It may seem paradoxical, but the rise of the machines is creating an even greater demand for creativity. Artificial intelligence in particular may bring more automation, but more demand for people skills at the same time. “Regardless of the industry or how the tech is adopted, workers will increasingly need to adjust and learn to embrace soft skills to excel in tomorrow’s workplace,” says CF Su, vice president of machine learning at Hyperscience.
That’s the consensus among industry experts and leaders, who are calling for a new breed of management, focused on bringing out the innovation that machines can’t generate. Blame generative AI for really stirring this up, as it “is helping automate the more menial tasks of our jobs which will require workers to be more creative if they really want to stand out and make an impact,” says Gordon Ritter, co-founder and General Partner with Emergence Capital. “As the rise of AI in the workplace continues, managers need to look for more creative and non-consensus people around them, and avoid those that will be more complacent.”
Ultimately, despite worries about job losses. the rise of AI means new opportunities as well. “I think we’ll see more jobs being changed rather than lost altogether,” says Sultan Saidov, co-founder and president of Beamery, a talent management company. “Professionals and managers should view it as an opportunity versus something that should be feared.”
That doesn’t mean non-technical business professionals need to have deep technical knowledge on building or deploying AI apps. “Non-technical business professionals do not need to understand how to build or deploy AI applications, but they should be able to understand and interact with the technology at a basic level,” says Su.
The skills that will make a difference in the AI era include “creative thinking and empathy, will be in high demand,” says Saidov. “Proficiency in using and understanding AI technology” should also be part of their portfolios. “Such skills should be front and center on resumes in the era of AI whereas skills that can now be automated should be toned down,” he advises.
Jobs that are purely manual are headed for automation, whereas those that involve human interaction will prevail, Ritter says. “Don’t let your kids grow up not interacting with humans. If your job is interacting with humans and you stay innovative, you will thrive.”
Still, managers and professionals need to have a basic understanding of the potential power of AI. “Learning how to prompt large language models to receive desired responses and grasp the ethical considerations and challenges will become foundational must-haves for employees whose positions are supplemented with AI,” says Su. “We can think about the level of understanding similar to our understanding of the internet, where non-technical professionals use the internet daily.”
Professionals must “invest in improving their professional skills with the help of AI tools,” Su advises. “Learning to use tools to help assist with everyday responsibilities decreases the threat to your job. As professionals begin to engage and learn new tools, they must also watch for opportunities where the rise of these tools will bring about the advent of new roles. Those who recognize where technology will continue to innovate and discover how to adapt to remain relevant in the hiring landscape will be prime for employment over those who cannot re-adjust.”
Su identifies three key areas where AI will shape careers.
- New job categories: “As AI becomes more integrated into workflows, many organizations will start identifying entire job categories that didn’t exist before,” Su says. “For example, as the potential ethical ramifications continue to dominate the conversation, teams will need individuals to lead initiatives to ensure responsible use to protect organizations, employees, and consumers.”
- A lot of upskilling: “Some roles will be significantly upskilled thanks to AI and automation,” according to Su. “We can expect to see careers that previously focused on the need for technical skills shift to embrace alternative and emerging skill sets, like mechanics specializing in the maintenance and repair of autonomous vehicles.”
- Job disruptions: “We can, unfortunately, prepare ourselves to see a disruption in some jobs that will eventually be eliminated,” Su points out. “Similar to how previous technological advances changed industries, such as the rise of the printing press to replace scribes, AI will inevitably transform the modern labor market.”
As a result, employees will play a greater role in “contributing to higher-level strategy” as organizations “begin to re-evaluate how to better define roles that are starting to change alongside technology adoption,” says Su. “We can expect that soft skills, such as creativity, problem-solving and emotional intelligence, will become more sought after during this job evolution where technical skills are no longer the make-or-break parameters for hiring talent.”
