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AI is coming for our jobs. But can it replace us? A recent New York Times op-ed suggested that at a time when AI can perform many of our duties, it's on us to recognize "our core capabilities as humans."
There’s no doubt generative artificial intelligence will significantly impact workplaces as we know them. A 2023 Goldman Sachs report estimated that two-thirds of current jobs are exposed to some degree of AI automation, and generative AI could substitute up to one-fourth of current work entirely.
And most workplaces are welcoming the technology with open arms. According to a Reworked report, 83% of organizations polled said they’re using AI in their digital workplaces in some capacity — whether they’re just starting out or it’s embedded in multiple applications.
Yet, while AI is outpacing employees when it comes to certain skills (think translation or coding), there are some uniquely human traits it can’t capture. To safekeep your job, these are the traits you may want to focus and capitalize on.
Future-Proof Your Human Skills for the AI Era
According to the Reworked report, organizations are — for now — putting AI to use in areas like helping employees find content, automating simple tasks and reducing the pressure on help desks. As the technology gets more sophisticated and companies learn to trust it and apply it to other, bigger tasks, it’s likely to branch out into other areas.
Still, there are some skills that are considered “future-proofed” even as AI gets entrenched further into the workplace.
According to Tiffani Murray, digital HR transformation and technology leader with LinkedIn, and John Michael Scott, head of learning design at MasterClass at Work, some of the skills employees will need in the AI era include:
- Problem-solving
- Analytics
- Collaboration
- Communication
- Emotional intelligence
- Empathy
- Storytelling
- Resilience
- Client engagement
- System integration
- Partnership building
- People management
“As AI develops deep expertise in many different professional knowledge domains, I think we’ll see humans become less specialized and more ‘generalists,’” said Scott.
Generalists, he explained, develop a breadth of skills through an insatiable curiosity to learn and explore. “They are both agile and lateral thinkers, who can think analytically and creatively to solve complex problems.”
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New Skills Emerge, Old Skills Redefined
Even with generative AI, there are skills required for AI to perform in the most optimal way, said Murray.
She pointed to prompt engineering as an emerging skill — one that requires knowing how to use language in a way that results in AI providing a “fit-for-purpose” response or content.
“This will be the ‘new’ coding or development adjacent profession,” she said. “Just like software engineers of the past needed to know coding languages, professionals looking to oversee AI tools and technology will be required to leverage similar capabilities in how they think and complete daily tasks.”
In addition to new skills, some skills we already focus on will start to look different. Content management and writing, for instance, are skills Murray said may be redefined.
“With generative AI capable of taking large amounts of data and creating knowledge articles, training materials or presentations, ‘authoring’ may be reframed,” she explained. “There will be an opportunity for those with the right skills to take AI-generated content and make the edits and adjustments that provide the human touch or voice.”
Training will change too, she added. “While we may enter a time where training can be AI-generated, this will not completely eliminate the need for effective training professionals and instructional designers.”
Adapting L&D Programs for the AI Era
While some skills will remain future-proof, artificial intelligence in the workplace will still require changes to how organizations approach their learning and development programs.
“Like traditional formal education, L&D programs have focused on deepening domain expertise,” said Scott. “If AI increases the demand for more generalists, then I think it will create an interesting shift in how L&D programs develop skills.”
Programs might think about ways to help employees develop foundational skills across several departments or roles within the company, Scott added. One way we might teach breadth of skills is through increased use of storytelling as an instructional tool.
“Authentic human stories that represent the shared experience of being human will have new meaning in the age of AI, especially when it comes to teaching timeless human skills like empathy and resilience,” he said. “Hearing stories from diverse people from a variety of professional backgrounds will also help people think laterally across traditional knowledge domains, with fresh perspectives opening new ways of seeing problems and finding innovative solutions.”
Murray added that organizations should adjust their L&D programs to incorporate skills that pair with AI technology and solutions.
“Talent organizations should focus on training that builds and enhances critical thinking skills,” she said. “In parallel, there should be a focus on digital tools and solutions. Lastly, AI and technology innovations will create a need to understand how to collect, assess and leverage data for business needs. Training and career development plans promoted by learning and development functions should start to highlight these emerging skill sets.”
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Adding AI Ethics, Responsible Use to L&D Programs
Companies are already developing policies around the use of AI within the workplace. More than 40% of the organizations polled by Reworked said they have a formalized AI strategy with guidelines for employees — and 35% plan to implement one.
Still, said Scott, we need to think about AI ethics and responsible use in very fluid terms because the technology will move so fast.
“As an example, even if companies try to adopt policies around ‘disclosing whether or not you used AI,’ AI tools will become so entangled in our activities that disclosing that something was done with AI will be the equivalent of disclosing you used spell check on your email.”
Critical literacy skills, he added, will also be crucial and should be a focus for L&D around responsible AI use.
“People will need to be able to evaluate information, pressure-test the validity of that information, make connections or find inconsistencies in the information, and then present that information effectively to other humans,” he explained.
L&D could, therefore, play a role in helping employees become more data literate on the ways data powers AI models. And, looking ahead toward more immersive, virtual work environments, L&D may need to provide people with fundamental professional skills around how to present their avatar to others, how to communicate and collaborate in virtual worlds and how to act with civility and respect differences in virtual environments.
Cultivating Human Resilience in the AI-Dominated Future
With AI poised to make big, lasting changes to the workplace, we return to that one question that has been raised over and over again: can the technology replace human ingenuity?
As the New York Times op-ed writes, "If we answer that question from a place of fear about what’s left for people in the age of A.I., we can end up conceding a diminished view of human capability. Instead, it’s critical for us all to start from a place that imagines what’s possible for humans in the age of A.I."
While the rise of generative AI signals massive changes ahead, it also highlights the enduring value of human skills. And by embracing the symbiotic relationship between humans and AI, we can pave the way for a future where ingenuity, adaptability and ethical consideration drive progress.
