Most of us already rely on digital tools in our personal lives that handle routine tasks smoothly. They help us source information, sort out our finances, entertain us, track our fitness and help us travel.
We see what these tools can do in our personal lives, but in the workplace it still takes too much effort to get simple tasks done. Closing that gap is one of the biggest productivity gains for any organisation. An agent-driven business that pairs people with digital tools to take care of the routine work, so teams can focus on decisions, relationships and the problems that require a human’s judgement.
Across Africa, many organisations are trying to grow while working with tight budgets, stretched teams and a young workforce coming into the market. Technology can ease some of that pressure, but only when it changes work flows instead of being treated as another quick software update.
Three things make the biggest difference: steering employees into work that actually needs their judgement, making sure these tools are easy for everyone to use, and building on dependable data so the system can be introduced gradually and confidently.
1. Lift your people into higher-value work
Consider that the tech has evolved beyond basic tasks. The real value lies in agents handling both the busy work — like gathering information, running approvals, and autonomously completing post-work summaries — and executing and supporting complex, strategic tasks. By augmenting our capabilities and focusing on the work that matters, AI empowers humans to move faster, think deeper, and connect more meaningfully, ensuring the future of work is profoundly human.
Africa needs this upskilling. The latest data shows AI and Big Data are among the fastest-growing competencies worldwide, as highlighted in the WEF’s Future of Jobs Report 2025. Yet the continent’s talent pipeline is struggling to keep up. The African Development Bank’s 2024 African Economic Outlook warns that digital-skills shortages are already slowing innovation and project delivery across the continent.
The corporate response to the future of work moves beyond external hiring by embracing the agentic enterprise, founded on the profound choice that we are going to be in command of AI, ensuring it is built to elevate people. Organisations who incentivise their employees to be in the driver seat of redesigning their roles to foster a true partnership where people and agents collaborate to drive value.
2. Make digital assistance available to everyone
Agentic assistance cannot only be the preserve of large corporations with dedicated IT teams. Africa’s smaller businesses, which drive the economy, employ millions, also need access to reliable digital support if they are to stay competitive. Many of these companies face real barriers: limited capital, inconsistent connectivity and small, overwhelmed teams.
To solve this, digital agents must be simple to set up and easy to guide. People should be able to create and adjust them using clear instructions. A sales manager should be able to build an assistant that prepares reports. A warehouse supervisor should be able to set up a tool that matches stock levels to delivery schedules.
It’s still up to companies to set the boundaries: what the tool may handle, what stays with a person, and where the line is. That includes deciding what it can access, keeping a record of its activity and making sure it follows the same rules as everyone else.
With those basics in place, the technology becomes far more useful. Smaller organisations, in particular, can move faster, cut down admin and improve service without needing a big team behind them.
3. Build trust through steady, agentic change
An agentic approach only works if the information supporting it is reliable. A digital assistant can’t generate reliable outcomes if the data it relies on is outdated or inconsistent, so the first step is simply getting your information in order. Clear, accurate data gives the assistant the context it needs to support people properly.
The next step is patience. Agentic tools shouldn’t be switched on everywhere at once. Start with one job, give the assistant responsibility for it, see how it performs and adjust as you go. When it proves itself, widen the scope. This gives the organisation time to learn what the tool can do and prevents unnecessary disruption.
People also need time to get used to working with these assistants. In most teams, employees end up adapting how the tools behave, by correcting them, showing them how specific tasks are done, and helping them settle into the workflow. It then becomes a partnership, not a human replacement.
As businesses are under pressure to deliver more with limited resources, an agentic model can help ease the burden. When routine work is handled consistently by a digital assistant, teams gain the time and focus to deal with the issues that require judgment, empathy and local knowledge.
Nothing dramatic is required: just good data, careful introduction and a workforce that understands how to guide the tools. With those factors in place, companies can work faster, reduce avoidable errors and give people room to do the work that strengthens relationships and supports long-term growth.
Linda Saunders, Country Manager & Senior Director Solution Engineering, Africa, Salesforce