Philippine companies are moving quickly to adopt artificial intelligence and strengthen their data capabilities, but many remain unprepared to deal with the resulting talent, compensation, and employee benefits challenges, according to a new human capital study by Aon.
In its latest Human Capital Trends Study, Aon said 72% of organizations in the Philippines are already deploying or piloting AI programs, while 94% expect the technology to create new roles and significantly alter skills requirements.
The study, however, pointed to a gap between AI ambitions and workforce readiness. Only 17% of organizations said they are able to successfully recruit and retain enough workers with AI-related skills.
“Organizations in the Philippines are taking meaningful steps to prepare their workforce for the future through AI adoption and skills investment,” said Rahul Chawla.
“As demand for talent continues to grow, organizations that align workforce planning, job architecture, and pay strategies with AI adoption will be better positioned to translate innovation into growth.”
Aon said Philippine firms are showing stronger progress in data management, with 53% of surveyed organizations reporting high levels of HR data maturity.
The company attributed this in part to wider use of benchmarking tools such as its Radford McLagan database.
But that stronger data foundation has not yet translated into better employee engagement and compensation practices.
Only 20% of organizations said they have a clearly defined and well-understood employee value proposition, while just 13% reported having mature pay transparency practices.
More than half, or 55%, said they have not benchmarked their compensation strategies recently.
The study also found a mismatch between what employers think they are offering and what employees actually experience, particularly in wellness and benefits.
While 77% of organizations believe their wellbeing strategies meet workforce needs, only 25% said they have strong and visible leadership commitment to those initiatives.
A similar gap was seen in benefits: 71% of employees said they value customized benefits, but only 9% said they actually receive them.
“Organizations are making meaningful investments in benefits and employee experience, with an opportunity to further strengthen clarity, personalization, and communication,” said Cris Rosenthal.
“Closing the gap between employer intent and employee experience will require more integrated, data-driven, and personalized approaches to health and benefits, which will be key to improving engagement and workforce performance.”
