Should you reward employees for using AI?
As AI tools become more widespread, some businesses are putting their money where their strategy is and offering financial rewards to employees who use AI in their work.
The law firm Shoosmiths recently launched a £1 million bonus pot tied to staff submitting one million generative AI prompts. This follows Gilbert + Tobin one of Australia’s largest law firms offering a A$20,000 reward for the best generative AI ideas.
It’s a bold move. But is it effective or could it backfire? And what message does it send to employees?
We’ve taken a look at the pros and cons, including the very real human concerns around job security and why rewarding AI use can be a good move when done correctly.
Why rewarding AI use can work
Incentives are powerful. When people are recognised for trying something new, they’re more likely to overcome hesitation and engage fully.
- Incentives help overcome resistance. AI still feels unfamiliar to many and a reward can act as a nudge to get started.
- Encourages experimentation. Trial and error is how people learn to use AI tools well, especially when there’s often no one right way.
- Shows leadership commitment. A formal reward scheme signals that AI adoption is not optional and is important to the business.
- Creates momentum. Once a few people are actively using AI and being recognised for it, others often follow.
Are employees speeding up their own replacement?
In the comments section on one of the articles about Shoosmiths there were a number of posts criticising the policy, suggesting if employees engaged with it, they would be speeding up their own professional demise.
On the face of it, it’s a fair concern. But there’s a different way to look at it.
- Those who use AI effectively tend to become more valuable, not less. They position themselves as adaptable, strategic thinkers.
- AI rarely eliminates whole jobs. It changes roles, freeing people from repetitive work and allowing focus on what humans do best.
- Organisations that reward thoughtful, high-impact AI use are signalling investment in people, not just productivity.
If companies want employees to embrace AI, they need to be clear in their messaging about their objectives: AI is here to augment, not replace. Incentives only work when that promise feels credible.
But there are still pitfalls
Even with good intentions, poorly designed rewards can encourage the wrong behaviours.
- Quantity can override value. Counting prompts might lead to low-effort input, rather than thoughtful use.
- Systems can be gamed. If metrics are too simplistic, people will find shortcuts that don’t deliver any real benefit.
- Misses the point. Not every AI use case is equal. Rewarding use over outcomes risks diluting impact.
- Can create distrust. If employees sense that the real agenda is cost-cutting, not capability-building, incentives will fall flat.
What good looks like
The most effective incentives connect AI use to outcomes, not just activity. The goal is to recognise contribution, not just participation.
- Reward tangible improvements. Focus on AI use that saves time, generates creativity, or improves results.
- Align with business goals. Make sure the behaviours you reward are the ones that matter to customers and teams.
- Encourage collaboration. AI works best when people share what’s working. Recognise teams, not just individuals.
- Make it part of a bigger strategy. Rewards should support a broader culture shift, including training, forums, and peer learning.
The iwantmore.ai view
Our view is that rewarding people for using AI in a meaningful and measured way isn’t a gimmick or a shortcut, it’s a sign of intent by the business. It shows that trial and error and experimentation is welcome and that AI is a shared opportunity for the whole business, not a top-down directive.
Yes, there are risks. And yes, you can argue that fears about replacement are real. But those are exactly the reasons to build a reward system that reflects your values, respects your people, and reinforces the role of humans in the organisation.
‘Use AI well and you’ll be recognised for it’. That’s how you can turn people with basic curiosity about this new technology into fully fledged users and embed a culture of AI use.
We are iwantmore.ai – an AI consulting firm. We work with organisations to harness the power of AI across their whole business. If you want to explore how your business can use AI and automation contact us.
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