A new study finds CEOs believe digital labor will be more impactful than the internet, and the most-prepared leaders are looking to AI agents to stay competitive
Despite claims that CEOs are unprepared for agentic AI, new research from International Data Corporation (IDC), commissioned by Salesforce and published in the IDC InfoBrief, Voice of the CEO on Digital Labor, finds that 99% of CEOs say they’re prepared to integrate digital labor into their business — and that most (65%) are looking to AI agents to transform their business model entirely.
The study of over 150 CEOs in the U.S and Canada reveals that most top execs say digital labor will have a greater impact on their business than the internet and cloud computing. In fact, 67% believe implementing agents is critical for their organization to compete in today’s economic climate, and 73% agree that digital labor will transform their company structure.
“Our research shows that CEOs are not only prepared for the agentic AI revolution, they see it as a critical factor for business growth. CEOs understand that agentic AI is a strategic opportunity and are looking to AI agents to unlock new revenue streams and redefine how their teams work,” said Alan Webber, Program Vice President, National Security, Defense and Intelligence at IDC.
CEOs see agents as an opportunity to shift their workforce from manual, administrative tasks to areas of net-new growth. In fact, 66% of the most-prepared CEOs believe digital labor will spur new teams and departments. Most-prepared CEOs say the top outcome of digital labor will be increased revenue and predict that AI agents will increase customer satisfaction and enable their workers to get more done.
The data also shows CEOs are rejecting outdated narratives about AI job displacement. A majority of CEOs anticipate the future of work to include both humans and agents, with 4 in 5 employees either remaining in their current roles or redeployed to new ones. And 72% of CEOs predict that they and their employees will have agents reporting to them within the next five years.
Why it matters: Agentic AI is no longer about just efficiency. Agents’ ability to act, adapt, and orchestrate across workflows is creating opportunities for new revenue streams, business models, and markets. With the current $6 trillion digital labor market opportunity, CEOs who focus on growth can help their companies gain competitive advantage and build resilience — while those stuck on the “efficiency treadmill” risk being leapfrogged by competitors that use AI to innovate and scale.
By the numbers:
CEOs look to agentic AI to transform their business and stay competitive.
- Over half (58%) of CEOs believe digital labor will have a greater impact on business than the internet and cloud computing.
- 67% believe implementing agents is critical for their organization to compete in today’s economic climate.
- 73% of CEOs agree digital labor will transform their organizational structure.
- 80% of CEOs anticipate future workforces will have humans and AI agents working together.
- A majority (72%) of CEOs believe that in five years most employees will have an AI agent reporting to them.
99% of CEOs feel prepared to initiate digital labor initiatives — 51% feel fully prepared and 48% feel somewhat prepared.
Prepared CEOs view agentic AI as an engine for strategic growth.
- 70% of CEOs who are fully prepared for digital labor believe it will handle more strategic work.
- Fully prepared CEOs expect increased revenue as a top outcome of digital labor, followed by increased customer satisfaction and the ability for workers to get more done.
- Those somewhat prepared are 30% more likely to say “decreased operational costs” as a top outcome — focusing on benefits like cost-cutting rather than growth areas.
- Fully prepared CEOs are 85% more likely to see marketing as highly impacted by digital labor and 37% more likely to see operations as highly impacted.
Prepared CEOs are nearly two times more invested in ethics, governance, and guardrails as a key success factor for agentic AI than those who aren’t prepared.
“CEOs have a mandate to architect the agentic enterprise, and IDC’s new research shows they’re turning to agents to reinvent everything from organizational structures to revenue streams. We’ve experienced the impact of agentic AI firsthand as Customer Zero, and now we’re helping our customers realize their own agentic future,” said Mick Costigan, VP of Salesforce Futures.
CEOs are building new roles in the workforce rather than simply eliminating workers.
- CEOs expect nearly 80% of employees to be augmented by AI agents and work alongside them — either by having their existing roles supported or by being reassigned to new teams.
- 66% of CEOs who are fully prepared to initiate agentic AI initiatives believe digital labor will spur new teams or departments.
- 61% say agentic AI will empower them to reassign employees to new, relevant roles.
- And CEOs who say AI agents will increase human roles at their company are more likely to believe the greatest impact of digital labor will be the “creation of new revenue streams.”
- 57% anticipate it will increase the need for people in leadership roles.
“This isn’t about replacing people. It’s about repositioning humans for higher-value work, where AI agents serve as extensions of leadership, accelerating insights and deepening customer relationships at scale. In the long run, Agentic AI will enable us to accomplish ambitious goals and create a greater impact. Trust, governance, and real-world outcomes are paramount,” said Veenu Aishwarya, CEO of AUM BioTech.
Learn more:
- Read the full IDC InfoBrief, commissioned by Salesforce, Voice of the CEO on Digital Labor, #US53773225, October 2025
- Discover more C-suite insights:
Methodology: In June of 2025, IDC surveyed CEOs in North America on the topic of digital labor and AI agents. The respondents included 103 CEOs from the United States and 52 CEOs from Canada. To be included, respondents needed to report plans to adopt digital labor in the next two to five years and be knowledgeable of their organization’s digital labor initiatives.
