The role of responsible leadership in the AI era

How can companies make sure that their AI integration doesn't become one of the 70% of transformations that typically fail? And how can they overcome employee resistance and equip their workforce with the skills needed to succeed in the AI era?

Forget a course – form a club.

Managing the AI transformation responsibly requires commitment. Business leaders could sign up for an on-demand leadership course online, or bundle themselves off to an elite institution for a brief retreat. But we’ve found it’s far more effective to create an ongoing energy center for important topics such as AI integration. A kind of club with regular meet-ups bringing together cross-silo talents and external experts for meaningful exchanges.

Done correctly, this Leadership Circle becomes a safe space for honest debates and impactful decisions.

Take the human-centric approach

Human intelligence will be the answer to the challenges posed by AI integration. For responsible leaders, that means continuing to invest in reskilling and upskilling teams – providing credible evidence of a human-centric approach to technology that will be an enhancer - not a replacer - of people.

As machines take over more mundane, repetitive tasks, people will have more time to focus on higher-value work that requires soft skills such as critical thinking, problem solving and creativity. That’s why hands-on learning in the form of real-life business challenges is at the heart of our employee development programs. We’ve seen how it naturally equips people with the very skills that are becoming even more relevant in the AI era. 

Embrace human intelligence as an answer to the challenges posed by AI integration.

The top skills for responsible AI leaders

Communication: Transparent communication about your vision and values plus inspiring storytelling builds trust and credibility needed for successful AI implementation.

Curiosity: You don’t need to be an expert on AI. But being curious about how the tech works and staying informed about new developments will help you make good decisions about use cases.

Agility: AI implementation will bring organizational changes that require ongoing adaptability and resilience in leaders.

Empathy: With big change comes big fear. Leaders need to be empathetic to employees’ concerns and equipped to navigate the ethical challenges of AI, such as privacy, bias and accountability.

Need to prepare your talents for success in the AI era?

Hauke Stachow

hauke@thedo.world

Director Leadership Development & Intrapreneurship, The DO

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