{"id":47385,"date":"2020-05-29T13:43:02","date_gmt":"2020-05-29T20:43:02","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2023-06-16T08:47:10","modified_gmt":"2023-06-16T15:47:10","slug":"the-companies-leading-with-ai-are-also-leading-with-skilling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cm-edgetun.pages.dev\/en-us\/industry\/microsoft-in-business\/business-transformation\/2020\/05\/29\/the-companies-leading-with-ai-are-also-leading-with-skilling\/","title":{"rendered":"The companies leading with AI are also leading with skilling"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"man<\/p>\n

C<\/span>ompanies\u00a0<\/span>today<\/span>\u00a0are focused on keeping employees safe whil<\/span>e trying to still meet the essential<\/span>\u00a0needs of their customers.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>But<\/span>\u00a0we\u00a0<\/span>know\u00a0<\/span>from\u00a0<\/span>our conversation<\/span>s with our\u00a0<\/span>customer<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0and partners through<\/span>out<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>the United States\u00a0<\/span>that business leaders are\u00a0<\/span>also\u00a0<\/span>beginning to think about how best\u00a0<\/span>to adapt and drive recovery as we emerge from this crisis.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The\u00a0<\/span>business\u00a0<\/span>world\u00a0<\/span>is<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>changing<\/span>\u00a0at an extraordinar<\/span>y<\/span>\u00a0pace.\u00a0<\/span>As Microsoft CEO<\/span>\u00a0Satya Nadella<\/span>\u00a0recently observed during our earnings announcement, \u201cwe\u2019ve seen two years\u2019 worth of digital transformation in two months\u201d.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is increasingly at the heart of digital transformation<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>It<\/span>\u00a0helps us discover, learn, ideate<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0and make decisions. It\u00a0<\/span>makes<\/span>\u00a0business operations more efficient, enhances product & service development, enables new customer experiences and more. And in some industries, like healthcare, it<\/span>\u00a0i<\/span>s helping improve and even save lives.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But how\u00a0<\/span>do companies\u00a0<\/span>ensure their investments in AI are unlocking business value?\u00a0<\/span>To help answer that question<\/span>, we\u00a0<\/span>conducted\u00a0<\/span>research in late March looking\u00a0<\/span>at\u00a0<\/span>what AI-leading c<\/span>omp<\/span>anies are doing differently to achieve the<\/span>\u00a0greatest business advantage.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The key takeaway: the companies seeing the greatest value from AI are the one<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0that\u00a0<\/span>do<\/span>\u00a0no<\/span>t just invest in technology<\/span>, but also the skills of their people.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

AI, skills<\/span><\/b>,<\/span><\/b>\u00a0and business\u00a0value\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Typically, the more AI a company uses<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0the\u00a0<\/span>more\u00a0<\/span>value they see from it.\u00a0<\/span>Among\u00a0<\/span>senior\u00a0<\/span>leaders from\u00a0<\/span>mature AI businesses<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>in the US,\u00a0<\/span>8<\/span>2<\/span>%<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>say they<\/span>\u00a0are<\/span>\u00a0seeing b<\/span>usiness value because of AI<\/span>, compared\u00a0<\/span>with\u00a0<\/span>56<\/span>% of leaders at companies that are at earlier stages of AI usage.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But the research reveals that the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>value does not simply come from adding more AI technology.\u00a0<\/span>Instead<\/span>, mature AI businesses are\u00a0<\/span>also\u00a0<\/span>focused on developing the skills\u00a0<\/span>of their people.\u00a0<\/span>Almost all senior execs\u00a0<\/span>(<\/span>9<\/span>1<\/span>%) at AI-leading organizations\u00a0<\/span>indicate they are actively building the skills of their\u00a0<\/span>workforce or<\/span>\u00a0have developed plans to do so.\u00a0 Their employees back this up<\/span>. A<\/span>pproximately<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>two-fifths (<\/span>4<\/span>2<\/span>%<\/span>)<\/span>\u00a0confirm they<\/span>\u00a0ha<\/span>ve\u00a0<\/span>already\u00a0<\/span>taken part in reskilling initiatives, and 7<\/span>3<\/span>%\u00a0<\/span>indicate<\/span>\u00a0that they are confident their<\/span>\u00a0employer is preparing for a world in which AI is everywhere.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We see from the survey\u00a0<\/span>that companies<\/span>\u00a0at the earlier stages of using AI do not have this\u00a0<\/span>same\u00a0<\/span>focus on<\/span>\u00a0skills \u2013 so the importance of comb<\/span>in<\/span>ing AI and skills is clearly a key learning.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It<\/span>\u00a0is\u00a0<\/span>important to note that t<\/span>hese\u00a0<\/span>AI-leading firms are not only focused on hard technology\u00a0<\/span>skills. A<\/span>long with data analytics and programming, we see that these companies are also developing employees\u2019\u00a0<\/span>soft\u00a0<\/span>skills in area<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0such as communications, leadership and negotiations.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u00a0<\/span>see<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>two key<\/span>\u00a0reasons\u00a0<\/span>why\u00a0<\/span>these companies are cultivat<\/span>ing<\/span>\u00a0a broad set of skills among their people<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

