Canadian organizations are struggling to turn AI into ROI

Tech leaders across Canada are managing a slew of AI projects and pilots that keep them busy. 

If this is you, and you’ve recently asked yourself, “what are we even doing here,” you’re in good company. 

BDO Canada’s latest productivity report found that 46% of Canadian organizations are experimenting with AI without achieving meaningful ROI. Another 18% have moved further, actively embedding AI into workflows and operations, while 26% are still modernizing their core systems. 

The findings are based on a survey conducted by Angus Reid that BDO says included 520 Canadian business leaders. 

Economic uncertainty is playing a sizable role in investment decisions. The report found that 29% of organizations have delayed major investments because of economic uncertainty. The biggest risk named was margin pressure and rising costs (46%), followed closely by: 

• Revenue volatility (44%)
• Talent retention and workforce costs (31%)
• Supply chain or operational disruption (29%)
• Regulatory or policy changes (29%)
• Access to capital/financing (16%)

Many organizations are still measuring activity instead of outcomes.

According to the report, many organizations still track the number of pilots launched, AI licences deployed, experimentation activity, and technology adoption. All these do is show whether AI is being used. 

BDO says technology can make individual tasks faster, while the wider organization still gets slowed down by layers of approvals, unclear ownership, siloed functions, and slow decisions. 

A faster task doesn’t always mean that the business is more productive.

“Canada’s productivity challenge is ultimately a leadership challenge. There is no single technology investment that will solve it,” says Jeff Chapman, managing partner, advisory, markets and industry at BDO Canada. 

“The organizations that move ahead will be those whose leaders are prepared to rethink how work gets done, build greater adaptability into their businesses and make difficult decisions in the face of uncertainty.”

The next AI budget comes with a key question. 

Did the last investment make the organization easier to run? Fewer approval loops, clearer ownership, and faster decisions are a stronger case than checking another box labelled ‘pilot goes live.’

Final shots

• A pilot can be busy, expensive, and technically successful without making the organization easier to run.
• Faster individual tasks don’t add up to higher productivity if approvals, ownership, and decision-making still slow the organization down.
• The next AI budget needs evidence from the business, including faster decisions, fewer approval loops, and clearer accountability.