The inaugural Asia & Emerging Markets Edition of the 'Future of Professionals Report' by Thomson Reuters is out and offers a rich new breadth of insight into the future of the professional landscape across pivotal sectors such as legal, risk, compliance, tax and global trade. Thomson Reuters undertook a comprehensive regional survey compiling data from 1,000 professionals to create an enlightening report where the impact of AI is a critical theme.

The results indicate an optimistic outlook on the transformative potential of AI in professional sectors, with 64% predicting its high-impact role within their professions in the next five years. An overwhelming 89% of respondents anticipate AI will stimulate the creation of novel professional careers, whilst 79% expect a surge in work performed by individuals lacking traditional legal or tax qualifications in the upcoming five years.

In the report, Jackie Rhodes, Managing Director- Asia & Emerging Markets, Thomson Reuters, shared her personal belief in the potential of AI for the professional workforce, stating, "AI is clearly a once-in-a-career opportunity impacting the growth of firms and companies around the world. I personally believe that AI will benefit the future of the workforce." Rhodes also sees the implementation of AI as a tool to confront professional anxieties, indicating that AI can be utilised to mitigate "the biggest fears of employees."

Key aims for the surveyed professionals include operational efficiency improvement (54%), enhancement of equitable access to truth, justice, and transparency (47%), continuous knowledge and skills development (47%) and providing high-quality advice to clients (47%).

Interestingly, 31% of the professionals are hoping AI will significantly liberate their time for more complex tasks. This optimism around AI’s capabilities was reflected in 60% of respondents recognising the value of empathy in their roles and identifying that having the opportunity to help others had the most positive impact on their working experience.

The survey did, however, reveal that 24% of professionals perceived their work's overall impact on their mental health and wellbeing as either 'moderately negative' or 'strongly negative'. Top concerns contributing to workplace stress included fear of making errors, missing crucial details, and insecurity in their job or financial stability. The realised potential of AI technology could alleviate these negative aspects by enhancing accuracy, decreasing the likelihood of errors, and automating menial administrative tasks.

The methodology of the Future of Professionals Report - Asia & Emerging Markets Edition consisted of quantitative insights gathered from a survey of 1,000 professionals spread across Asia and emerging markets, including Australia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, the Middle East & North Africa, and Singapore. iResearch Services conducted the survey on behalf of Thomson Reuters between December 2023 and February 2024.