The Predictive Index (PI), the behavioral intelligence platform used to hire top performers and develop effective managers, has released findings from its 2026 AI and People Leadership Survey — and the results reveal a striking gap between how confident leaders are in their managers and how those managers actually feel. While 74% of CEOs and business leaders say their managers are "very confident" handling tough people conversations on their own, managers themselves report needing more guidance, structure and context, and many are quietly turning to generic public AI tools to close that distance.

The disconnect matters because managers appear to be more aware of where they need support than their leaders are. Only 20% of managers say they prefer to prepare for a difficult conversation entirely on their own, without a framework, a coaching guide or input from HR. Nearly half — 42% — say they know what they want to say but struggle with how to say it.

Where Managers Say They Struggle Most

The survey surfaced clear blind spots. Managers ranked delivering criticism constructively (22.8%), anticipating an employee's reaction (19.5%) and staying objective (14.3%) as their toughest challenges. Notably, just 7% of leaders identify objectivity as a top challenge for their managers — a mismatch that underscores how differently the two groups see the same problem.

To bridge these gaps, managers are increasingly reaching for AI. Seventy-two percent say public AI tools are useful for preparing for people-related conversations, and 44% admit to entering employee names or performance details into those tools. Yet only 45% of organizations have a formal written policy governing managers' use of AI in people matters — even though 68% of leaders say they're concerned about employee information being fed into public AI systems.

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Why Generic AI Advice Falls Short

PI researchers note the same dynamic surfaces anywhere managers turn to AI for help with a person rather than a task — hiring, onboarding, 1:1s and promotions. In these moments, generic tools trained on broad patterns rather than the specific individual tend to produce the same advice for every manager who asks. What managers actually want is guidance tailored to the specific employee: 92% of leaders say it's essential or very important that managers adapt feedback to how each person receives and processes it, and 76% of managers say behaviorally tailored insights would help them prepare.

The findings echo broader workforce trends. A Gartner HR survey released this spring found that just 39% of employees agree their manager gives clear developmental feedback, even as 47% of managers report working harder than they did a year ago. Building on more than 70 years of validated behavioral science, PI says it is exploring new ways to bring personalized behavioral insights into the moments that matter most — with 78% of leaders saying they would trust AI coaching more if it incorporated validated behavioral data about the employee.