THE STATE OF AUTOMATION IN PRODUCT MANAGEMENT 2024
AI tools are increasingly being used by product owners, but it’s not always clear how. Therefore, together with Productowner.nl, we asked more than 100 product owners about their experiences and use of AI. Curious about the results? Read it in our benchmark report!
More than 60% of Product Owners hand over repetitive tasks to AI
AI-powered solutions are most commonly employed for automating chores. 60.2% of respondents hand over necessary, but boring and time-consuming tasks to AI-powered solutions as common practice.
Reliance on artificial intelligence to handle routine work allows professionals to focus on more strategic and creative initiatives, such as risk management and predictive analysis.
“AI being great for repetitive tasks is nothing surprising. However, the result that half of Product Owners use AI to come up with their Product Vision and Product Strategy surprised me. This seems precisely the kind of creative and complex task you can’t offload to AI, except to maybe add some final polish.”
The harder the challenge, the less POs will trust AI to handle it
Product owners are less likely to hand over more challenging responsibilities to AI. Risk management and predictive analysis, for example, are the least automated areas, indicated in only 18.6% of responses.
Noteworthy usage has also been registered for backlog management (31.7%) and performance monitoring (25.4%).
“If the human side gets lost in the core tasks of a product owner, we not only lose creativity but also empathy and intuition—qualities that are essential for truly creating value for users and stakeholders. Technology can support us tremendously, but it’s the people who make the real difference.”
Jira, Confluence, and Miro are rated as the most popular tools
Jira takes the title of ‘most popular kid in school’, with no less than 82.1% of survey respondents naming the agile project management tool as one of their favorites.
Confluence and Miro follow, with adoption rates of 64.4% and 61%, highlighting their value in collaboration and documentation.
Confluence’s integration with Jira makes it a preferred choice for product owners focused on structured, process-driven tasks.
“The tools we adopt define our impact. AI and automation give us the freedom to focus on strategy and innovation, but success is not just in the technology – it’s in how we use it to elevate our decision-making, streamline workflows, and ultimately deliver greater value to our users and teams.”
Three quarters of Product Owners say they are more productive
Over 75% of professionals report increased productivity from AI and automation, citing streamlined workflows and less time on repetitive tasks.
Only 1.4% of respondents disagreed, highlighting a strong consensus on AI’s positive impact and its growing role in workplace efficiency across industries.
“More than 75% of product owners believe AI has greatly improved their productivity – that’s huge. I was not expecting such a big number. There’s a big promise in AI, and I believe we’re currently in an AI hype that’s similar to the dot-com bubble. I hope there will be no big crash, but I’m confident the best is yet to come.”
AI adoption among product owners is on the rise
A significant 73.1% of product owners have increased their use of AI solutions over the past year, reflecting a trend toward deeper AI integration in business operations.
Interestingly, one respondent (0.7%) reported a decrease in AI usage, while 21.4% maintained consistent levels.
Only a small minority (4.8%) reported no usage of AI at all, highlighting the widespread adoption of AI technologies in the modern business landscape.
78% of POs want more of their routine tasks to be automated
An overwhelming 78.6% of respondents want more of their non-core tasks to be automated, signaling a strong desire for further integration of automation in their workflows. This finding suggests that POs are eager to offload routine tasks to technology, allowing them to focus more on strategic and high-value activities.
In contrast, only 18.6% of respondents are satisfied with the current level of task automation, while a mere 2.8% would prefer less automation.
North American POs most positive about impact of AI
Americans and Canadians are the most positive about AI and automation, with 84% considering that AI has greatly improved overall productivity.
Product owners in the UK also view automation favorably, with 76.5% reporting positive effects, while 23.5% remain neutral.
In the EU, 70.3% recognize AI’s benefits, though this region has the only reported disagreement (2.3%) regarding AI’s productivity improvements.
“Not everyone will be enthusiastic right away. It’s crucial to take their concerns seriously and demonstrate how automation can free up time for more meaningful work. As a product owner, your role is to bridge the gap between resistance and collaboration, guiding everyone towards a shared goal.”
Regional differences in AI adoption per Product Management area
North American and European respondents both embrace AI for automating repetitive tasks, with only minimal variation in their answers (0.6%).
However, EU-based product owners focus more on using AI for backlog management (35.7%) while North American POs place greater emphasis on AI for performance monitoring (34%).
AI adoption trends among POs from the EU, North America & UK
Over three-quarters of European product owners reported increased AI usage in the past year, the highest among all studied regions, while around 18% maintained the same level.
In the US and Canada, 68.2% saw a rise in AI usage, a lower percentage compared to other regions. This could be due to already higher levels of AI adoption, but further research is needed to confirm this.
About the research
Our dataset contains responses from 145 product owners mostly active in the European Union (57.9%), USA & Canada (30.3%), and the United Kingdom (11.8%).
We have collected data from various age groups, with the most notable concentration in the 30 to 40 years old category.
Questions about the research?
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