Feature
A lot is being written today about what artificial intelligence can do for business, but it's good to remember that companies have been using AI in the workplace for years now. Just last year, Deloitte found 94% of business leaders globally said AI solutions have become important or very important to their organizational success.
What's different now is the emergence of generative artificial intelligence (GAI), a branch of AI that falls under the broader scope of machine learning and has the ability to identify patterns and continuously learn.
According to a 2023 report from Goldman Sachs, if generative AI reaches its promised potential, nearly 66% of jobs in the US and Europe are exposed to some degree of AI automation — and up to 25% of jobs could be fully automated. It estimates that this could therefore affect some 300 million full-time jobs worldwide.
If these predictions are accurate, this will mean significant upheaval for both companies and their employees. To prepare for what’s to come, leaders need to get ahead of the disruption and prepare their organizations to manage the change as seamlessly as possible.
The Need for a Tech-Savvy Workforce
Tech savviness means different things for different organizations. A technology expert at IBM may have a very different profile than the chief technology officer at an accounting firm.
According to Claire Fletcher, a digital workplace consultant at Splendid Consulting, that’s because the need to use the latest technology varies greatly depending on the industry you’re in — and the goals of the organization. Some teams have early adopters of AI tools, while others don’t know what the technology is and don’t care to find out, she said.
But with the increasing accessibility of some of this new technology, companies should at least ensure that their team members are not just aware of the capabilities emerging but also their downsides. Take generative AI, for example. Many workers are already using tools like ChatGPT to research topics, write content, brainstorm ideas and more. But the technology comes with important limitations — such as confidently generating misinformation — and companies must implement guardrails for using it.
“That means it's important for everyone to at least understand the basics — where they might see AI tools being used, dos and don'ts and where to get guidance if they have questions,” she said. “No one wants to be caught out like the lawyer citing non-existent cases.”
Here are some steps to building tech savviness within the organization and preparing for the forecasted disruption ahead.
1. Establish a Basic Understanding
According to Jill Goldstein, global managing partner for talent transformation at IBM, the need for employees to gain a basic understanding of AI and its capabilities is so they can be both critical thinkers and users of the technology.
“Employees should be empowered to ask tough questions like what data was this model trained on? How did this model come to this prediction? How accurate is this model? Who’s accountable for this model? Were the model’s outputs audited for bias?”
When using in-house or vendor tools, the company should have this information readily available. But other solutions don’t always offer up these details. ChatGPT, for example, was trained off a large set of text from the internet, but no more specifics are known. So determining accuracy when using the tool comes down to manual fact-checking on the part of the user.
To promote a better understanding of AI — or other technologies — within the organization, leaders might want to invest in workshops, webinars or training programs to elucidate the fundamental principles and applications of the tool. Companies should also foster a safe and encouraging environment where employees feel comfortable posing questions and engaging in discussions.
Related Article: Is It Too Early for HR Solutions Providers to Jump on the AI Train?
2. Put Skills at the Center of the Strategy
The rise of generative AI has brought up a lot of new questions about how the technology will impact the workforce, said Goldstein. One way she’s seen leaders address this is by putting skills at the center of their workforce strategy.
“That starts with a focus on increasing the overall general technical acumen of the workforce,” she explained. “As AI becomes more pervasive, the critical roles and skills needed in the enterprise will change, and people’s time will be focused on higher-level strategic work.”
Companies need to prepare their workforces for these new applications of AI. Which means, said Goldstein, combining human expertise and knowledge of complex business processes with AI tools to accomplish goals faster than ever before.
“It also means providing people with the relevant skills to work creatively and responsibly with AI. That doesn’t mean every employee will have to learn how to code, but most will have to familiarize themselves with new AI solutions.”
Related Article: 3 Ways to Prepare Your People for the Next Disruption
3. Set Guardrails, Update Governance
Many of the people interested in generative AI are already experimenting with it, said Fletcher, so now is the time to set guardrails and update your governance.
“For example, if employees are using generative AI to brainstorm ideas or create draft content, how can you ensure they're not sharing proprietary information when they create prompts?”
Your IT and information security policies might already cover these use cases implicitly, but it’s important to update them with clear examples of how they apply to AI tools, Fletcher said.
Moreover, it's critical to take a proactive rather than reactive approach when it comes to AI governance. Organizational leaders should stay abreast of the rapidly evolving AI landscape to anticipate potential risks and challenges and formulate strategies to mitigate them.
Related Article: Why Your Workplace Needs a Generative AI Use Policy
4. Take a User-Centric Approach
People will do what’s easy more often than they do what’s right, said Goldstein. “So, it’s very powerful to take a design-first and user-centric approach when you transition to AI-powered tools and processes.”
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For instance, when redesigning a process to incorporate artificial intelligence, “bring the employee who will use it into that design process and get their insights on what’s most helpful, where their pain points are, what questions they have and so on,” she said.
Then, repeat this process at various points of the process, so employees can interact with prototypes and share more feedback. “This will help ensure the AI tool or process is tailored to their needs and improve the adoption rate.”
Related Article: Implementing a New Tool? Don't Forget Usability Testing
5. Promote a Culture of Learning
HR leaders will play a critical role in managing the change prompted by AI adoption, said Goldstein. But even deeper than that, they may even use artificial intelligence themselves for things like personalizing learning at scale and making content available in a variety of digital modalities.
The crux, however, is cultivating an organizational culture around continuous learning, so that no matter if it’s AI disruption or something else, your workforce is resilient and ready, Goldstein said.
Leaders can instigate a culture of collaborative learning as well, reinforcing the idea that every employee has a role in demystifying AI. By encouraging peer-to-peer knowledge sharing, case study discussions and mentorship programs, organizations can help ensure learning becomes a shared responsibility and experience.
Related Article: AI Is Changing Learning & Development. Here's How
Digital Leadership in an AI-driven World
Artificial intelligence has created exciting opportunities for business — and advancements are pushing the potential even further than we had imagined just a couple of years ago. But it is also creating complex obstacles in the process.
Ultimately, business leaders must shoulder the responsibility for driving trust and transparency in the age of AI, said Goldstein. “It will become part of every leader’s responsibility to understand core principles for ethical AI and AI governance, and to advocate for these principles wherever AI shows up in the enterprise.
In addition, she said, business leaders in every industry are being called to face the question: what cultural implications will AI have on my organization?
In the journey toward AI adoption, leaders must become the torchbearers, navigating their organizations through this ongoing labyrinth. Equipped with a solid understanding of AI, its implications and its capabilities, they should be able to anticipate organizational needs and navigate disruption.
