Is Gen AI delivering on its promise to boost employee productivity in Asia? 

Global Talent Trends 2024-2025 | Asia

Our Global Talent Trends (GTT) 2024 report highlighted Asia’s rapidly evolving workplace driven by the adoption of generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI), which is fundamentally transforming work and overall work experience. But is Gen AI living up to its hype in helping to increase efficiency and productivity?

Pulse Check: Where does Asia stand in 2025?

Key insights from companies’ responses in Asia

Our 2025 Asia pulse check shows that while 61% of respondents in our survey saw an increase in efficiency, only one in three companies are using Gen AI in their organizations.

For organizations already adopting AI, they find a continuous need for reskilling to stay relevant with advancing technologies, with 34% discovering the need for new skill sets. This disparity highlights a significant gap – organizations still lack the clarity on specific skills needed to fully optimize the human-machine potential in the future of work to boost workforce productivity.

Based on these insights, we recommend two key actionable solutions organizations can utilize to unlock the full potential of their workforce:

  1. Design work to unlock the power of AI 
  2. Develop skills and maximize workforce potential 

Discover how to create an agile and competitive workforce with our key solutions.

Despite the promising potential of AI to drive productivity and reduce workload, Asia has not fully leveraged technology.
Only 30% of organizations are prioritizing redesigning work to incorporate AI and automation in 2025” – GTT 2025 Asia pulse survey
By designing work to emphasize flexibility, businesses can leverage technology to streamline processes and automate repetitive tasks, allowing employees to focus on value-adding contributions. This alignment enhances productivity and improves employee satisfaction and engagement, ultimately attracting and retaining top talent.

How to measure the success of AI integration?

To measure how AI integration aligns with your work design objectives – such as to reduce workload and increase productivity – organizations are encouraged to adopt the below metrics:

Implementing and integrating AI into your work design can be a complex process that requires careful analysis and time. However, there are solutions that can help to simplify the process. 

What’s next for you?

  • 1-year access to HR metrics, market insights, and Mercer’s thought leadership.
  • Get complimentary ticket to 2025 Asia HR Conference and learn how thoughtful work design can boost productivity.

Essential work design resources

As Asia undergoes a significant demographic shift, marked by an aging population and a growing millennial workforce, the demand for new skills among employees and managers has become critical.

Prioritizing talent in strategic roles that yield the highest return on investment (ROI) is essential for organizations seeking to thrive in a competitive environment. To maximize ROI and retain top talent, companies must focus on skills development and effective deployment in key positions while ensuring that compensation strategies align with productivity and performance.

A skills-powered organization can unlock the full potential of its workforce, enabling swift deployment in response to opportunities or crises. Whether you are just beginning or advancing in fostering a culture of continuous learning, adaptability, and agility, there are solutions available to support your journey.

What’s next for you?

  • Know how much to pay for critical skills that are driving impact in your organization.
  • Get the data you need to implement effective skills-based programs.

Resources to help you 

Our updated 2024-2025 Global Talent Trends study draws on further insights from an additional Pulse survey of 1,800 HR leaders across 24 key markets and 17 industries. Their perspectives have reaffirmed that the four key trends shaping the People agenda in 2025 remain as relevant today as they were last year. We are excited to share the findings and explore how these trends continue to influence the future of work. Read on more to see how organizations are progressing towards the trends shaping the People agenda: ​

Conclusion

If 2024 was the year of experimentation, then 2025 must be the year of benefit realization. As organizations leverage new technologies, leaders must shift their focus from cost optimization to delivering tangible returns for all stakeholders. In a landscape where people risk equates to business risk, balancing acceleration with a positive work experience is essential.

The success of your organization hinges on fostering a balanced, people-led collaboration between humans and machines, starting with the effective integration of AI into your work design efforts. Next, cultivating a culture of curiosity and continuous learning is vital for bridging skills gaps and unlocking the full potential of your employees. This approach not only enhances job satisfaction through meaningful contributions but also enables the organization to outpace competitors by deploying talent where opportunities arise.

Report

Global Talent Trends 2024-2025

In an era where people risk equates to business risk, striking the balance between tech acceleration and a winning work experience will be critical.
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