Despite what the social ‘experts’ tell you, it’s never as good or as bad as it seems.

This applies to our current cult-like craze of Generative AI tools.

In reality, AI won’t change L&D as much as you think.

Having participated in what feels like hundreds of sessions about practical AI applications, how to intelligently assess tools and answer burning questions from the audience.

There are 3 things I find myself repeating often:

1. AI won’t change the role of L&D pros as much as you think
2. Most L&D pros haven’t figured out what to do with the time AI could give them back
3. AI needs a ‘human in the loop’ to work well

Let’s unpack all 3 thoughts.

Everything’s changing, but not that much

Too many of us have an inflated view of current Generative AI capabilities.

The way some people talk to me, they think it can do anything they want. Sorry to be the party killer, but it can’t. These perceptions come down to lack of understanding the fundamentals of how generative AI tools work.

Which is why we see too many overstatements of the importance of GEN AI on social media.

We expect it to do more human stuff. But, you don’t want that. You should be doing the human stuff and using AI to enhance the low-level tasks that stop you from maximising your human capabilities.

Of course, no popular online person will say that. It’s not dramatic enough.

The business of people

A quote in one session with L&D researcher, Don Taylor, made “Tools change but the role doesn’t”, resonated with me.

This is right on the money.

Our role has been and still is to enhance skills and the performance of a workforce. I don’t see this being massively disrupted with GEN AI tools. It’s good to remind yourself that GEN AI is just one of the tools at your disposal.

It’s not your whole strategy for learning and performance.

We’re still in a business of people. That business needs a unique human touch as it involves figuring out problems other humans experience. Try explaining that to ChatGPT.

To navigate the complexities of humans you need awesome human skills.

What are those skills exactly? These, my friend:

• Critical thinking
• Emotional intelligence
• Analytical judgement
• Decision making
• Explaining, talking and emphasising like only a human can

In my time so far, I’ve seen very few people get to senior roles on technical skills alone.

If they have, a lack of strong human skills has been their blocker to going further and even performing where they’re. You might have examples of this in your workplace too.

The future is still human-powered.

If you want to do well, get clear on the fundamentals of new technology and leverage it with your unique human skills.

Perhaps, that’s a formula we can all adopt.

What to do with all that time AI saves you

There’s an obsession with using AI to save time by speeding up tasks.

Yet, no one asks – at what cost to quality?

It seems too many will sacrifice quality for speed. Where does that leaves us? Nowhere good that’s for sure.

Building on from that, what do we intend to do with the x amount of hours saved?

Stare into the abyss, create even more pointless content or do more human stuff. I’d recommend (and hope) you do number 3. We’re in the business of people, after all.

I like to think we spend more time doing that performance consulting we all rave about at conferences. You know, building relationships across the business to give us the real insight on performance blockers.

AI can’t do all that (yet).

I’m asked weekly, “What will L&D pros do in a world of AI and automation?”

The answer is the same thing: Build relationships, focus on performance and enable the environment, systems and culture to enable people to do their best work.

Somewhere along the line we lost sight of the uniquely human practice we nurture.

→ It’s not your fault.

If you have a $400 billion learning technology industry determined to sell you products, it’s hard for your mind to compete with those marketing budgets. This doesn’t mean tech is not useful.

Digital technology is a incredible enhancer to what we do. But, it’s not the only thing we do.

So, the answer to how do I navigate the AI tech wave to future-proof my L&D career is quite simple:

1. Always invest in your digital intelligence aka understanding the fundamentals of the latest tech
   
   
2. Be more human

Since our last conversation on this, the smart folks at BCG gathered data on this very point.

As a reminder from the edition where we unpacked this data, we can see on average people are saving 5+ hours when introducing AI tools intelligently.

The ‘human in the loop’

If this was one of those Marvel films, this would be the time when the superior spandex laden superhero appears to save the day.

You might have heard of the concept ‘human in the loop’ if you’ve been super nerdy in your AI research.

If you haven’t, the term refers to human input into the development, training, and operation of AI systems. It’s about collaboration between man and machine, not one or the other. I believe this is the best way to work with these tools.

That’s why when I’m asked “Will AI take my job in L&D?”, I reply “It depends”.

It depends if you’re building a human in the loop (HITL) with AI assisted tasks, and the answer is – you should!

The HITL approach leverages that collaborative approach I mentioned to improve accuracy, reliability, and adaptability of AI tools. You (the human) are the key ingredient in working with AI. If you’re human skills suck, AI won’t help you much.

As humans, we provide key context.

AI can do many wonderful things but it can’t apply those contextually. Not right now, anyway.

So, if you’re sitting their worried about AI taking your job – Don’t. Until SkyNet rises and starts building Terminators, you have a clear place in the flow of work.

The infinite timeline

I get its hard to see this when social media is ablaze with inflated stories.

Most people use Gen AI tools for creation. That’s less than 5% of their potential in my eyes. In reality, they’re overall potential is greatly untapped.

I compare the current state of AI use for work to giving a Ferrari to a 5 year old. People don’t have the skills, experience or know-how to use it effectively.

That will change.

We’re talking years here not days. I keep going back to this image from Oliver Wyman with the scaling model for AI adoption and ROI. Time is on your side.

Prompt playground: Try it yourself

Copy and paste this into your AI assistant of choice to think critically about the future of L&D.

###Context###

I'm a learning and development professional who wants to explore the opportunities and implications for generative AI in my industry.

I want to cultivate a diverse set of views on both the good and bad of this technology for helping humans learn and grow. This should include how the traditional L&D industry could change.

###Task###

Your task is to help me cultivate a balanced view as shared in my context.

To begin, I want you to provide a general overview of the potential impact (good and bad) of generative AI technology in corporate L&D. 

###Task 2###

Next, you will ask me questions to explore my own thoughts on the topic. Don't be afraid to challenge my views. Your goal is to encourage me to find a balanced viewpoint that considers many points of view.

Begin with the overview and provide the sources from which you used to create your response.

Final Thoughts

A few resources to help you

1. If you want to learn practical applications for AI tools in your work as a L&D pro I have a 2-hr online course to support you. 300 L&D pros have taken the course to accelerate their skills.
   
   
2. Zero-cost insights, guides and tutorials on using AI in your work in my AI For Work Lab.

Before you go… 👋

If you like my writing and think “Hey, I’d like to hear more of what this guy has to say” then you’re in luck.

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