AI Will Cost You…If You Allow It

Professional workers exploring AI/Human harmony

First, along with the term “human capital”, let’s scrap “white collar” and “blue collar”. I’ll use them here for a moment to set up the explanation, but let’s push these aside. They’ve had their day and don’t reflect modern values of how we categorize people and their work. We wonder why we have such a gap in trades talent and university and student loan debates? We have devalued certain work in favor of other work and continue to refer to it that way - it’s just a different kind of work. It’s well overdue to change the moniker.

—> Talent capital, not human capital

—> Professional or thought-based work, not white collar

—> Productivity or physical work, not blue-collar

The verbiage needs some work, but with all the catch phrases out there about work, which I prefer not to use in many cases, phrases describing quitting, firing, working location, etc., we’ll think of something more modern and respectful.

When Generative AI (artificial intelligence) first broke out in more of the common public domain for usage, testing, and understanding, ChatGTP, etc., many thought that blue-collar or physical productivity workers, would lose their jobs, but as AI has advanced many continue to see and speak up about the realization that AI is not taking blue-collar jobs, at least initially, it’s taking more professional jobs, knowledge work, or “office” jobs.

AI taking office jobs?

AI is targeting the low-hanging fruit with replacing the tasks, activities, and work with repeatable, easily readable, and recognizable for tech, in order to copy, learn, and utilize. AI is targeting work that can be done without that human touch, without the human judgment, without the feel for people or non-factual decisions or process. Work can be submitted for human review, and things of this nature. This does not mean the work these professionals has no value, it does not mean this work is done “better” by technology, but what it does mean is that some companies have decided to operationalize AI to take this work on for what they consider as comfortable for the initial steps for AI to produce.

The firms you think of that are developing more for physical work (Figure and Optimus to name a couple), where AI is heavily engrained with interacting in the physical world, are in the thick of it. They’re making major strides, but it’s intensive to conduct physical work through technology compared to the professional or thought leadership side of things- physical world requires, physical testing at some point, with real product, real impact, and for all to see, whereas digital work is often not noticed or recognized as much for the professional digital behind the scenes impacts. If you can’t see it, the public often won’t care, but if a robot makes coffee, or changes a tire, now people are watching.

Think about early on for the first few months, following AI really breaking out, you heard about some of the major consulting or tech firms, and now you’re seeing the tech blitz, which has gone over for a year now. Remember Salesforce laid off a share of its workforce in January 2023, and now we’re in February 2024 and we’re just getting going. Those layoffs started as early as Q3/Q4 - 2022 for some tech firms.

What does this mean?

This is not meant to scare anyone, as it seems like many are seeking more information, trying to absorb the benefits, impacts and realities, and clarity, but remember, with how fast technology advances now. Buy the time we are comfortable, the world is going to change, a lot, and the exponential pace of change seems more and more challenging to “keep pace with”.

This isn’t sounding an alarm - the alarm has been going off for awhile, but to bring some perspective to consider taking a breath and see how you can fit into this landscape of work, as the world of work changes, quickly.

If there is one wake up call to consider, it’s to make sure that you are positioning yourself and your career to use AI as a tool with your job, and not complain about it, worry about it, try to push it off on someone else, but to figure out how to use it in your company, in your role, in your next job, in your new business, or to help other businesses do the same.

Elon wanted to slow it down?

I haven’t done research on the specifics, but remember, even Elon was calling for more review of AI and its impacts, direction, guardrails, etc., to no avail. That may have been a tactic to slow one kind of tech, move attention, or criticize, but it’s something to consider - can anyone slow it down if they wanted to? Unlikely. If Elon can’t slow it, and was pushed aside, if Congress didn’t make it their priority and take it to the limits, how are you going to slow it down, or anyone else for that matter?

One example of the power, is with Sam Altman and the OpenAI board - Sam Altman was brought back in within a few days because of his power, relationships, and leadership, and the power of AI. AI Is already making an impact and his reputation and his team’s, is built on the AI engine. A CEO fired and brought back in with a few days, how often do you see that? Now he’s talking about raising $7T to make chips? That’s a different level. Ironically, this swift flip flop move, may have been more about people than tech.

If you want to worry about AI, go right ahead, but we all know that’s not productive. That doesn’t move the needle and that doesn’t prepare anyone, and positions you more and more into being redundant. The best way I can explain, and really wrap my head around AI and how to best embrace it, is in a (hopefully) sensible and professional manner viewing it through the lens of the human experience and the human impact which comes down to three areas:

1. Work with AI, and look at AI as your assistant, worker, resources, or as a tool, not your replacement

   • Thinking about this about AI as your replacement you’ve already lost

   • If AI can’t do it. People still hold an advantage when it comes to the human feelings, the connection, the camaraderie, the people, synergy, and community, that requires just that, people

   • Whether relationships, quality content, product, productivity, ideas, thought leadership, or people leadership, AI isn’t ahead, yet

   • If you’re comparing yourself to AI, it’s not going to go well in the long run

2. Differentiation from what AI provides and does, along with working with AI instead of fighting it

   • That’s the next generation of professional work, and physical work, and all work

   • What can you bring forward that AI cannot

   • How can you operationalize AI?

3. Learn, explore, get curious, and understand how you can use, learn from, work with, and accept AI for what it is, and understand what it’s not

   • Above all, understand it and explore before judging or being paralyzed by fear…there may be something you learn that changes your perspective

Adapting and embracing the AI transformation and evolution is essential, otherwise you get crushed by it. Does that mean your car repair shop needs to worry today, no, but what this does mean is the need to embrace AI, digital automation, tech in general, at some point. Firms and people that are receptive to this concept, will embrace and thrive, and If they are not open, there is a great chance that businesses of most types will eventually cease to exist, if they don’t grow with technology.

It’s either your time to go into a bunker and hide from AI or embrace it and learn how you can make AI work for you and everyone. It’s humans working and technology, which means it’s a future of work aligned with Talent+AI.

Hopefully, this added a little value to building your organization. Thank you for reading. Please repost or share with someone who may benefit from this edition. Below are a few resources that have helped me understand a lot of where the world is and is headed.

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