Is AI Really Disrupting the Way We Live and Work?

As artificial intelligence becomes more and more integrated into our workplace and daily life, it will fundamentally disrupt the way we live and work. A recent survey of 5,700 Harvard Business School alumni found that even in the elite group, 52% believe that the number of employees in general companies will decrease in the three years from now.

The advent of artificial intelligence has created new and unique challenges for business leaders. They need to continue their financial performance while making significant investments in recruitment, workforce training, and new technologies to increase productivity. These seemingly competitive business goals can lead to difficult decisions for leaders.

In this context, the empirical research recently conducted by the team at the MIT-IBM Watson AI Lab has provided us with a new perspective, letting people understand how work is changing in the face of artificial intelligence. The study found that artificial intelligence can create a new path for leaders who are committed to adjusting labour and capital redistribution while achieving profitability.

Artificial intelligence is a new technology that predicts future needs and advises users. For business leaders, artificial intelligence may improve employee productivity by taking on management tasks, providing better pricing recommendations to sellers, and simplifying the recruitment process.

For business leaders who are leading the AI ​​workforce transformation, the key to unlocking productive potential while achieving business goals lies in three strategies: rebalancing resources, redistributing labour investment, and advancing education and lifelong learning on a larger scale New model.

Solution 1: Reallocate Capital Resources

Image Source: Photo by Diane Helentjaris on Unsplash

Artificial intelligence will change jobs by rebalancing and reorganizing careers. Although career change is slow, years or even decades, the reorganization of tasks is much faster.

Work is essentially a collection of tasks. When workers work in all walks of life, it is what they do that creates value. As technology advances, some existing tasks will be replaced by artificial intelligence and machine learning.

But research shows that only 2.5% of jobs include tasks suitable for a high proportion of machine learning, including guides, lobby attendants, and ticket inspectors because the main task of this type of job is to verify ticket credentials and only allow authorized people.

Most tasks will still be done by humans, whether they are artisans like plumbers, electricians, and carpenters, or those who need industry knowledge for design or analysis. New tasks will emerge, requiring workers to exercise new skills.

As this shift occurs, business leaders will need to reallocate capital accordingly. Widespread adoption of artificial intelligence may require additional R & D expenditures and temporarily eliminate the value that employees create from work.

More broadly, wages and other forms of compensation need to reflect changes in the value of tasks across the entire organizational structure. Studies have shown that as technology reduces the cost of certain tasks (because they can be partially performed by artificial intelligence), the value that workers bring to the remaining tasks also increases. For example, in high-paying business and finance industries, the salary for jobs requiring industry knowledge increased by an average of more than $ 6,000 between 2010 and 2017. By comparison, during this period, the average pay for manufacturing and production tasks fell by more than $ 5,000. As artificial intelligence continues to reshape its work, business leaders who notice this shift will stand out.

Solution 2: Invest in Workforce Training

Today's companies are not only responsible for achieving shareholder value, but also actively influence stakeholders such as customers, suppliers, communities, and employees. In addition, investment in talent and other stakeholders is increasingly critical to achieving long-term financial performance. These expectations are reflected in certain statements about corporate governance, emphasizing the company's obligation to train and educate employees in support of training and education that helps develop new skills for a rapidly changing world.

According to a recent study, within the next three years, millions of workers will need to undergo retraining or remodeling due to artificial intelligence.

As the value of intelligence, skills, insight, and other unique attributes rises, executives and managers also need to prepare employees for the future by developing and improving interpersonal skills such as judgment, creativity, and communication skills.

Solution 3: Learn for the Future Today

As artificial intelligence expands within and across industries, innovators and business leaders have a responsibility to understand not only its impact on internal business processes but also its impact on society.

In addition to investing in retraining within the organization, managers should work with policymakers and other stakeholders to support education and vocational training and encourage investment in training and reeducation programs for all.

Studies have shown that technology affects the demand and income potential of middle-income workers, leading to a squeeze on the middle class. We found that out of every 5 tasks from middle-income jobs, 4 went to low-paid jobs and 1 went to high-paid jobs.

As a result, wages are growing faster in the lower and higher income brackets than in the middle-income brackets.

New education models and continuous learning can help address the growing skills gap and provide opportunities for the middle class, students and many mid-career professionals. Investment in all forms of education is key, community colleges, online learning, apprenticeships, and more.

Fundamental economic transformation has never been easier for workers to rethink upgrading skills, changing work methods, or for leaders to rethink resource allocation, labour training, and so on. But if artificial intelligence improves our work and living standards, senior leaders must prepare for the challenges ahead.