Survey Shows 77.1% of Decision-Makers Consider Human Capital Investment Important, Yet Only 41.4% Feel Enough Progress Has Been Made, with the Inability to See the Cost Benefit Hindering Investment Decisions

Tokyo, March 28, 2023 –  AI inside Inc., which promotes the democratization of AI by providing AI infrastructure, has announced the results of a survey on human capital investment. The survey was conducted in October 2022 and targeted 1,593 full-time workers aged 20 to 59 who are authorized to make decisions regarding human capital investment (hereinafter “decision-makers”), including upper management and executives.

Background of Survey

Along with the rapid changes to the structure of industrial society brought about by the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Japan currently faces issues such as an aging population, low birthrate, and a shrinking workforce population; both individuals and corporations are caught in a whirlwind of change. For corporations to achieve sustainable growth in such an environment, it is imperative to view human capital as an important investment for generating added value and work to maximize that value. The “new form of capitalism” championed by the Kishida cabinet calls for investment in human capital as one of its major themes^*1 and urges corporations to promote such investment. However, a survey on future demand for IT human resources conducted by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry found^*2 that Japan is expected to lack up to 790,000 IT personnel in 2030. This lack of digital human resources has become a pressing issue, as they will be required to generate new value and promote corporate reform.

With this recent focus on human capital investment, AI inside surveyed those with the authorization to make decisions regarding human capital investment, to ascertain whether corporations are making progress with human capital investment and reskilling, and if not, identify the reasons why.

*1 “Basic Policy on Economic and Fiscal Management and Reform 2022: For a New Form of Capitalism ~Achieving a Sustainable Economy by Harnessing Processes to Overcome Challenges to Drive Growth~” by the Cabinet Office
*2 “2019 Survey on Demand for IT Human Resources” by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry ( Japanese only)

Summary of Survey Results

77.1% of decision-makers agreed that human capital investment and human resource development are important. However, only 41.4% said there had been sufficient progress regarding human capital investment and human resource development at their company.

The most common answers given as the reason for lack of progress in human capital investment and human resource development were “Unable to see cost-benefit” and “Unable to secure investment capital” (both in first place at 33.7%) and “Unsure how to develop human resources” (in third place at 31.7%).

There was a large difference in intent to invest among the different decision-markers, with only 35.7% of upper management/executive decision-makers stating that they want to invest in developing AI/DX human resources, while 59.8% of other decision-makers expressed their intent to do so.

Details of Survey Results

77.1% of decision-makers agreed that human capital investment and human resource development are important. However, only 41.4% said there had been sufficient progress regarding human capital investment and human resource development at their company.

77.1% of respondents agreed^*3 that human capital investment and human resource development are important, while only 6.4% disagreed.^*4 On the other hand, 41.4% agreed^*3 that there has been sufficient progress regarding human capital investment and human resource development at their company, while 31.3% disagreed.^*5

These results indicate that the importance of human capital investment and human resource development is widely recognized by decision-makers, but there are not many companies where sufficient progress has been made in human capital investment and human resource development.

^*3 Total number of respondents who selected “Agree” or “Somewhat agree”
^*4 Total number of respondents who selected “Disagree” or “Do not entirely agree”
^*5 Total number of respondents who selected “Completely disagree” or “Somewhat disagree”

The most common reasons for lack of progress in human capital investment and human resource development were “Unable to see cost-benefit” and “Unable to secure investment capital” (both in first place at 33.7%) and “Unsure how to develop human resources” (in third place at 31.7%)

When the 498 decision-makers, who stated that there has been a lack of progress in human capital investment and human resource development at their company, were asked the reason why, the most common answers were “Unable to see cost-benefit,” “Unable to secure investment capital,” and “Unsure how to develop human resources.” These are the factors that are hindering progress in human capital investment at corporations.

There was a large difference in intent to invest among the different types of decision-markers, with only 35.7% of upper management/executive decision-makers stating that they want to invest^*6 in developing AI/DX human resources, while 59.8% of other decision-makers expressed their intent to do so.

Of the 859 decision-makers in upper management/executive positions and the 734 decision-makers in other positions, 35.7% of the upper management/executive decision-makers stated that they wanted to invest in human capital, compared to the 59.8% of other decision-makers who wanted to do so, which was as much as a 24.1 point difference. Furthermore, more than twice as many upper management/executive decision-makers than other decision-makers stated that they did not want to invest in human capital, with 23.5% and 10.2% of respondents answering so, respectively.

These results demonstrate that upper management and executive decision-makers will need to listen to the opinions of their employees and recognize the benefits that human capital investment can bring to the business so that their companies can accelerate human capital investment and achieve employee reskilling. Furthermore, it will be important for other decision-makers to select human resource development programs that clearly show the direct impact they have on business and actual work and explicitly indicate the effect that such programs will have to ensure adoption.

*6 Total number of respondents who selected “I want to invest actively” or “I want to invest”
*7 Total number of respondents who selected “I do not want to invest at all” or “I do not want to invest”

About the AI Growth Program

The AI Growth Program is a program in which participants can learn AI utilization and business establishment from lecturers with AI business experience, based on the technology and know-how AI inside has cultivated through its service offerings. The program adopts the format of a workshop about identifying work issues, formulating specific plans for utilizing AI and conducting AI development and operation using the “Learning Center” a no-code platform. This enables employees without experience in AI and non-programmers to be reskilled as human resources with fundamental DX literacy for utilizing AI in actual business, who can then contribute to building in-house infrastructure for promoting AI projects. AI inside also provides professional services such as business development consulting for upper management. We leverage our knowledge as an early provider of a commercial AI platform to assist the launch of AI businesses that go beyond the proof-of-concept stage and achieve in-house DX in line with the needs of management and the workplace.

For details/inquiries: https://ai-growth-program.inside.ai/ (Japanese only)

Survey Overview

Survey for: AI inside Inc.
Survey by: Cross Marketing Group Inc.
Scope of survey: Throughout Japan
Target of survey: Full-time employees aged 20 to 59
Survey period: Friday October 21, 2022 to Saturday, October 22, 2022
Survey method: Internet survey
No. of valid responses: 1,593 samples for main survey

About AI inside Inc.

AI inside provides an AI platform and professional services that enable business operations and decision-making through the use of data under the mission of “to bring AI to every being in the world and contribute to a richer future society.” Our clients include government agencies, local governments, and major corporations, and we contribute to the promotion of DX and the resolution of management issues by achieving optimal AI operations through our proprietary software and hardware. 

Company Name: AI inside Inc.
Location: 4th Floor, 3-8-12 Shibuya Shibuya-Ku, Tokyo, Japan
Representative: Representative Director, President & CEO Taku Toguchi
Founded: August 2015
Business details: Development and provision of artificial intelligence and related information services
Website: https://inside.ai/en/