about three-fourths of CEOs surveyed say automation and machine learning are likely to replace at least 5% of their manufacturing, technology, sales and marketing workforce over the next three years. At the same time, 55% expect their company's headcount to grow by at least 6%.
Dive Insight:
Gary Matuszak, global and U.S. chair of KPMG's Technology, Media and Telecommunications practice, said that tech CEOs see the benefits of digital labor augmenting workforce capabilities and enabling new ways of doing business to add customer value, improve efficiencies and reduce cost. "They see the combination of digital and human labor as an effective way to execute their strategy," he says.
Tech CEO's top concerns are product relevancy three years from now (93%), impact of global economic forces on their business, and how millennials and their differing wants/needs will change their business.
"While U.S. tech CEOs will be driving innovation in uncertain market conditions, they remain optimistic about growth, albeit at a slower pace than in recent years," Matuszak said.