Research from Goldsmiths, University of London for Microsoft reveals that top-performing businesses and productive public sector organizations have a solid artificial intelligence (AI) strategy and are gearing up for agentic AI.
This study, highlighted in Microsoft’s “Agents of Change” report, surveyed 1,480 senior leaders and 1,440 employees across the UK, covering both public and private sectors. While many recognize the advantages of AI, fewer believe their organizations are ready to capitalize on these opportunities. The study identifies workforce readiness, strategic planning, and regulatory uncertainty as persistent obstacles.
Peter Kyle, Secretary of State, emphasizes that AI agents can help organizations work smarter, not just faster. Chris Brauer, director of innovation at Goldsmiths, adds that agentic AI could revolutionize operations, boost resilience, and relieve employees from mundane tasks—if organizations take proactive steps. There are actionable strategies for businesses of all performance levels to implement right now.
The findings show that 67% of leaders and nearly half of employees think they’d be more productive if AI could autonomously manage their repetitive tasks. Microsoft defines agentic AI as systems that can make decisions and take action to achieve specific goals with minimal human input. Darren Hardman, Microsoft UK CEO, points out that agentic AI can alleviate tedious work, allowing employees to focus on more creative, valuable tasks.
The survey also found that almost 71% of participants want to reduce costs through automation, and 64% are looking to boost efficiency and productivity via AI-driven processes. Companies aim to improve business resilience by leveraging AI for fraud detection, risk forecasting, and timely responses to market shifts.
However, the data shows only 46% of leaders report having a formal AI strategy in place. Though this marks an increase from 29% in 2024, it’s still too low for the UK to truly harness the potential of agentic AI. Many organizations appear to be stalled at a time when they should be accelerating. The report warns that this not only limits the value of AI tools but also jeopardizes future innovations and growth opportunities.