Can employees learn to trust an AI boss?
Investment
Fortune

Can employees learn to trust an AI boss?

August 15, 2025
11:17 AM
6 min read
AI Enhanced
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AI agents are on the rise, but clear employee boundaries are emerging.

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6 min read

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investment

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Published

August 15, 2025

11:17 AM

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Fortune

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s·CFO DailyCan employees learn to trust an AI boss?By Sheryl EstradaBy Sheryl EstradaSenior Writer and author of CFO DailySheryl EstradaSenior Writer and author of CFO DailySheryl Estrada is a senior writer at Fortune, where she covers the corporate finance industry, Wall Street, and corporate leadership

She also CFO Daily.SEE FULL BIO AI agents are on the rise, but employee boundaries are emerging.Getty ImagesGood morning

AI agents are moted as the future of work, but while employees adapt to the idea, most aren’t comfortable reporting to a digital boss

More than 80% of organizations are expanding their use of AI agents, according to a new report by Fortune 500 company Workday (a CFO Daily sponsor)

Although 75% of workers are comfortable collaborating with AI agents, only 30% are comfortable being managed by one

The re finds that employees are happy to use AI agents as tools, but don’t view them as decision makers to whom they must answer

Nearly half (48%) of respondents are concerned that AI agents will increase pressure on employees to work faster

The findings are based on a survey of 2,950 full-time decision makers and software implementation leaders across North America, APAC, and EMEA

Trust appears to be the elephant in the room

More than 25% of respondents believe AI agents are overhyped. “Building trust means being intentional in how AI is used and keeping people at the center of every decision,” according to Kathy Pham, vice president of day

The re found that trust in agents rises with greater use: only 36% of those just exploring AI agents trust their organizations to use them responsibly, compared with 95% among those further along the adoption curve

Workday’s report highlights the importance of keeping human accountability at the center of AI decision-making

At the Fortune Brainstorm AI Singapore conference last month, Sapna Chadha, VP for Southeast Asia and South Asia Frontier at Google, advised that agentic platforms must ly communicate actions and request user apval at key decision points. “You wouldn’t want to have a system that can do this fully without a human in the loop,” Chadha said

Workday’s re also revealed that, with the industry facing a shortage of CPAs and finance fessionals, 76% of finance workers believe AI agents will help fill the gap, and only 12% are worried job loss

Top uses for AI agents in finance include forecasting and budgeting, financial reporting, and fraud detection

Gen Z is especially bullish—70% are interested in working for companies that invest in AI agents

The report recommends the ing for leaders: refine performance through human ingenuity, prioritize tools and training, and design roles that unlock purpose—not just ductivity

Will employees ever be comfortable calling an AI agent their boss? In my opinion, when it comes to AI, never say never

Sheryl Estradasheryl.estrada@fortune.comLeaderboardFortune 500 Power MovesAunoy Banerjee was appointed EVP and CFO of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (No. 341), effective Oct. 24

As previously announced, current CFO John Woods will depart the bank on Aug. 15

Chris Emerson, EVP and head of corporate planning and enterprise finance, will serve as CFO during the interim period

Banerjee joins Citizens from Barclays, where he currently serves as CFO of Barclays Bank PLC

Before Barclays, Banerjee served in finance and transformation roles at State Street for eight years, most recently as head of investments and third-party management and chair of State Street India

He also served as chief transformation officer

Banerjee previously spent 11 years at Citi in several roles, including unit CFO for Capital and Securities Services.Every Friday morning, the weekly Fortune 500 Power Moves column tracks Fortune 500 company C-suite shifts—see the most recent edition

More notable moves this week:Jonathan Hugh was appointed CFO of ALT5 Sigma Corporation (Nasdaq: ALTS), a fin and digital asset treasury company

Hugh brings over 25 years of experience

He previously served as CFO of digital asset firms GSR International Ltd, a global market maker, and Zodia Custody Ltd, a regulated institutional custodian.Matt Puckett was appointed CFO of Ibotta, Inc. (NYSE: IBTA), a digital motions network, effective Aug. 25

Most recently, Puckett served as CFO of VF Corporation, a global leader in branded lifestyle apparel and footwear

Over his 23-year tenure at VF, he held multiple operating CFO roles, including a four-year international assignment in Switzerland overseeing finance across Europe and Asia

Puckett will replace Valarie Sheppard, who has served as Ibotta’s interim CFO since March 14

Beck was appointed SVP, CFO, and treasurer of MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE: MSA), a vider of advanced safety ducts, effective Aug. 18

Beck most recently served as SVP and CFO for Terex Corp., a global industrial equipment manufacturer

Before that, she served as SVP and CFO for Nova Chemicals, Inc., a ducer of petrochemicals

Beck has also served as global VP of supply chain, operational excellence and quality for Joy Global, Inc.Priya Arora was appointed chief financial and operating officer of TravelNet Solutions, makers of Track perty Management Software

Most recently, Arora was CFO and COO at Fulcrum Collaborations, and previously held senior finance roles at Source Intelligence and Relativity, where she helped lead a major investment by Silver Lake

Arora began her career at McKinsey & Company and spent over a decade in M&A and finance on Wall Street

Big DealU.S. employers ject a median health care cost increase of 10% for 2026, according to a report released by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans

Employers cited four main factors contributing to the anticipated rise in medical plan costs for 2026: catastrophic claims (up from 20% last year); specialty and costly prescription drugs (up from 20% last year); utilization due to chronic health conditions (down from 16% last year); and medical vider costs (down from 18% last year). “Employers have indicated that cost-sharing, plan design, and purchasing and vider initiatives will be the most impactful niques to manage costs,” said Julie Stich, vice president of content at the International Foundation, in a statement

Going deeperHere are four Fortune weekend reads:"Amazon has dreamed of cracking Walmart’s lock on groceries for decades, with limited success

A massive same-day shopping expansion could change that" by Jason Del Rey"Tapestry takes an $855 million write-down on Kate Spade—and offers a reminder of how risky M&A is in the fashion world" by Phil Wahba "Ikea’s incoming CEO started his career as a store manager—he recalls working at 5 a.m. in the loading area and eating hotdogs with the founder" by Emma Burleigh "AI is creating billionaire’s at a record pace: There are already 498 AI unicorns—and they’re worth $2.7 trillion" by Jessica CoacciOverheard“We just figured out a number that we thought was enough money—to be able to buy a house and things that—and then we doubled it, and we gave the rest away.”—Brian O’Kelley told Fortune in an interview

O’Kelley banked less than $100 million after selling his $1.6 billion startup AppNexus to AT&T—and gave the rest to charity

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