Nearly two-thirds of professionals right now are overwhelmed by how quickly their job is changing, and 70% of executives say the pace of change at work has sped up. The top shift both professionals and leaders say they’re navigating? Integrating AI into daily work.
Successfully navigating that shift looks different—and goes deeper—than what many organizations are currently doing. Even those that have brought on AI tools or AI expertise in recent months are still facing a massive gap in their AI strategy if they’re not approaching this work as a true exercise in change management.
While familiarizing employees with AI technology is a crucial task for leaders, it’s just the tip of the iceberg. The real challenge is guiding teams through this moment in a way that helps workers feel supported, reassured that their skills and experience still matter, and clear on how those things will continue to matter even more in an AI-powered workplace.
This is where a CHRO’s expertise becomes invaluable. Here, based on findings from our research and internal programs at LinkedIn, are key ways that people leaders can help organizations move from simply implementing new technology to inspiring a major culture shift that brings out people’s best work.
Develop and communicate a clear AI point of view.
Clear communication is at the heart of any change management plan. And increasingly, it’s one of the top leadership skills the entire c-suite will need in this new era of work. CHROs have been at the forefront of communicating big changes for some time now, through the pandemic, unpredictable economic cycles, and new modes of hybrid and remote work.
Your AI communication approach needs to be just as thorough. Three-quarters of global knowledge workers say they use AI on the job, but many remain fearful that doing so might make them look replaceable. Clarity from the top can help mitigate that fear, bring AI use more fully into the open, and encourage experimentation with new tools that help people expand their understanding of what’s possible at work. To create that clarity, organizational leaders should step back and offer a company-wide perspective on: a) the benefits of AI use for employees and customers alike, and b) the guardrails for when AI will be used and when humans are best positioned to tackle the task at hand due to our unique skill set. Getting this right requires technical leadership, including the CIO or CTO, and the CHRO to work hand-in-hand on building a unified perspective that’s grounded not just in the “what” of these tools, but the “why” behind their use.
One way we’ve approached this at LinkedIn was to jumpstart the year with a company kickoff: In a time of rapid change for our employees, we created a weeklong company-wide event designed to help every employee recognize the big-picture context, see the long-term strategy (including how AI fits in), and understand how everyone’s role contributes to our human-centered vision and mission.
Build a culture of learning around AI and uniquely human skills.
There’s likely groundswell support for this among your employees already—we’ve seen a five-fold year-over-year uptick in learners taking our AI courses on LinkedIn Learning, and a 142-fold increase in members adding AI skills to their profiles. But only 39% of global knowledge workers say they’ve received any AI training from their company. And only a quarter of learning and development teams LinkedIn surveyed this year said they planned to offer genAI training in 2024.
There’s a clear advantage for companies who build the most AI literate workforces now. The early signs show AI is not only saving teams valuable time, but boosting overall creativity as well. With more time to do innovative work that is anchored in our unique abilities as humans, people skills are rising in importance. Some 72% of US executives agree people skills are more valuable to their organization than AI skills. Companies that invest in human intelligence alongside artificial intelligence will have the edge as AI continues to advance—and CHROs are uniquely qualified to help cultivate the type of culture of learning you’ll need.
While most employers are still lagging on this front, there are early movers who are leaning on their CHROs to help their workforce become best-in-class learners. To incentivize a culture of learning, IBM has incorporated skills growth as a specific assessment component in every performance discussion. Walmart has introduced nano-learning modules to supplement longer coursework, with quick on-the-job lessons powered by genAI that store associates use to solve common customer problems. At LinkedIn, in addition to access to AI-powered coaching, we’ve made 1:1 career coaching available to every LinkedIn employee to help build core soft skills like adaptability, leadership, and communication.
Invest in your people managers as frontline change agents.
Without strong managers, even the best change management plans can fall apart. People managers are the frontline change agents for any new initiative, communicating what’s happening and putting it all into context for employees.
That’s especially true as organizations continue to roll out new ways of working with AI. A software engineer’s experience using AI at work will look quite different from a digital marketer’s or a customer service associate’s experience. Managers can make change feel personal and manageable for each employee.
Because AI is already good at tracking projects and streamlining workflows for us, managers will need to focus most on the human aspects of work, moving over time from managing the tasks of their team to managing energy and facilitating collaboration. CHROs can lean in here to support training and development of managers in the core emotional intelligence skills required to lead teams through big shifts.
Organizations would do well to keep one thing in mind: Change management is hard. This work is not something that a one-off task force or company-wide email is going to solve. The most successful companies in this next era of work will win because of their talent, not just their tech—they’ll be the ones focused not just on the destination of an AI-powered workplace, but on making sure their people feel like they’re being brought along for the journey. Technology may be driving the change, but people leaders will ultimately unlock its success.
Teuila Hanson is LinkedIn’s chief people officer, and Aneesh Raman is LinkedIn’s chief economic opportunity officer.