Why CHROs are the key to unlocking AI’s potential for the workforce

It is no longer a question of whether AI will transform business and the workforce, but how it will happen. A study by the IBM® Institute for Business Value found that up to three-quarters of CEOs believe that competitive advantage is determined by who has the most advanced generative AI.

As many leaders now embrace technology to transform their businesses, some wonder which C-suite executives will be in the driver’s seat to orchestrate and accelerate this change.

CHROs today are perfectly positioned to lead the workforce into the future by leading both workforce and AI technologies. Here’s how the best CHROs are already seizing opportunity.

Coordinating the new human + AI workforce

Today, companies are no longer solely focused on finding the talent they need to execute their business strategies. They are thinking more broadly about how to build, buy, rent, or “bot” the technologies they need now and in the future.

A key challenge for CHROs will be coordinating the new human and AI workforce. The best CHROs are already working to address this challenge with a comprehensive understanding of their workforce and how they design roles and skills within their operating models to take full advantage of humans and AI.

In the past, this meant analyzing the roles a company would need to execute its strategy, breaking those roles into component skills and tasks, and creating skills and hiring strategies to fill the gaps. Going forward, this means evaluating job descriptions, identifying which tasks are best suited for skills and which tasks are best suited for people, and redesigning the roles and the jobs themselves.

Train not only people but also AI

Chief CHROs are also thinking about their technology roadmap for technology as they work with their C-suite executives to reinvent their roles and transform the way work is done through AI and automation. Once your technology roadmap is in place, you can play a key role in building AI-based solutions that fit your business needs.

HR leaders have deep expertise in training best practices that can inform not only how people are trained for their skills, but also how the AI ​​solutions themselves are trained.

For example, training a generative AI assistant to learn project management requires a robust unstructured data set about the tasks and operations required. HR leaders know the right steps to take: sourcing and evaluating training content and collaborating with subject matter experts.

That’s just the beginning. Going forward, business leaders must also consider how to validate, test, and certify these AI technologies.

Imagine an AI solution trained to assist accountants in performing key accounting tasks. How can companies test and certify these technologies and maintain rigorous regulatory compliance, as do human accountants earning their CPA license? What about certifications like CPP or Six Sigma? HR leaders have the experience and knowledge of leading practices related to training, certification, and more that companies need to answer these questions and actually implement this new operating model.

Creating a culture focused on growth mindset and learning

Successfully implementing technology requires having the right operating model and talent to support it. Employees must understand and adopt how to use technology. This is fundamentally a leadership and transformation journey, not a technology journey.

All organizations need to increase the overall technical acumen of their workforce and equip them with a basic understanding of AI so they can become critical thinkers and users of the technology. Here, CHROs play a critical role in moving forward, leveraging their expertise to upskill employees, foster a culture of growth mindset, and learn and drive ongoing organizational change.

For employees to get the most out of AI, they need to understand how to guide it, evaluate the results, and then make improvements and modifications. For example, when interacting with a generative AI-based assistant, if you ask “Please explain this to an executive” and “Please explain this to a fifth grader,” you will receive very different responses. Additionally, employees must be trained and empowered to ask the right questions and analyze AI output and source data for accuracy, bias, and more.

Although we are still in the early stages of the AI ​​era, leading CHROs are aware of the expected impact of this powerful technology. Those who can seize the moment to build a people and technology strategy that makes the most of human talent and responsibly trained AI will be set up for success.

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