AI’s Impact on Employment
The debate of ChatGPT’s impact on employment has been a hot topic of discussion for a while, as people fear this emerging technology will replace human jobs faster than anticipated. Although some businesses rely on AI in hopes of replacing specific job roles, many argue that chatbots will never be able to replace the knowledge, talent, and emotional intelligence of skilled workers.
On top of that, ChatGPT and its digital cousins, such as Bard or Bing, are prone to making mistakes, cannot fetch up-to-date and factual information, and are limited in terms of which services they can provide. Even if the technology advances and developers manage to minimize mistakes, AI’s liability to make errors will likely keep businesses from fully embracing generative AI models.
However, AI can be (already is) embedded in the workplace, as it could help assist people, automate specific tasks, and ultimately save businesses time and money. So, to quote at least a thousand LinkedIn influencers – AI won’t steal your job, but those who use AI will.
The latest IBM study has confirmed just that.
Augmented Work for an Automated, AI-driven World
The IBM Institute for Business Value has conducted a study, Augmented Work for an Automated, AI-driven World, to analyze the effect of AI’s rapid transformation on the global workforce. According to their findings, generative AI will have a substantial impact on the job market, leaving job seekers no choice but to adapt and learn AI skills.
The following conclusions partly emerged from two prior studies, one involving 3,000 C-level executives from 28 countries, while the other encompassed a sample of 21,000 employees from 21 countries.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) anticipates that 44% of workers’ skills will be disrupted in the next five years, which the IBM study only confirms. IBM found that four in five executives support the claim that generative AI will affect employee roles and skills. In other words, 44% of the entirety of the workforce will have to reskill within the next five years and embrace AI as a part of their daily work routine.
Source: IBM
Interestingly, only 28% of CEOs in IBM’s study have assessed the potential impact of generative AI on their current workforce.
Finally, IBM also found that AI will impact the majority of employees but at different rates and speeds.
While workers at all levels will feel the effects of generative AI, lower-level employees are expected to see the biggest shift. More than three in four executives say entry-level positions are already being impacted, while only 22% say the same for executive or senior management roles.
Source: Augmented Work for an Automated, AI-driven World