Lead with AI: Building Skills for a Future-Ready Workforce

Fifty-two percent of knowledge workers are now using generative AI tools in their work on a weekly basis, according to research released by Asana. These astonishing numbers mean employers need to take the lead on getting their workforce the right AI skills for their organization, or risk falling behind their competition.

Read on to discover 10 of the world’s top AI experts who offer practical guidance, as well as upskilling and reskilling tips, that will equip teams with everything they need to win in the AI-driven future.

Mitchell Weiss | Top Advisor Helping Leaders Elevate Their Knowledge of Generative AI and Explore How to Deploy it Within Their Organizations

Mitchell Weiss is an award-winning Harvard Business School management practice professor. A key voice leading the charge of understanding GenAI at HBS, Mitchell’s engaging and in-demand AI seminar helps top leaders think about how to deploy these tools inside their organizations and how to practically use the technology themselves. After a single interactive session, Weiss helps users significantly elevate their competency with GenAI, including knowing the risks and rewards. His workshops help ensure leaders and their organizations aren’t left behind as technology continues to rapidly evolve.

Renee Richardson Gosline | Globally Recognized Digital Marketing Expert Revealing How to Improve Decision-Making with AI Systems that Keep Humans in the Loop

Many firms are exploring human-AI collaborations and their potential to make content creation more efficient. According to Renée Richardson Gosline, Ph.D., head of Human-First AI research group at MIT’s Initiative on the Digital Economy, these “human in the loop” (HITL) systems could also help address concerns about the potential unmitigated proliferation of inaccuracy and bias in frictionless applications of AI. Drawing from her latest fascinating experiments at the intersection of AI and human judgement, she presents a framework for identifying harmful and beneficial friction in HITL systems to increase efficiency and mitigate inaccuracy.

David De Cremer | Renowned Leadership Advisor, Digital Transformation Strategist and Behavioral Scientist Empowering Organizations to Realize AI As a Value Creator and Leadership Collaborator

The world is embracing generative AI tools like ChatGPT, but the challenge for leaders extends beyond technology adoption, says David De Cremer, Ph.D., Dean of Northeastern University’s D’Amore-McKim School of Business and founder of the Centre on AI Technology for Humankind. Author of the new book, “The AI-Savvy Leader: Nine Ways to Take Back Control and Make AI Work” (June 2024), one of The Next Big Idea Club’s Must-Read Books, he demonstrates how to incorporate AI as a strategic asset while creating the right conditions for workforces to use it. His action plans help businesses transition effectively to become AI-driven organizations with strong human-centered strategic plans underlying them.

Hila Lifshitz-Assaf | Award-Winning Global Researcher Identifying Innovation Strategies That Leverage Digitization and Artificial Intelligence

How can organizations leverage AI and human expertise to generate more innovative results and ultimately create the optimal future of work? The future of work won’t be about replacing humans with AI systems, but will be driven by allowing AI to augment and maximize human efficiency, says innovation management expert and Warwick Business School professor Hila Lifshitz-Assaf, Ph.D. Using her “You Have a Choice” framework, Lifshitz-Assaf illustrates how work is already changing thanks to remote teams, online labor markets and AI. She leaves audiences with a new appreciation for the ways productivity, quality and speed will continue to be enhanced by embracing AI systems alongside human expertise.

Christian Stadler | Internationally Renowned Strategy and Leadership Expert Whose Practical Frameworks Help Organizations Leverage AI and Workforce Input to Create Successful Long-Term Strategies

Can ChatGPT assist with opening decision making to diverse voices outside the C-suite to empower and enhance input from across an organization? Leveraging AI can help to create more efficient connections between people, allowing more to participate in important conversations, explains Warwick Business School professor Christian Stadler, Ph.D. A renowned strategy and leadership expert, Stadler reveals how to prompt the programs to produce the best results, making AI a strategic decision-making partner. His practical tools and techniques ultimately help executives better listen to their organization, unlocking powerful new decision-making techniques.

