EHS, ESG Professionals Laying Foundation for AI Deployment

A new Wolters Kluwer survey found that 23% of respondents cited data quality as the biggest challenge to AI deployments.

Nov. 6, 2025

2 min read

EHS, ESG Professionals Laying Foundation for AI Deployment

A poll of 60 environment, health and safety (EHS), operational risk management (ORM) and environmental, social and governance (ESG) professionals found that 41% of respondents said their organizations are just beginning to explore AI use cases.

While 3% are scaling AI across multiple EHS/ESG processes, 2% report that AI is already embedded and delivering measurable value.

The poll was conducted by Wolters Kluwer at a recent conference. The firm says that these results show companies are actively exploring high-impact use cases and laying the foundation for responsible, scalable AI deployment.

Additional survey findings from the poll include:

Top challenges to AI deployment

23% of respondents cited data quality as the biggest challenge to AI deployment.
18% cited change management and adoption.
12% cited resource constraints.
Only 1% identified regulatory complexity, suggesting that internal operational hurdles may be more pressing than external compliance pressures.

Top AI use cases prioritized by EHS and ESG leaders

19% selected automating routine processes.
17% chose making data easier to find and use in decision-making.
15% prioritized predictive forecasting to anticipate risks and trends.
These responses reflect a growing desire to use AI to streamline operations and enhance decision-making, especially in data-intensive environments.

Leading obstacles to scaling AI

43% cited data quality and integration across sites and systems as the biggest barrier to scaling AI.
19% pointed to a lack of internal skills and AI literacy.
18% mentioned change management and frontline adoption.
17% identified unclear ROI or business case.
13% cited ethical, regulatory, or security concerns.

Safeguards and governance priorities