In November 2023, The U.K. hosted a global summit at Bletchley Park for artificial intelligence (AI) safety to assert its commitment to mitigating AI risks and ensuring the ethical and safe use of AI. Despite the mass adoption of AI-based tools, leaders are increasingly realizing the risks of AI, like misuse or loss of control. On the other hand, AI technology continues to advance the way people approach work, leaving more time for innovation. According to an Icertis survey, “The Future of Generative: AI: C-Suite Perspectives for 2024 and Beyond,” 80% of senior leaders acknowledge that generative AI will impact their bottom line in the next five years. A recent report by Skillsoft, “The C-Suite Perspective,” shows that workplace skills are lagging behind AI investments. In the report, 81% of executives ranked their teams’ skills in AI medium to low.
Companies investing in generative AI must educate their workforce on how to use it effectively and ethically. And this includes leadership, too. Learning professionals must emphasize the importance of continuous learning and development (L&D) to their people, and deliver the training they need to sustain a future-ready workforce. According to O’Reilly’s “Generative AI in the Enterprise” report, a growing number of businesses are increasing adoption and investment in generative AI. In fact, 67% of technology professionals surveyed reported that their companies are currently using generative AI, and over 38% report that their companies have been working with AI for less than a year.
Even with the U.K. government’s National AI Strategy, aimed to boost business use of AI and secure an AI ecosystem long term, a lack of AI-related training remains a major concern. In a Microsoft study, 69% of U.K. leaders surveyed believe their organization currently has a digital skills gap, and 44% fear the lack of digital skills will negatively impact their success in the next year. AI skills training can be pivotal to bridging the digital skills gap — and ensuring that companies can continue to invest in AI tools but with greater assurance that deployments will be ethical and safe. But what should this look like in practice? In this article, we’ll evaluate key insights on delivering AI training to your workforce.
AI Skills Training for a Future-Ready Workforce
Generative AI is expected to have wide-ranging effects on the workplace. To meet these future demands, employees need to invest time developing these skills so they can be prepared to take on new opportunities. Looking at IT teams specifically, the majority (82%) of employees want more AI-related L&D opportunities to help advance their current roles. In fact, they feel so passionately about it that more than two in five (43%) IT employees have sought external training opportunities over the last 12 months, and a similar amount (61%) are considering moving companies over the next 12 months if their employer fails to provide upskilling opportunities around generative AI.
A continuous learning journey.
If employers want to recruit and retain the best talent, they need to facilitate a continuous learning journey with L&D opportunities embedded throughout the employee lifecycle. A culture of continuous learning encourages employees and leaders to constantly update their skills and capabilities to meet future business demands, and take on new challenges, seek out opportunities for growth and share their knowledge with others.
Instead of having a one-off event, an effective way to deliver AI training is in the flow of work. Learning in the flow of work can allow employees to learn a new application for AI, apply it in their role, and reinforce it with practice on the job and with coaching/mentorship. The pace of AI adoption and advancement is ongoing, so L&D should be, too. L&D professionals should show their staff how to utilize these tools on the job, not only so they learn how its relevant to their specific role, but also to invest in their continuous growth and development that fits their workflow.
For example, L&D professionals can create an interactive video tutorial that walks employees through the AI tool and answers frequently asked questions (FAQs). Following this training, employees can meet with a coach or mentor who can reinforce the training and provide support where needed. L&D professionals can also create job aids, infographics and learning resources to answer any questions employees may have on the job. The learning should be accessible so employees can refer to it at any time during the workday. This can also demonstrate to employees the organization’s ethics and policies surrounding AI usage.
Conclusion
Successful integration of generative AI solutions may require more than just deploying cutting-edge tools. Instead, companies must provide a continuous learning approach that focuses on equipping employees with the skills and mindset needed to leverage these technologies effectively. On-the-job training can enable employees to absorb new information in digestible chunks that is both relevant and helpful for their individual job function.
In this digital era, L&D professionals must focus on preparing their workforce for the future. A continuous learning culture with learning embedded in the flow of work can equip your people with the skills they need to succeed. A highly skilled workforce is paramount to becoming a global leader in AI.
