Are you using AI?
Are you a leader who is encouraging your staff to use AI?
This last week I have delivered a speech, conversed in multiple conversations, and listened to other speak, about the AI disruption.
Everyone is talking about it.
Everyone is saying we need to know how to use it and know the limitations (hello hands with six fingers from Midjourney)
A lot of people are worried they are going to loose their jobs. They're not wrong. OpenAI and the University of Pennsylvania's recent study predicts that 80% of today’s jobs are likely to be affected by Generative AI.
The advice?
If you're not using it in your profession - it won't be AI that wholly takes your job, it will be the person who does know how to use it that will.
But what if you love your job?
What if you're a photographer who is really good at curating visually pleasing images? What if you're a content writer who can craft beautifully written passages that make people ponder and feel? What if you have expertise and you really enjoy your craft? .... and you don't want to become an administrative prompter? Plugging text in to a tool to create "the same as you do" in just 10 minutes. Ouch.
Currently many leaders and organisations are directing their team members to use these tools to deliver work. Their motivations vary from expediting tasks, to gaining insights, to ideating quickly, and to simply keep up with technology. They're all worthy motivations.
The gap?
People are feeling displaced already.
As Joanna Maciejewska famously said she wants "AI to do my laundry and dishes so that I can do art and writing". People enjoy their craft.
So as leaders what can you do to realise the benefits of these tools, and keep your staff engaged in their craft?
Look at the way your working and proactively manage the change.
My top four tips to help you do this:
1. Highlight the value that your human team members bring.
For example your photographer. They're brilliant at seeing and curating beauty. This is why you choose them to curate imagery with Midjourney. Also create opportunities for them to still get on the camera and capture the real picture - maybe after they've used the tool to inspire the shot.
2. Play with the technology yourself - if you know the limitations of the tool you will be able to identify when a human or the tool is best placed to do the work.
3. Check in with your staff, ask them how they're feeling about these changes and proactively manage their concerns.
4. Engage an Organisational Development Specialist (hi, that's me) to enable your organisation to realise the benefits of your new tech without loosing the human benefits of your people.
If you're in the process of adopting new technology and you're not transforming the way you work - let's talk.
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