In a time where there is a natural fear around AI, from concerns that AI could make specific roles obsolete to larger, global security risks, it is easy to overlook the positive impact that AI can have on our lives and especially the workplace and explore the positive impact of AI on the workplace.
Whether we like it or not, artificial intelligence is a central part of our lives; which household has never used Google, Alexa, Siri or ChatGPT? AI is part of our home and work lives, so maybe it is time to focus on exactly what it can do for us.
AI can help businesses to work smarter – not harder
AI might be “taking over” some roles, but these tend to be the most repetitive and menial tasks. Rather than replacing humans, AI has the potential to increase productivity by taking care of repetitive tasks across an organization, leaving humans to do the thinking and problem-solving. This will not only boost creativity but it will improve output, too. Just take a look at chatbots; once a novelty, chatbots are now used universally, from e-commerce to online banking and healthcare to triage a query and get the customer or patient to the right person.
The use of chatbots doesn’t only streamline the process of getting a customer from call/email/query to the right salesperson/account manager/educational professional, with the margin for human error removed it provides a unified approach meaning that consumers have a consistent and fair user journey.
AI can help organizations to use data to their advantage
Organizational success relies on data, and the process of gathering, processing, storing and interpreting that data is more than a handful of fulltime jobs. AI can help organizations to process data, providing valuable insights to help boost business.
Let’s use the chatbot example: Chatbots can record information and provide data on the early stages of interaction between client and the organization, feeding back on changes in consumer patterns, identifying trends, and predicting core activities that could improve performance and profitability.
AI can boost sustainability
By processing huge volumes of data, AI doesn’t just help to streamline an organization’s activities, it can help to identify energy efficient processes, thereby contributing to the reduction of carbon emissions as well as minimizing waste. AI can also be used to analyse past incidents and, based on information it is provided, predict potential hazards with much higher accuracy than multi-tasking humans.
AI can improve employee and workplace safety
Nobody enjoys a risk assessment, but they are a vital part of governance, helping to protect employees and service users. AI has the potential to reduce risk by providing a full risk analysis of various scenarios to identify hazards and predict the failure of equipment before they pose a serious risk, thereby enabling organizations to be proactive in the prevention of accidents.
AI also has the capacity to take on dangerous tasks on employees’ behalf, with drones and robots powered by AI performing high risk activities to preserve human life.
AI can boost the economy
According to the McKinsey Global Institute, based on the premise that AI can lead to a 1.2% rise in global GDP per year. By 2030, it will have bolstered global economic output by $13trillion. However, the same report points out that this rise of AI will also make around 375 million jobs obsolete, forcing employees to retrain in order to secure future employment.
AI might make some jobs obsolete – but it will create even more jobs
Via AI, organizations will be able to expand more easily into new markets, create new products, and optimize customer experience, leading to the creation of new roles. According to Motion Recruitment’s IT Salary Guide, by 2025 we will see 149 million new jobs in tech, with 20 million of those in data analysis, machine learning, and AI. It is not surprising, then, that data analytics is one of the jobs with the biggest skills gap.
AI can be utilized for skill augmentation
While it is beyond doubt that AI may replace some jobs, for more complex roles where human problem-solving, empathy and creativity are concerned, AI in its current form can’t replace human interaction. It does, however, have the potential to enhance human skills. By taking advantage of AI-powered learning, organizations can invest in their talent, upskilling staff through tailored training experiences to keep their skills relevant in a fluctuating employment market and, of course, processing any associated data to identify significant talent.
The real impact of AI on employees…
While AI will undoubtedly see some jobs lose relevance, it will also open up a world of opportunity for those willing to upskill accordingly. For employees concerned about the future of their role as AI continues to expand, it is advisable to identify new opportunities now and make every effort to bolster skills so that you remain a valued and indispensable employee throughout this time of transition.
…and organizations
For many organizations, AI isn’t an option: in order to survive, it is essential that you investigate what AI can do for you and your customers, before embracing it. However, in order to successfully implement AI within your processes it is important that you use a positive approach, which includes careful planning and structured employee communication and training opportunities, before integrating it responsibly and considerately.
A gentle process
The key to thoughtful integration is achieving the balance between gaining the efficiency of automation, without putting any jobs at risk. When you reach the point at which your team members can clearly see the benefits for them in terms of output without posing a risk to their livelihood, organizations should be able to implement an upskilling programme with employee buy-in and collaboration, resulting in optimal success.
