Managers are in responsibility overload, leading to high levels of burnout. A recent Gartner survey found 26 per cent of managers regret taking on the role, citing relentless administrative burdens as a key reason.

On top of their core management responsibilities, they’re now responsible for helping employees adopt new AI-driven ways of working; supporting those whose roles and workflows have been disrupted by technology and AI; and incorporating new AI-enabled approaches into their own workflows.

At the same time, many organisations are undertaking significant transformation, which increases employees’ reliance on their managers.

When managers struggle, their teams suffer, leading to higher attrition and reductions in engagement and performance. Gartner research indicates poor manager quality, lack of respect, and ineffective people management are the top three reasons Australian employees are leaving their organisations.

AI is emerging as a critical lever to address these challenges, and many expect it to also empower managers to become more effective human leaders. Carefully deployed AI offers HR leaders a chance to remove some of the administrative tasks from the plates of managers. As a result, this will reduce burnout and increase effectiveness.

Beyond reduced administrative workload, AI-driven manager practices can offer more time for coaching and team development, as well as more personalised employee support as AI-powered analytics identify individual skill gaps and recommend targeted learning. While all of this sounds promising, the reality is more complicated.

AI can unlock higher levels of manager effectiveness, but few managers will realise these benefits without the right guidance from HR on how, where, and when to use AI. Unfortunately, many organisations in Australia aren’t supporting managers’ AI adoption, missing this significant opportunity to improve employee and organisational performance.

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