“The use of our key tools will be a visible input into talent discussions,” an internal Accenture email seen by the Financial Times states. Since this month, the consulting giant has been tracking weekly login data of individual senior employees across its AI tools. Employees seeking promotion to leadership roles must demonstrate “regular adoption” of AI.

Accenture employs nearly 800,000 people worldwide and says it has trained more than 550,000 employees in generative AI. The monitored tools include AI Refinery, which Accenture says helps companies “turn raw AI technology into useful business solutions.” Employees in 12 European countries are exempt from the new policy, as are staff working on U.S. government contracts.

Resistance is emerging internally. Two people familiar with the changes described some of the tools as “broken slop generators.” One person said they would “quit immediately” if the rule applied to them.

The case highlights a broader dilemma: consulting firms that sell AI transformation to clients are struggling with internal adoption. Three senior executives at Big Four consulting firms told the Financial Times independently that it is harder to persuade senior managers and partners to use AI than junior staff. Older, more senior employees are “often less familiar with technology and more attached to established ways of working.”

According to the report, Accenture CEO Julie Sweet has already said that employees who cannot adapt to the AI era will have to leave the company. As part of a broad reorganization, Accenture has rebranded its workforce as “Reinventors” and last month acquired the London-based AI startup Faculty. Accenture’s share price has fallen 42% over the past 12 months, from a peak market capitalization of more than $260 billion to around $137 billion.