From AI Readiness to Human Readiness: A Human-Centered Framework for AI Adoption in SMEs

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming organizations across all sectors, yet many AI initiatives fail despite significant technological investments. Existing research has primarily explained AI adoption through technological, organizational, and strategic readiness, while the preparedness of individuals to work with AI remains insufficiently conceptualized. This limitation is particularly relevant for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), where successful AI adoption depends heavily on employees’ willingness and ability to collaborate with intelligent systems. This paper introduces the concept of Human Readiness for AI Adoption as a human-centered perspective on AI implementation in SMEs. Human readiness is conceptualized as the degree to which individuals are cognitively, psychologically, and ethically prepared to understand, evaluate, accept, use, and responsibly collaborate with AI systems. Building on the literature on organizational readiness, AI readiness, and human-centered AI, the paper proposes a conceptual framework that positions human readiness as a prerequisite for trust in AI, successful human–AI collaboration, and sustainable AI adoption. The proposed framework extends existing AI adoption research by shifting the focus from technological capability to human preparedness. It contributes to the emerging discourse on human-centered AI while providing managers with a conceptual foundation for designing AI implementation strategies that foster trust, transparency, employee participation, and continuous learning. Finally, directions for future empirical validation of the proposed framework are discussed.