AI...Be a Friend or Be Afraid

It's amazing to hear all the hype around artificial intelligence (AI) these days. Most people I’ve

talked with who just heard a speaker on AI say the same thing… “The speaker scared me to death. Jobs are going to disappear and robots are going to rule the earth!” While some jobs will disappear and robots will increase in the workplace, AI isn’t going to destroy the workforce or the earth.

Is AI going to create change in virtually every business model we know? Absolutely. Is it going to take over many jobs we know today? Yes…but it's also going to create many jobs we don’t even know exist, because AI has to mature as an active business model/process for new jobs to be developed.

The big question for you and you members is, “With AI, will you be a friend or afraid?”

Think about all of the technology developments since the 1980s. People literally thought the internet was going to destroy the job market. What actually happened is that the internet created 10 jobs for every 1 it took away. AI will do the same.

People thought social media was going to destroy the value of associations. It didn’t. It made them more connected and stronger. AI will do the same.

People thought virtual meetings were the end of live in-person meetings. This one is kind of funny because in 2020, the only meetings you could have were virtual...there was no competition from in person meetings. Virtual meetings should have locked in the meetings market, but guess what? People eventually almost hated virtual meetings. The increase in virtual meetings actually helped people fall in love all over again with in-person meetings...and AI will do the same.

AI is the #1 solution to the most pressing challenges that almost every industry in America has… the labor shortage. Most people are so scared of AI’s potential that they are missing the opportunity to drastically improve process, productivity, operations, and throughput in their organizations with AI technology.

You must understand this….the labor shortage is here for at least another 10 years. Check out the latest stats:

• 4 Million More Jobs Than Unemployeed People

• Record # of 16 – 20 Year Olds, yet Lowest # of 16 – 20 Year Olds Looking for a Job

• Early Retirements After COVID for 55+ Year Olds (3 million)

• Lack of Childcare (16,000 childcare closures from COVID era)

• Less Women Returned to Work After COVID (3.5 million+)

• Labor Participation Rate Predicted to Get Worse by 2030

The #1 obstacle to growth in many companies is lack of employees. Companies who will grow in

the future will be companies that embrace AI and find the areas of processes and operations that blend human touch with AI technology, maximizing productivity and throughput. Hear me out on this…AI is not about replacing employees. AI is about capacity expansion with the employees you have. AI can mimic and do a lot of tasks that humans can perform, but it can’t do everything. Humans will be needed. The key for any organization is finding the right balance for each part of their process and operations.

The big question is, what can AI NOT do? While AI has made significant advancements in recent years, there are still certain tasks that it struggles to perform. Here are a few things AI currently has limitations with where humans can excel at:

Common sense reasoning: AI often lacks the intuitive understanding of common sense that humans possess, making it difficult for AI systems to handle complex real-world scenarios accurately.

Creativity and originality: While AI can generate content based on existing patterns and data, it is challenging for AI to exhibit true creativity or produce original ideas without human input or predefined parameters.

Emotional understanding: AI struggles to comprehend and empathize with human emotions due to their subjective and nuanced nature. AI can analyze and respond to emotions based on predetermined patterns, but it doesn't genuinely experience emotions.

Complex decision-making: AI can make decisions based on patterns and data it has been trained on, but it may struggle with making judgment calls in complex situations that require a deep understanding of ethical, moral, or contextual factors.

Physical dexterity: Although AI can control robots and automation systems, it generally lacks the physical capabilities and dexterity of humans. Fine motor skills and adaptable physical interactions in unpredictable environments are challenging for AI.

It's worth noting that AI research and development are ongoing, and these limitations may change in the future as technology advances.

AI performs with a blend of past data and algorithms that teach it what to do in the future. With world events, market shifts, and variable change happening so rapidly, AI will have its own struggle to keep pace without human training and engagement.

Just imagine being able to quadruple a workers output without adding hours to their day. Just

imagine being able to reassign a worker to another area of your operation where they are needed because AI can take over performing most of their tasks.

I'll say it again: AI is about CAPACITY EXPANSION. Not employee replacement.

So will you be a friend or be afraid of AI?

Don’t be scared of AI. Be a FRIEND of AI and embrace the opportunity in front of you and your members to expand capacity by blending AI technology with the human touch of your employees.

Five years from now, your future self will be Thanking YOU.