CIOs already have a golden opportunity to boost productivity and operational efficiency through digital innovation: but the emergence of agentic AI now offers dynamic technology leaders the chance to go even further, redefining business models, workforces and the nature of work itself.
This breakthrough technology harnesses advanced AI agents (a digital workforce which can perform business roles and take specific actions) and tasks them with autonomously executing complex, multi-step problems using sophisticated reasoning and iterative planning.
IDC predicts 40% of business professionals in the top 500 EMEA companies will rely on agentic-AI-generated reporting and data flows by 2028, while 60% of firms say the technology will have a moderate to significant impact on their competitiveness in the next 18 months.[1]
Industry insiders already predict humans using AI will likely take the jobs of those who don’t. Therefore, it is likely that businesses using agentic AI will take the customers of companies that don’t.
Recent surveys indicate that CIOs and CTOs are leading the adoption of generative AI, and more recently agentic AI, within businesses. Foundry’s 2024 State of CIO report found that 71% are working more closely with line of business on AI applications, while it also showed AI’s increasing importance with 80% (up from 55% in 2023) identifying it as their top area of involvement.[2]
Quick wins are key in the race to adopt agentic AI
The pressure is now on CIOs to generate real value from agentic AI as quickly as possible, enabling AI to progress from providing generic assistance to taking action, carrying-out meaningful, strategic business tasks. This could, for example, include coaching a sales team or even acting as a sales rep.
“CEOs expect significant ROI from AI projects in just months,” says Ed Thompson, SVP Global Influencer Strategy at Salesforce. Around 65% of businesses are now using generative AI.[3]
CIOs have been through the genAI piloting process and have been under pressure to show ROI since spring 2024, Thompson explains. They can now expect a similar adoption curve with agentic AI.
Forward-thinking CIOs are rising to this challenge by auditing workflows and analysing customer journeys to identify high-value agentic AI use cases. They are also shifting focus from ‘build’ to ‘buy’ to achieve a faster time to market that shows to business leaders that value is being generated.
Identify agentic AI sweet spots
Retail, hospitality and travel are forging ahead with agentic AI adoption using the technology across multiple use cases for marketing, sales and every other business function.
In customer service, traditional chatbots might answer queries or track orders. Agents, however, can actually take actions autonomously, which may mean rearranging deliveries or returns.
In regulated industries, however, CIOs are negotiating with their heads of compliance due to high risk levels, Thompson explains.
“The bravest CIOs within the regulated industries are considering agents in areas such as Know Your Customer, complaints, onboarding and talking to patients about their health,” he says. “Agents are not acting autonomously however, they’re assisting employees.”
Regardless of sector, back-office and employee-facing functions also offer a wealth of low risk, highly repetitive tasks ripe for automation.
Fostering collaboration
Smart CIOs recognise the huge value generated by collaboration between humans and the digital workforce. Agents can deal with scenarios autonomously, 24/7 and hand-off to a human if an interaction exceeds a predetermined level of risk or complexity.
This hand-off process not only liberates employees to focus on high-value, high-risk customer touchpoints, AI agents can also provide human operators with an interaction summary, customer sentiment and recommended next steps.
Saks is committed to delivering high-touch luxury experiences, and Agentforce is key to this vision. By managing routine inquiries such as order status and returns, Agentforce will allow customer service agents to focus on personalised service and strengthening customer relationships.[4]
Redefining organisational structures
The impact of agentic AI is also being felt in the boardroom, changing C-suite priorities and corporate structures.
In some instances, a chief AI officer is being appointed, reporting into the CIO. This ensures a dedicated focus on AI strategy, so a compelling AI narrative can be shared with the board.
Comprehensive AI governance teams are also being established with representatives from legal, data protection, insurance and governance.
CIO’s golden opportunity
Faced with this fast-evolving AI landscape, Thompson says successful CIOs must ensure they actively facilitate and shape the digital workforce.
“CIOs can’t afford to be seen as a bottleneck in the rollout of AI,” he says. “As soon as stakeholders get frustrated, they will start bypassing the CIO entirely, making a complex and risk-filled environment even more challenging.”
Agentic AI presents CIOs with a huge opportunity to transform their function from cost base to value and innovation driver, but they must expertly shape the digital workforce to drive growth and maximise innovation.
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