F<\/span>irst, AI can free people up from more repetitive tasks. This gives them more time and energy to focus on higher-value activities \u2013 whether it<\/span>\u00a0i<\/span>s spending time with customers, brainstorming a new product or service<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0or\u00a0<\/span>focusing on professional development.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Second, AI is great for crunching large data sets and providing insights based on that data. But<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>that\u00a0<\/span>computation<\/span>\u00a0requires human creativity, teamwork and customer-centricity<\/span>\u00a0to turn those insights into actions that bring value back to the organization.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A<\/span><\/b>ugment<\/span><\/b>ing people with AI\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Although\u00a0<\/span>AI is a rapidly developing technology<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>this\u00a0<\/span>data point<\/span>\u00a0really caught my attention:\u00a0<\/span>at AI-leading firms<\/span>, 85% of\u00a0<\/span>senior\u00a0<\/span>executives<\/span>, and\u00a0<\/span>40<\/span>% of employees, say they are\u00a0<\/span>AI-augmented.\u00a0<\/span><\/i>This means AI is an active agent in helping them be more effective at their jobs.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Most<\/span>\u00a0AI-mature businesses<\/span>\u00a0(<\/span>9<\/span>1<\/span>%)<\/span>\u00a0are enjoying increased<\/span>\u00a0operational<\/span>\u00a0efficiencies<\/span>, with AI picking up simple and repetitive tasks. But what<\/span>\u00a0i<\/span>s especially interesting to see is that the more a company uses AI, the more likely its people are using the technology to drive new business opportunities.\u00a0<\/span>Almost<\/span>\u00a0half (<\/span>4<\/span>6%)<\/span>\u00a0of AI<\/span>-leading firms\u00a0<\/span>are using AI to help their people\u00a0<\/span>develop new products and services<\/span>. A<\/span>pproximately\u00a0<\/span>a third<\/span>\u00a0(<\/span>3<\/span>2<\/span>%) are using AI to improve the customer experience.\u00a0<\/span>These percentages drop considerably among companies that are earlier on the AI journey.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A learning<\/span><\/b>\u00a0culture in the age of AI\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The research<\/span>\u00a0suggest<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0that as a company deploys more AI and reskilling initiatives,\u00a0<\/span>a\u00a0<\/span>learning<\/span>\u00a0culture emerges.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As AI becomes<\/span>\u202fmore common\u202famong businesses,\u202fa clear majority\u202fof\u202fall employees\u202f<\/span>(<\/span>7<\/span>6<\/span>%)<\/span>\u202fare highly motivated to acquire or deepen AI-relevant skills.\u00a0<\/span>Further, w<\/span>hen asked\u00a0<\/span>how<\/span>\u00a0they would like to spend more time as AI becomes common with<\/span>in<\/span>\u00a0their\u00a0<\/span>organization<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>a top<\/span>\u00a0response\u00a0<\/span>from employees\u00a0<\/span>was<\/span>\u00a0in<\/span>\u00a0learning and development.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This culture change is critical. To drive the greatest value from AI, it is important people are open to not only doing things\u00a0better, but\u00a0doing things differently.\u00a0<\/span>T<\/span>his cannot happen<\/span>\u00a0unless they\u00a0<\/span>embrace change<\/span>\u00a0and continuous professional development<\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

AI + skills + culture change = a virtuous circle\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A<\/span>\u00a0virtuous circle emerge<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>at<\/span>\u00a0companies more mature in the<\/span>ir adoption of AI. These AI-leading firms<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>see<\/span>\u00a0that having the right skills enables them to unlock more value from AI, which encourages them to extend their use of AI and, in turn, continue<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>up-levelling skills in their organiz<\/span>ation. The r<\/span>esearch shows<\/span>\u00a0that this<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>cycle<\/span>\u00a0is contributing to more innovative company cultures, where people are increasingly focused\u00a0<\/span>on\u00a0<\/span>bringing value to customers and\u00a0<\/span>continuous professional development.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This pattern c<\/span>ertainly rings true to me.\u00a0<\/span>Through our own journey of<\/span>\u00a0digital transformation at Microsoft,\u00a0<\/span>we see the\u00a0<\/span>compounding value of invest<\/span>ing\u00a0<\/span>in\u00a0<\/span>both AI\u00a0<\/span>technology\u00a0<\/span>and the skilling necessary to\u00a0<\/span>help our people derive value from it<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

*<\/span>Methodology\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

KRC Research conducted a random online sample of approximately 12,000 people working with<\/span>in<\/span>\u00a0enterprise companies (more than 250 employees)<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0between 12-30 March. Within each market the sample was comprised of at least 500 workers and 100 leaders (director level and above). Markets represented include:\u00a0<\/span>Germany, the\u202fUnited Kingdom, Russia, Poland, the Czech\u202fRepublic and Slovakia (combined), Hungary,\u202fAustralia, Brazil, Israel, Turkey, South Africa,\u202fthe United Arab Emirates, the United States\u202fof America, India, Canada, Italy, the\u202fNetherlands, Spain, and Sweden.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Want to learn more?<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

There<\/span>\u00a0i<\/span>s more to explore for your\u00a0<\/span>organization<\/span>\u00a0with these free resources from Microsoft:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n