Developing Essential Leadership Skills In An AI-Driven World

AI is forcing leaders to take what they know - and then interpret it more quickly, in a more complex environment and with greater accuracy. It means enhancing their own skills but also becoming even more comfortable with placing greater reliance on team members who are subordinate but more knowledgeable. 

AI is forcing leaders to be more assertive while at the same time becoming more humble about what they dont know and empowering those in the organization who have that information. JL

Larry English reports in Medium:

Leaders need to be able to look at the capabilities of AI today and figure out how that could apply to the technology of tomorrow. They need to be able to re-envision how work is done, how roles need to evolve and what jobs will exist three years down the line. Leaders must know the different AI tools available, what information different forms of AI provides, and how to interpret that information. Leaders must ensure information validity without bias and need to be comfortable analyzing new information and factoring it into business strategy and decisions. “AI can do great things, but also great harm — we need a rapid maturation of knowledge around safe, effective usage."

AI has arrived, ushering in a new way of working and new must-have skills. Most organizations already feel behind. The 2023 Microsoft Work Trend Index found that 60% of people don’t have the skills needed to complete their work, and 82% of leaders say employees need new skills to take advantage of the emerging technology.

This doesn’t just apply to technical roles, either. Everyone from leadership down will need to reorient themselves to thrive in a world dominated by AI. As the Microsoft Work Trend Index notes, “As AI reshapes work, human-AI collaboration will be the next transformational work pattern — and the ability to work iteratively with AI will be a key skill for every employee.”

Here are the new core competencies for leaders in todays’ AI-fueled business world:

AI, data and cloud literacy.

Leaders must be AI, data and cloud literate in order to truly capitalize on the technology. More specifically, leaders must know the different AI tools available, what information different forms of AI provides, and how to interpret that information. They must understand data quality and data management and how to get and manage that data in the cloud.

“The No. 1 problem we see right now is people don’t understand what AI is or what it’s capable of,” says Joseph Ours, the lead of Centric Consulting’s AI Strategy practice. “They think it’s a magic genie in a box or a silver bullet that’s going to solve all their problems. But AI is neither. For example, a lot of people think of AI in terms of Chat GPT, but that’s just one form of the technology.”

Critical thinking and open-mindedness.

AI is just a tool. The insights and data it provides won’t always be good — in fact, as some companies have found, AI can produce gibberish or downright harmful information. Taking anything AI comes up with as the right answer is a recipe for disaster. This is why it’s key that leaders be able to evaluate information and ensure validity without bias. And when the output is solid, leaders need to be comfortable analyzing new information and factoring it into business strategy and decisions.

Quick decision making.

Like all technology that came before it, AI is speeding up business. Leaders need to know how to stay on top of the rapid growth AI will bring and pivot quickly when needed. It’s not going to work to maintain the status quo anymore — businesses will be evolving at a rapid pace.

Easier said than done, perhaps. “What still tends to be a struggle for organizations is people don’t really like change,” Ours says. “We naturally resist changing our organizations. We want to change the circumstances so that our products and services are still viable, as opposed to reinventing our products and services. AI is going to press the gas pedal — we’ve got to get comfortable with the discomfort of change.”

Risk awareness.

AI’s great promise also carries enormous risk — accidental disclosure of proprietary or confidential information, risk of harming your reputation, risk of accidental discriminatory practices, to name just a few.

For instance, the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) had to shut down its AI-powered chatbot from its help hotline after discovering it was providing dangerous advice — not great for brand reputation.

“AI can do great things, but also great harm — we need a rapid maturation of knowledge around safe, effective usage,” Ours notes. “Having the right governance and security in place is essential.”

Visionary thinking.

Leaders need to be able to look at the capabilities of AI today and figure out how that could apply to the technology of tomorrow. They need to be able to re-envision how work is done, how roles need to evolve and what jobs will exist three years down the line. Leaders who limit their vision of AI to how to save on the bottom line won’t be able to truly leverage the technology.

“The real breakthrough is thinking beyond where we’re at today and envisioning where we can be tomorrow,” Ours says. “How can AI help you re-envision your world, the products and services you offer and how you offer them? The businesses that figure that out will be the ones that are successful.”

Luckily, visionary thinking doesn’t have to be an innate skill, Ours adds. It can be manufactured through brainstorming sessions. “I always recommend that firms looking to embark on an AI journey begin with an AI vision workshop,” he says. “If you find a good facilitator who understands your business and can get you talking and brainstorming outside your normal boxes, you’ll see a great deal of rewards.”

AI is a transformative technology. Organizations that figure out how to harness AI and keep pace with a rapidly evolving world will be ahead of the curve. It’s up to leaders to understand the technology, be able to critically analyze the data it provides, take the risks seriously and boldly imagine the future.