This is the year artificial intelligence (AI) moves from the fringes to the mainstream. While some companies have been using AI and machine learning technologies to increase operational performance for several years, fewer organizations have found ways to put AI-powered tools like ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot into production.
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You can expect that trend to change this year as more organizations explore and leverage generative AI, David Brodeur-Johnson, principal analyst at Forrester, told ZDNET.
“2024 will be the year when firms get serious about applying generative AI to their internal data sources and making information and insights available to their employees to help them do their jobs even better. good.
Research shows that AI spending in 2024 will more than double from levels seen in 2023, equating to an average of $2.5 million per company, according to a survey by Rackspace Technology and Amazon Web Services.
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But while employers are looking to introduce automation, many employees are concerned that the increased use of technologies such as generative artificial intelligence is far from good news.
Forrester research suggests that up to 86% of US workers fear that many people will lose their jobs to AI and automation, and almost a third (31%) believe this trend will emerge within two to the next five years.
Digital leaders responding to a global survey by recruiter Nash Squared came to similar conclusions, with 17% being the average percentage of jobs that digital leaders think will be lost to automation.
However, context is important. While there is an understandable focus on the fear that many roles could be automated, there is less analysis of how AI can increase worker efficiency and productivity and boost economic activity and growth.
Debra Bonomi, head of learning and development at e-commerce giant Rakuten, has initiated a program with ELB Learning in her organization to help staff qualify for AI growth — and she said employees in all areas of the business must embrace change.
“This is not something to be afraid of,” she told ZDNET. “The only thing we have to fear is if we continue to be the person who says, ‘Oh, I don’t need it. It won’t affect me”. These are the people whose work will be negatively affected.”
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Bonomi said her organization is committed to exploring the benefits of AI. The company has partnered with OpenAI to create an internal version of ChatGPT, and Rakuten employees can already see the benefits.
“This will not only make us more efficient, but it will change the way we work,” she said. “Not everyone is going to lose their job, but we may be doing very different tasks, roles and responsibilities in the future. There’s nothing to fear, as long as we’re OK with that change and continue to adapt along the way.”
That sentiment resonates with Bev White, CEO at recruiter Nash Squared, who told ZDNET it’s important not to jump to conclusions just yet, despite the likelihood that AI will lead to major changes in the job market.
She said the history of the introduction of automation — from the Industrial Revolution to our current digital age — has always been about the fear that jobs will be cut.
While AI and automation will lead to the end of some roles, the tools should also help change many jobs and work roles for the better.
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White refers to software development and cites research that suggests developers who use GitHub Copilot complete tasks 55% faster than developers who don’t.
The same research found that between 60% and 75% of developers report that using generative AI tools as part of their roles leaves them feeling more fulfilled, less frustrated when coding and able to focus on work more satisfactory.
“Evolving technology is speeding things up,” White said. “It’s taking out human processes — which are repetitive and not necessarily interesting to a human being — and replacing them with automated ways of doing things faster.”
Even with increased levels of automation, companies will still need a human in the loop to ensure processes are completed effectively, such as handling more complex customer service requests.
White said that the tactical deployment of AI and automation should mean that professionals will have a greater opportunity to focus on crucial areas of the business.
“People will be able to do things, not only faster, but also cheaper, and will spend more time on the human elements — thinking time, decision time — that are essential to the processes of added value.”
Nigel Richardson, SVP & CIO Europe at PepsiCo, is another business leader who said AI will increase worker efficiency and productivity.
“Generative AI will be a great complement to human work rather than completely replacing it,” he said.
“Of course, some elements of jobs will be replaced. But I think history shows that when you have disruptive technologies, they usually create more jobs than they destroy.”
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Richardson told ZDNET that the professionals who will benefit from the rise of AI are likely to be those who embrace the change.
“You have to have a mindset of being a lifelong learner,” he said. “The people I see successful are always open to learning new things. You are wrong if you learn one thing and think it will last you for your career.”
The key message from business leaders is that professionals need to shift their feelings about AI from fear to trust.
Ben Elms, chief revenue officer at internet connectivity specialist Expereo, told ZDNET that almost every implementation of technological innovation comes with a side order of fear.
“If you approach AI as, ‘it’s going to change the world and put people out of work,’ well, it’s not — it’s going to create even more opportunities and jobs,” he said.
Elms said the key to success is finding the right use cases. He gave an example from his company, which is based on solving customer service requests, many of which require a standard response.
“These are very repetitive tasks,” he said. “These requests are text-based and many of the responses can be effectively serviced by AI quickly. This capability means that people can step out of the service function, I can give them more training and they can to be frontline people, enhancing the customer experience.
Also: 5 ways to prepare for the impact of generative AI on the IT profession
Hari Ramamurthy, chief technology officer at The Home Depot, is another business leader who said AI and automation can help workers focus on more interesting work.
“We definitely see it as something that will improve the productivity of our associates and help them with the tedious, monotonous aspects of what they’re working on.”
Ramamurthy recently explained to me how the retail giant has developed a machine learning-powered app called Sidekick to boost staff productivity.
The app, which also uses computer vision, helps store staff identify items in hard-to-find places.
“It was painful to try and search for some of our products upstairs. Sometimes, an item isn’t exactly where you expect it to be,” he said.
“But technologies like computer vision help staff find those products more easily. And that’s the kind of mindset we have in terms of how we can upskill our associates by improving their productivity so they can serve customers better.”
A recent research report from Goldman Sachs suggests that the average productivity increase from companies that have been early adopters of generative AI is around 25%.
These AI-enabled improvements can offer staff at public organizations a way to cut back on the burden of repetitive work and focus on potentially life-changing activities.
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Michelle Smith, program manager at Barnardo’s, a UK charity that supports more than 370,000 children, young people, parents and carers, said smart use of AI could help people focus on frontline services the first ones that matter most.
“Relationships make us run,” she told ZDNET. “It’s where people get the most joy out of work and it’s what motivates people. We work for a purpose. If you’re stuck in front of a screen too much and you don’t interact with your colleagues, it becomes painful.”
Smith said generative AI tools could help the charity cut administrative ties and give people more time to think, collaborate and make decisions.
“I’ve worked in operational roles for years and there are a lot of things where I think, ‘Oh, I’d rather talk to a person than go through the tedious process of checking documents,'” she said.
“It would be great if we could free people from processes and allow them to be creative in their roles by taking advantage of emerging technology. I’m keen for my colleagues who are still in operational roles to they are given the opportunity to develop new skills”.
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