Matt Beane | Human-Robot Interaction Pioneer and Leading Expert on the Future of Work and Skill Development Involving Intelligent Machines

Artificial intelligence systems allow organizations to streamline processes and ensure output quality, but they can also have unintended consequences. Matt Beane, Ph.D., a University of California, Santa Barbara technology management professor, shows that we are unintentionally removing humans from processes, which can lead to employees becoming disengaged and behind on building skills. The author of “The Skill Code” (June 2024), one of The Next Big Idea Club’s Must-Read Books, his sessions reveal that on-the-job learning is under threat, but there are ways to bring it back stronger than ever. An energizing speaker, he delivers strategies for implementing tech solutions while enabling workers to build skills and connections with each other, greatly enhancing an organization’s human capital.

Jim Lecinksi | Award-Winning Educator, Marketing and Sales Executive, and Authority on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in Marketing

According to Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management MBA program marketing professor Jim Lecinski, AI is poised to be one of the most transformative technologies of our time. Generative AI tools have powerful potential to create images, copy and other assets that can be hyper-customized to the desired messaging, Lecinski explains, but the current limitations of systems like ChatGPT means it’s vital for leaders to carefully consider how such systems will be used. In workshops and highly engaging presentations, Lecinski offers a better understanding of what generative AI is, how it can be applied to marketing functions, and what leaders will need to keep in mind when using this emerging, but still imperfect, technology.

Michelle R. Weise | Upskilling and Reskilling Visionary Helping Organizations Build Talent, Not Just Buy It

Generative AI has just begun to make its mark on the world. Tomorrow’s workplace will require workers with a hybrid of human skills and tech skills – intellectual dexterity mixed with technical expertise. Michelle Weise, Ph.D., author of “Long Life Learning: Preparing for Jobs that Don’t Even Exist Yet,” dispels the fear-mongering myth that AI and automation will replace people. Offering practical guidance for leaders and teams alike, she points instead to the opportunities ahead to upskill, retool and outskill workers for an increasingly turbulent future of work.

Paul Leonardi | AI Strategy and Digital Transformation Expert Who Helps Leaders and Employees Evolve With Technology and Collaborate Better at Work

Recent news touts ChatGPT’s productivity-amplifying and time-saving potential, but in truth, most companies are not seeing such gains. According to University of California, Santa Barbara professor Paul Leonardi, Ph.D., large language models (LLMs) present unique challenges, including the fact that, by the very nature of their design, they’re constantly changing. Managers equipped with Leonardi’s STEP framework, which he developed by working with top companies that have successfully implemented GenAI, will find themselves better able to empower employees with the introduction of AI into their organizations. A captivating speaker, he presents functional insights for creating new avenues for value creation while simultaneously improving employee experiences.

Marc Zao-Sanders | Lifelong Learning Advocate Helping Teams Close Skills Gaps and Understand How Generative AI Can Be Practically Applied in Business

With more than a decade at the helm of AI tech company Filtered Technologies, Marc Zao-Sanders, author of “Timeboxing,” has become a top expert on how GenAI tools are actually being used in businesses. A lifelong learning advocate, he helps organizations upskill their workforce by creating custom AI tools for curating their existing content. Leaders gain key insights into how GenAI is being used on a daily basis as well as tactics for empowering employees to safely experiment with GenAI tools without risking organizational harm.

As generative AI tools continue to evolve and adoption becomes more widespread, it’s critical for organizations to equip their teams with the skills they need to make promised productivity gains a reality. By consulting with top experts like those at Stern Strategy Group, leaders will find themselves better prepared to face their AI-powered competition.

To see the gains in productivity and innovation promised by emerging technology like AI, organizations must make the investment to reskill and upskill their workforce to use them effectively. Stern Strategy Group connects you with renowned thought leaders whose insights, strategies and management frameworks help organizations fuel growth and disruptive innovation to better compete in a constantly changing world. Let us arrange for these esteemed experts to advise your organization via virtual and in-person consulting sessions, workshops and keynotes.