Firms rush to hire AI chiefs without clear goals
Companies are rushing to hire chief AI officers without clear expectations for the role.
A Reddit post from one newly appointed executive highlighted the uncertainty. The officer wrote that after six months, it became clear no one understood what the position should oversee. The post resonated because many organizations face the same challenge.
The hiring surge
An IBM study in May revealed that 76% of 2,000 businesses surveyed had a chief AI officer, compared to 26% the previous year. HSBC named David Rice to the role in April, describing it as part of building a future-ready bank. Deloitte and PwC followed with their own appointments this year. The UK government also created the position, selecting former Spotify product director Kalbir Sohi.
Vodafone was among the first to adopt the role, bringing in Katia Walsh in 2015. The experiment ended in 2019 when she left and the company did not fill the vacancy. Technologist Andrew Ng argued in Harvard Business Review that AI should be treated as essential infrastructure for every business.
Spencer Covey, a consultant at Russell Reynolds who focuses on technology leadership, has observed a sharp increase in demand. The issue is a shortage of qualified candidates. “There’s only a small group of people who can demonstrate experience leading large-scale enterprise transformation,” he said. “Everyone is competing for that limited talent pool.”
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The ideal candidate, according to Covey, must be more than a technologist. The role requires someone who is commercially savvy and capable of driving organizational change. James Hutt, founder of tech consultancy Paradigm Junction, described the position as needing both technical expertise and the ability to persuade teams to adopt new ways of working, take calculated risks, and distribute decision-making authority.
This is not the first time companies have introduced a C-suite role before defining its purpose. The chief data officer position encountered similar challenges a decade ago. The difference now is the speed at which AI is evolving, pressuring businesses to act before they fully understand the problem.
Industry adoption patterns
A Management Today review of LinkedIn data found that 10 of the UK’s 50 largest companies by revenue now have a chief AI officer. Nine others have a dedicated AI leader in a non-executive role, three have not replaced departed officers, and Unilever is actively recruiting. The details of the hires themselves are revealing: seven of the 10 CAIOs were external hires, most from previous AI leadership roles or an analytics background, including at Aviva, Prudential and GSK, the latter of which in June promoted Kim Branson to help accelerate drug discovery through AI.
Adoption rates vary by sector. Financial services and technology firms have moved quickly, while retail is beginning to catch up. Fast-moving consumer goods companies, especially large conglomerates, have been more hesitant.
Not everyone believes the role is necessary. Some argue the C-suite is already overcrowded, with chief data officers and chief transformation officers added in recent years.
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Hutt cautioned that the worst outcome is a chief AI officer who becomes a symbolic figure—someone whose approval is required but who holds no real influence. “It’s easy to appoint someone to the role, especially if they’re hired externally or promoted for technical knowledge, only to have the rest of the organization ignore them,” he said. Covey noted that early hires often failed because they were exceptional technologists but lacked the skills to drive company-wide change.
Defining success
Creating the role is not enough. Hutt explained that the first step is identifying what automation can achieve for the business. The real work involves analyzing the market, understanding customer needs, and implementing a change management program that reshapes company culture. That includes encouraging experimentation, breaking down rigid hierarchies, and allowing employees to innovate within clear limits.
“Most leaders today rose through a system focused on incremental improvements,” Hutt said. “The current strategic priority is adaptability in the face of rapid technological change.”
The challenge lies in AI’s rapid evolution. What is advanced today may become outdated within a year. Yet with investors demanding clear strategy and accountability, the chief AI officer position is likely here to stay. “Clients tell us they need a dedicated person,” Covey said. “The pace of change in this area is unprecedented. Someone must oversee it continuously.”
