The launch of ChatGPT was an event that left the world in awe and opened the eyes of many professionals. The effect was almost immediate and marked by a collective realization that something in our lives and our work had fundamentally changed. It became clear that nearly every facet of organizational processes had to be rethought, every value proposition had to be redesigned. It seems almost hyperbolic, but the shift transcended professional boundaries, impacting researchers, lawyers, teachers, doctors, and executives alike. The urgency to adapt quickly became a competitive advantage.
This is not the first time that a change has shaken the foundations of what was once considered immutable. There was the Industrial Revolution, the advent of the Internet, and smartphones. Yet, it’s difficult to compare even these seismic shifts to the recent pace and depth of change caused by the entry of Generative AI into our lives and the corresponding – and often overwhelming – feeling of vertigo due to the sheer pace and depth of the change.
What kind of leaders do we need at this point in time? I do not refer to the individual executive or politician, but to the companies that will become the standard bearers for this new era. Which are the organizations that have the leadership, technology infrastructure, governance, and culture to not only survive but create stability and continue our forward movement through this change?
Those companies currently embracing AI and transforming themselves into AI-driven organizations share certain characteristics. In fact, they have three major areas in common, which, when bundled together are necessary for competitive advantage: visionary leadership, technological capacity, and a culture of learning. While the first two are straightforward, it is difficult to pinpoint an exact recipe for a culture of learning, or to measure it, and yet it will probably turn into the best predictor of an organization’s success.
Let’s take these three characteristics step by step and imagine the best-case scenario of each:
- Visionary Leadership. A humble and visionary CEO is always a boon to an organization, and in this AI-driven era, she understands both the potential and the limitations of AI, and is committed to leveraging it for sustainable growth. She takes calculated risks to innovate but is also mindful of ethical considerations and potential pitfalls. This CEO fosters an inclusive culture, encouraging input from diverse teams, and communicates the AI vision clearly across the organization. She is a magnet for attracting talent.
- Technological Capacity. In a data-driven organization, decisions are based on data analytics and AI models, not just intuition. They have scalable IT systems and solid infrastructure that can support advanced AI applications and big data analytics. Efficient data collection, storage, and management practices, as well as compliance with regulations and an ethical governance framework, are firmly in place. While not perfect, this readiness for change – coupled with the above-mentioned visionary leadership – fosters a non-fearful environment that allows for discussion and forward movement.
- Culture of Learning. In organizations with a culture of learning, employees are encouraged to continuously develop their skills and knowledge. They are also empowered to share ideas, to experiment, and to take calculated risks. These learning-focused companies also tend to prioritize investment in new technologies and allocate resources for research and development, training, and infrastructure upgrades. In such a culture, innovation is not just encouraged (or the name given to a department) but ingrained in every aspect of the business. There is a strong emphasis on cross-departmental collaboration as a way of learning within the company, and the transparent sharing of information to ensure everyone is aligned and informed. This means that the company, being multidisciplinary and non-hierarchical, is agile and responsive enough to quickly adapt to new insights and changes in the market.
In a learning-focused organization, progress is measured not only by financial metrics but also by various other indicators, including innovation investment ratio, hours spent on employee training and development, the speed of introducing new products and services, intellectual capital within the workforce, and the extent of knowledge sharing.
The competitive capacity of what an organization can learn is what propels it towards future success. This is why we find ourselves at a particularly exciting moment in business history, because the adoption of AI highlights how learning is valued in organizations due to the speed and depth of the transformation that occurs. Yet, all this said, when asked in our organizations to provide an overview of an initiative or to make a “business case” for a new project, our immediate response is still to report the bottom-line numbers.
But what if we also shared:
- How much you and the team have learned.
- How relevant that learning has been to the work’s progress.
- What will be adapted and changed due to the learning outcomes.
Rarely is this information included on even one slide of a PowerPoint presentation. It should be. Learning is among the most relevant keys an organization has to overcome the challenges ahead and take advantage of the opportunities – especially in the strategic adoption of AI, which begins with an implementation process through proofs of concept and pilot projects in key business areas. These projects serve as testbeds to demonstrate the potential value of AI, allowing for gradual scaling based on initial successes. So again, what you learn and the speed at which you learn feeds the next iteration of a self-perpetuating process of learning and innovation.
Done well, AI can be successfully implemented through agile approaches in a working environment where individuals develop their best selves through continuous learning. This also means that AI presents an invaluable opportunity to leverage learning —it pushes us to learn quicker and to learn better. It only makes sense, therefore, that those organizations that have a culture that is focused on constant learning and constant innovation, are the ones with the biggest competitive advantage today.
It’s time to start asking yourself, your team, your organization as a whole: what have we learned? How have we learned it? How can we leverage it?
© IE Insights.
