The AI Reality: New Research from ISACA Identifies Gaps in AI Knowledge Training and Policies

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Author: ISACA
Date Published: 7 May 2024
Read Time: 4 minutes

85% of digital trust professionals say they will need to increase their AI skills and knowledge within two years to advance or retain their jobs.

Schaumburg, IL, USA—According to an ISACA pulse poll of 3,270 digital trust professionals, only 15% of organizations have AI policies, and 40% of organizations offer no AI training at all.

These gaps are concerning given that 70% of respondents say staff are using AI, and 60% say employees are using generative AI (e.g., Microsoft CoPilot, Google Gemini, and OpenAI’s ChatGPT).

The poll showed the most common uses of AI are:

Increasing productivity (35%)
Automating repetitive tasks (33%)
Creating written content (33%)

A full 60% of respondents are worried or very worried that bad actors will exploit generative AI, with 81% saying the top AI risk is misinformation/disinformation. Yet only 35 percent say AI risks are an immediate priority for their organization.

Respondents believe jobs will be significantly impacted by AI, with 45% saying many jobs will be eliminated over the next five years and 80% saying many jobs will be modified. Yet digital trust professionals—those who work in fields such as information security, governance, risk and privacy—are more optimistic about their own jobs. Seventy-eight percent say AI will have a neutral or positive impact on their careers.

To achieve that neutral or positive impact and retain or advance their careers, 85% say they will need to increase their AI skills and knowledge within two years.

"AI is moving at a speed we haven’t seen before, with its use in organizations outpacing the policies, training and skills that are absolutely critical for making sure it is used securely,” said Shannon Donahue, ISACA Chief Content and Publishing Officer. “AI is quickly becoming a business imperative, and ISACA is fully committed to providing the tools, resources and training to help individuals and enterprises thrive in an AI world.”

ISACA is addressing this knowledge gap by releasing a series of on-demand AI training, with three courses launching today:

AI Essentials—Explores foundational principles and applications of AI and provides a comprehensive overview of core AI concepts, algorithms and application of AI
Auditing Generative AI: Strategy, Analysis and Risk Mitigation—Explores generative AI, including considerations of usage, associated risks, and its impact on auditing processes, with emphasis on security, ethical considerations, data governance, and compliance with regulations
AI Governance: Principles, Strategies and Business Alignment—Explores how governance practices apply throughout the AI lifecycle, from development and implementation to ongoing monitoring and maintenance, ensuring consistent and effective governance at every stage

These new courses join additional AI-focused resources from ISACA, including:

A new book titled Artificial Intelligence: A Primer on Machine Learning, Deep Learning, and Neural Networks
Artificial Intelligence Audit Toolkit
Using the Digital Trust Ecosystem Framework to Achieve Trustworthy AI white paper
An AI acceptable use policy template (one of 15 IS/IT policies available in ISACA’s Policy Template Library)

To access these and other ISACA resources around AI, visit www.isaca.org/ai.

Survey Methodology

ISACA’s AI Pulse Poll was conducted online from 7-22 March 2024. The poll received 3,270 completed responses globally. The margin of error is +/- 2% at the 95% confidence level.

About ISACA

ISACA^® (www.isaca.org) is a global community advancing individuals and organizations in their pursuit of digital trust. For more than 50 years, ISACA has equipped individuals and enterprises with the knowledge, credentials, education, training and community to progress their careers, transform their organizations, and build a more trusted and ethical digital world. ISACA is a global professional association and learning organization that leverages the expertise of its 180,000 members who work in digital trust fields such as information security, governance, assurance, risk, privacy and quality. It has a presence in 188 countries, including 225 chapters worldwide. Through the ISACA Foundation, ISACA supports IT education and career pathways for underresourced and underrepresented populations.

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