The ongoing AI transformation is, actually, a people transformation, says these HR pros

During a panel discussion at the CES tech conference earlier this month, three HR pros were asked by moderator Tiffany Moore, the Consumer Technology Association’s VP of political and industry affairs, to discuss where people strategy and human capital fits into the ongoing AI transformation.

Agreed early in the session was the irreplaceable value the human workforce brings to any successes as AI changes how work gets done.

“We think about artificial intelligence, it should really be accelerating intelligence, or amplifying intelligence, because it’s a helper, but the human instinct is critical,” Moore said.

Salesforce’s chief equity and engagement officer, Alexandra Siegel, suggested that the ongoing technological transformation we've experienced for the last few years across companies and industries worldwide is, in fact, actually, a people transformation. 💅

“Fundamentally, this is a people transformation,” she said. “The technology is important, but this is a people transformation because AI is going to be as ubiquitous as email, as the internet, as the mobile phone, and no one taught us. We didn’t go to class to learn how to use your iPhone. We didn’t go to class to learn how to use the internet or email. It became an extension of how we work. However, the how we work changed, and so there’s a lot of great research that shows it’s not actually those technical skills that are the most important.”

Seigel said, of course, most employees are going to need to be “AI fluent” in this new era of work, but she said it will be those explicit human skills like “agility and curiosity and storytelling and creativity” that will make the most impact as organizations reimagine workflows.

“It’s not AI versus the human, it’s an amplification,” said Sherida McMullan, Gitlab’s VP of diversity, inclusion, and belonging. “It’s making sure that we’re utilizing the human element for the judgments that are being made…you also have to make sure…that human element stays top of mind throughout the process.”

McMullan predicted that companies that don’t include HR and people teams, or their remits, in designing AI strategies will need to “go back and restructure” those strategies after they realize this critical misstep.

Not just the how. The AI transformation impacts how the work gets done, but it also impacts the people doing the work. New AI tools may require new workforce strategies, new recruiting and hiring strategies, new training and development strategies. The entire mold is up for reimagining.

“We’re constantly evolving, and the strategies are changing in the new age,” said Samsung’s Michelle Manglal-Ian, senior manager of culture and engagement. “So what type of talent are we looking for? What type of expertise are we looking for? What type of skill set are we looking for? [HR] needs to be part of that initial process, so that we can look for the right candidates; we can develop our employees, to retool them, to reeducate them, to ensure that they’re growing, so that they can be successful in our future vision in the organization.”

Company culture can also be crucial to an organization’s AI framework. Salesforce’s AI fluency framework centered around engagement, activation, and expertise, according to Seigel, and evidence of its working was revealed by employee surveying.

“When you think about this people transformation, inclusion, [and] engagement plays such an important role in the technology transformation,” Seigel said. “We found in our own survey that when employees felt included and engaged, they were 58% more likely to feel confident using AI. So again, when we build that trust, when people see themselves in your workforce, when people feel empowered, then they are also going to feel more confident in using those tools. And then we find on the other side that when they use those tools, they feel like they’re doing more meaningful work.”

Manglal-Ian agreed.

“I want to work for an organization that really embraces innovation,” she said. “I want to work for an organization that adapts to change. I want to work for an organization that is okay with risk, so you’re attracting people to the culture. AI is just helping us move faster. It’s helping us become a little bit more broader in our thinking, and giving us opportunities to just have different perspectives,” she said.

The ongoing people transformation requires people pros to weigh in and help shape the future of work.

“The change is happening. It’s here. It’s not even tomorrow. It’s right here. It’s right now,” she said. “So are we doing our job as leaders or as HR professionals if we’re not giving them the tools, if we’re not exposing them to AI and agentic technology? I would argue, no. I think this is really, really critical.”