sponsored
Companies believe that they need to improve their skills to utilize AI
64% of Irish marketing executives say they need upskilling to better utilize artificial intelligence (AI), and 53% say they need upskilling in related areas of data and analytics. There is.
The figures are from the latest Marketing Pulse Survey (November 2024) commissioned by Core Optimization and conducted by Red C Research and Business Post, which surveyed 102 senior Irish marketers between 8 and 24 October. A survey was conducted.
This follows a June Marketing Pulse survey that found 74% of respondents believed AI would be a net positive in marketing.
Ciara Clarke, director of Red C Research and Marketing, said AI continues to be seen as an important technology, but marketers are expressing concerns about skill levels.
“Although we are making progress in understanding AI, there are still discontinuities and gaps across the board. Companies understand that they need to understand AI, but they are not looking to improve their skills or significantly improve their skills. We also understand the need to hire for specialized (AI-related) roles,” she said.
35% of respondents said hiring skilled talent is a key priority for the year ahead, a significant increase from June’s figure.
“One in three say acquiring skilled talent is a priority, asking ‘What else can I bring to the table?’ and ‘How can we improve this business?’ Last time it was only 22%,” Clark said.
Interestingly, the perception of a shortage of AI skills contrasts with sentiment about digital skills in general. Almost three-quarters (72%) of respondents said their teams are highly digitally competent, suggesting the AI gap is a lag caused by the rapid adoption of technology. Mainstream.
Looking to the future, 42% of respondents said understanding customer behavior is a top three priority for marketing teams in the coming year.
35% said securing budget was their top priority, down slightly from 38% in June, while 34% said demonstrating marketing return on investment. Only 27% said cutting costs was a priority.
“Cost reduction is a low priority, but it’s still a high priority,” Clark said.
This may reflect respondents’ reported confidence in the future, both in relation to their own business and the Irish economy as a whole.
Clark points out that 88% say they are confident in their business and 78% say the same about the economy, a difference that suggests a greater sense of control. Ta.
“What’s interesting is that from a B2B perspective, people are more confident in their business than they are in the economy. People can influence their business, but they can’t control things like housing or interest rates. No. Sentiment for both is trending in the right direction and, importantly, confidence in the companies themselves is increasing,” she said.
