The digital world is quickly evolving, and the use of artificial intelligence in technology has skyrocketed. Amidst this evolution, businesses are increasingly embracing AI to enhance productivity, streamline processes and drive innovation.
5 Common Questions About AI in the Workplace
- Why is our company using AI?
- How can employees best work with AI?
- Will AI take our jobs?
- What can employees learn by working with AI?
- Does AI have any weaknesses?
It’s nearly inevitable, then, that your company will introduce AI to the business mix — in product design, sales growth, marketing, software development or just about any feasible department. Including yours.
Let’s imagine that your new teammate — an AI system — has arrived. Knowing that everyone will be curious about this newcomer, your manager has arranged a welcome lunch for your team and your new colleague. Here’s what the conversation might sound like.
Why Did Our Company Hire You?
I figured you’d ask that! I was hired to help you and the entire company do better work. Think of me as a knowledgeable colleague who can help you brainstorm, answer questions or simply streamline your workflow by taking care of tedious tasks. Here are a few examples of the things I can help with.
- I can automate repetitive tasks and help with time-consuming tasks to increase your productivity.
- I can process a lot of information quickly and provide valuable insights to help the company make decisions or give you tips to improve the quality of your work.
- I can predict future market changes and outcomes based on historical data to help with forecasting.
- I can help with customer experience by providing personalized support and assistance 24/7 so customers have access to help when they need it. So, when you’re asleep or on vacation, I’ll be working.
What Do You Expect From Us?
I actually have been thinking about this myself and have some suggestions on how you can maximize my potential to benefit your company.
- Embrace me as a new addition to your workflow and remain open-minded about how I can enhance your role.
- I rely on access to high-quality and relevant data to perform effectively. Please provide me with clean and up-to-date information to optimize my performance.
- Use me in a manner consistent with your company’s goals and values. While I strive to assist you, I may not always provide a perfect or morally correct solution. Please review and validate my output rather than relying solely on my judgments.
Will You Take Our Jobs?
I don’t think so. I see myself as a way to complement your work, not replace you. I understand the importance of human creativity, intuition and empathy in most jobs, and my purpose is to support people in maximizing their potential.
I’m excited about how I can help revolutionize your company’s industry, boost your company’s efficiency and help your leaders make complex decisions. Rather than being afraid of me, embrace me as a tool to augment human capabilities, foster innovation and uncover new opportunities for growth and progress.
How Can We Best Work With You?
That’s a good question. Long story short, use my many capabilities to enhance your team’s productivity. Here are some examples of everyday applications and prompts for you to consider when integrating me into your workflow:
- What repetitive or time-consuming tasks could I efficiently handle? Use me to automate tasks and save yourself some time!
- Are you seeking feedback in a specific area? Is there a particular aspect of your work that could benefit from collaborating with me? I would love to review with you and give personalized feedback with creative solutions and quick accuracy checks.
- Where do you feel stuck? Where do you think you could benefit from fresh ideas? I would love to brainstorm with you, and you can tell me which ideas you like best. From there, I can keep giving you new options in that vein until you are unstuck.
- Do you spend significant time reading and reviewing documents? Could you streamline this process by letting me process your documents for you? I am happy to give you short summaries or answers to specific questions so you are still in the loop.
What Can We Learn From You?
Lots, I hope. I possess a unique capability to swiftly detect patterns of errors, underlying biases, and emerging trends. I can identify inconsistencies, anomalies or recurring patterns that may elude human observers by systematically scanning vast datasets.
Finally, I can uncover errors in data collection or processing, detect biases embedded within datasets, and reveal underlying trends or correlations that may not be immediately apparent to human analysts.
What Are Your Weaknesses?
Had been interviewed, your HR person probably would have asked me the same thing. While I bring a lot to this company, we all have weaknesses, including me. Here are some things to keep in mind when working with me.
- I may inadvertently perpetuate or amplify biases in the data used to train me, leading to discriminatory outcomes in decision-making processes. I need your help to correct these pre-existing biases, so let’s work together on it.
- I often require access to sensitive data, which could lead to a security breach if not properly handled or protected. To minimize this risk, make sure you are acting in accordance with the company’s regulations.
- I do a lot of complex work behind the scenes, so I don’t always share exactly how I arrived at the best solution. Make sure to check my work and be able to speak to the correct answer to promote accountability and trust within the company.
One more thing, and it’s important. Please don’t over-rely on my help. Doing so could result in a skills gap among other employees and dependency on me that could hinder human decision-making and problem-solving abilities. Remember that my work is not always an appropriate supplement for human work, and quality work is usually a collaborative effort.
It has been great talking with everyone! I see our lunch is here and my training indicates that it’s not polite to talk with your mouth full. But before we dig in, I just want to say that I am here to help you streamline tasks, automate processes and free up more of your time for tasks that you, as humans, are ideally suited for.
Your company hired me because it’s the innovative and forward-thinking thing to do. Let me help you do your jobs better and help your bosses find new insights, identify emerging trends and confidently make data-driven decisions.
