What skills do we need to unleash the benefits AI?
What skills do we need to unleash the benefits AI?
In our rapidly evolving business landscape, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has come to reshape our ways of working. As AI systems continue to evolve and are integrated into various facets of our professional and personal lives, what skills are critical to harness the benefits of the synergy between human intelligence and AI capabilities? The ability to work effectively with AI is not merely a professional advantage but a prerequisite for navigating the complexities in an era dominated by revolutionary technological developments.
Leadership under pressure
In dialogues we have with leaders across a wide range of organsiations, through our executive search and leadership development services, it is clear that executives are under pressure to figure out how to successfully integrate AI solutions and help their teams figure out how to work with AI. What is not as clear, is the how and what skills to strengthen, to unlock the potential provided by building AI capabilities. Whilst technical skills receive a lot of attention and hype, it is worthwhile to remind ourselves of what will serve us well long-term and build resilience within our organisations.
The skills needed
In our experience, the skills to develop in the organisation, to better benefit from AI solutions are:
interpersonal skills and
subject knowledge.
Business success will still be dependent on your people’s ability to build workplace relationships. Going forward human skills is what companies will need. Companies that see their human capital as the key to business success, will be more likely to achieve financial performance.
For progress and business success we need to leverage the potential in people with strong interpersonal skills, that are able to effectively communicate, collaborate, and interact with others in a constructive manner. We also need to nurture the subject knowledge and the deep and comprehensive understanding in specific areas that people have. Understanding principles, concepts, theories, and practical applications of a particular domain, will help empower individuals and their organisations. Working with integrated AI capabilities, having interpersonal skills and expertise subject knowledge will allow us to assess and apply the output we get from AI more successfully.
The course of direction
“ Ensure that your team develops excellent interpersonal skills, with effective communication, ability to meaningfully engage with others, and foster team collaboration. ”
As a leader, you can ensure that you as well as your team develop excellent interpersonal skills, with effective communication, ability to meaningfully engage with others, and foster team collaboration. Further you can make sure that your team possesses and keeps nurturing the expertise and deep subject knowledge of your industry and their functional roles. As AI takes over more tasks, we are likely to see a loss of skills and knowledge. As an example, just as we accept that an autopilot may fly our planes, we still want the real pilot there to take control when anything unusual happens. We are not ready to completely surrender to an autopilot and we should maintain some essential skills, so that we can take control of the output we get from AI. Similarly, when it comes to healthcare for instance, we may use AI to inform our decision, but we are far from letting AI sign off on a diagnosis and a plan for future care. In basing our decisions on input from AI we will still need to consider the context of external factors such as labour issues, financial climate, geopolitics and individual circumstances. AI tools still lack the human ability to understand context, and this is what makes the need for human skills so essential.
“Keep nurturing the expertise and deep subject knowledge of your industry. As AI likely takes over more tasks, we need to ensure that we are able to place AI output into a context and assess that it makes sense for the business and brings about progress.”
Priorities that make a difference
“Curiosity is really a survival mechanism that will allow your team to keep up with a changing work environment, adapt to new ways of working and be able to take in new perspectives. ”
Working to future-proof your organisation, leaders must allow opportunity for learning. Your organisation will perhaps need time to learn and adjust to the new tools and solutions, and there may be a slowdown in productivity as a result, but it will only be temporary. You will stand to gain much more if you allow yourself to look to the horizon.
Encourage the skill of curiosity that will aid in building a culture of continuous learning within your organisation. Curiosity is really a survival mechanism that will allow your team to keep up with a changing work environment, adapt to new ways of working and be able to take in new perspectives.
Keep prioritising upskilling and reskilling your people. They are your pilots that will help you navigate turbulent times.
About Alumni Global
Leading in times of disruption requires strong leadership. Leaders need to evolve and change constantly in order to allow their organisations to be agile and responsive to disruptions. Alumni has more than 30 years’ experience in helping leaders to develop to be the best they can be. By embracing change, fostering a culture of innovation, and leading by example, leaders can help their organisations stay ahead of the curve and remain competitive in today's rapidly evolving business landscape.
In addition to working with top Executive Search, Interim Management and Recruitment, we are also experts in the field of Leadership Assessment and Development. We are happy to help if you are looking for ways to select and grow the leaders that will boost the success of your organisation.
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