Despite the major buzz artificial intelligence is generating within HR circles and workplaces, experts say significant work remains if organizations want to capture AI’s real business value—a goal that can be furthered by helping employees develop their AI skills.

New data from Upwork—based on a survey of more than 2,500 global C-suite executives, employees and freelancers in the U.S., U.K., Australia and Canada—finds that only 13% of business leaders have a well-articulated AI strategy. At the same time, 40% of employees report their company is asking too much of them when it comes to AI.

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Addressing the AI skills confidence gap

According to a separate, related survey from WalkMe, a digital adoption platform provider, employee confidence in their AI skills may be suffering because of insufficient training.

The online pulse survey of more than 1,000 Americans found AI usage at work is common: Fifty-four percent of respondents use AI tools at work, more than half have managers who encourage AI usage, and more than half of those who use AI say their work has improved. However, only 15% of respondents consider themselves AI experts, and just 7% report having received extensive training to boost their AI skills. Many employees appear to be experimenting with AI on their own: Nearly 80% of survey respondents say it took four or five tries before they felt they could make their work easier or better using AI.

“What we discovered is that while many Americans are using AI, they don’t feel like they’re experts, and the vast majority believe their work product would be better if they had help along the way,” says Dan Adika, CEO and co-founder at WalkMe.

6 steps to build employees’ AI skills

Ankur Edkie, co-founder and CEO of Murf AI, which offers an AI-driven text-to-speech platform, says supporting employees as they develop their AI skills doesn’t have to be complicated.

He suggests a six-step framework to successfully drive AI adoption at scale within a workforce:

• Define: Begin by clearly defining the problem you want to solve and assess whether AI is the right fit for that problem. “Implementing AI without a clear purpose will not lead to successful deployment at scale,” he says.
• Discover: The AI landscape is vast. Edkie says HR must experiment with different AI solutions to find the best fit for specific problems and organizational needs.
• Upskill: Provide comprehensive training to employees to ensure they can effectively adopt and utilize the chosen AI solution. “Empowering your workforce is key to successful AI integration,” he notes.
• Seed before scale: In Edkie’s view, employers should start with small-scale experiments to test the AI solution in a controlled environment, as these initial trials will help refine processes and increase acceptance before a broader rollout to the full workforce.
• Offer clear governance: Edkie advises employers to establish clear governance frameworks, including usage policies, privacy protocols and regulatory compliance to ensure responsible and ethical AI deployment.
• Measure: To scale AI successfully, employers must demonstrate tangible results, which means measuring the impact of the AI solution against the initially defined challenge. Showing clear, positive outcomes will build confidence and support for scaling, Edkie explains.

“Our customers have observed substantial benefits from implementing AI solutions, especially in HR and L&D,” Edkie says. “When done right within HR and a workforce in general, AI solutions can greatly enhance employee comfort levels.”

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