The AI Experts You Want are Already in the Building
Across the globe, senior executives want to hire more AI talent.
Of course they do! Candidates who are fluent in generative AI work at higher speed and produce higher quality of work than those not using AI. It's a no brainer, like wanting Kong on your tug of war team.
But they're missing something big.
That AI talent? They're already in the building.
More to the point:
The AI talent that's already in the building is WAY better than anyone you could hire from the outside.
You already have the people, people!
It's like looking behind you and realizing that Kong is already on your team. And he's picked up the rope, and he's about to yank the other team into outer space.
This has mega HR implications, so let's dive in.
YOUR WORKFORCE HAS THE GOODS
First, let's define what we mean when we say leaders want AI talent. I'm not talking about, like, tech stack people - that's a specific type of role and yes, you need particular technical talent.
I'm talking about literally everyone else.
So let's confirm that leaders really want this:
The recent Microsoft/LinkedIn survey on work tells us that 71% of bosses would hire less experienced candidates with AI skills over more experienced candidates without them.
Those leaders have seen what genAI can do.
Or more likely, they've been told by enough people that they believe it.
Or my mom is making them watch my YouTube videos. (Hi Mom!)
So HR gets the mandate to put "AI skills preferred!!" in their job descriptions. And every candidate under the sun adds "Crazy AI Skills!!" to their resume.
And we are all missing the point.
We're missing how Kong got to be Kong.
Kong didn't go to AI school to learn AI. Kong used what Kong already knew and added additional Kong-like features to Kong's own brain and workflows. (I feel this analogy is breaking down.)
Here's what I mean:
Generative AI skills are in demand because few people have learned how to truly master generative AI. But these people who have mastered it can be anyone.
This is not somebody you have to hire because they got their masters at MIT.
You just need to do one thing: Talk to it like a human.
That's easy in concept, hard in practice, for reasons I've talked at length about in these newsletters (it has to do with brain science).
Which means that your people already have EVERYTHING they need to master generative AI.
What you're missing is….drum roll….
Great training.
Great training involves behavioral change. That's why most training is bad training, by the way. Because most training treats genAI like a passing along of information, when in fact it should be focused on getting people to understand why their brain struggles with genAI, and the best and quickest way to fix that.
THE E.A.T. FRAMEWORK (EXPERTISE, ADAPTION, TRAINING)
"Ah yes," you skeptics are saying right now, sipping your flat whites. "But isn't it better to hire those who are already fluent in generative AI?"
Heck no.
Here's a framework to unleash the AI experts in your midst:
STEP 1: EMBRACE YOUR EXPERTS
Your team's knowledge and skills are the foundation for AI success. Mastering genAI isn't about technical prowess, but about effective communication.
Because here's the most valuable thing in this human-generative AI combo platter:
The Human's Individual Experience and Expertise.
You already have the most valuable element!
You have people who understand your business and are good at driving value - otherwise you wouldn't have hired them in the first place.
That's 95% of the equation. You need that.
The 5% - and it's a critical 5%, believe me - is their prowess with genAI.
STEP 2: ADAPT YOUR HIRING MINDSET
Shift focus from administrative skills to critical thinking abilities. Prioritize candidates who demonstrate comfort with generative AI.
A caveat:
I tell senior leadership all the time to start their AI journey with re-examining how they hire. You should no longer be hiring for administrative skills but for critical thinking skills.
And yes, make sure your candidates are comfortable with generative AI. It's critical.
If you're a candidate? Get fluent on generative AI. Check out the free stuff I have online, newsletters, YouTube channel, etc. Or watch somebody you trust. But get it done.
STEP 3: TRAIN FOR TRANSFORMATION
Implement training programs that emphasize behavioral change over information transfer. Help your team understand the brain science behind effective genAI interaction. Encourage experimentation and iteration to crank up those AI-enhanced workflows.
Imagine this:
You give me and marketing guru Jeff Bezos a challenge: in 20 minutes, come up with this new idea for selling shoes.
I'm not a marketing guy, but in 20 minutes, with the help of ChatGPT, I can create a pretty great marketing plan, so good that I will wave it around in my hand and declare myself a marketing genius.
But then it's Bezos's turn. He also uses ChatGPT.
And he obliterates me in those 20 minutes.
Why?
Because he understands quality. He knows how to steer it. He knows the questions to ask, where to tweak it, what looks good and what to discard.
I don't know any of that stuff.
In the hands of somebody who doesn't do a lot of marketing, ChatGPT can turn them into a passable version of a marketing person.
In the hands of a marketer, who understands your business and your product and what has worked in the past and what drives value and who your customer base is, etc.?
That's gonna blow you away. That's real value.
So what do we do about it?
Well, we already have the 95% - which is the brains, expertise and experience of your people.
So now we just gotta train them.
And we can do that. I do workshops with companies, half a day, and the results are amazing. I'm not even pitching myself here - I'm telling you to let you know this is completely and totally possible, reasonable, and necessary.
PRACTICAL TAKEAWAYS
Assess your team's current AI proficiency and identify areas for growth
Develop a comprehensive AI training program that focuses on practical applications and behavioral change
Foster a culture of experimentation and continuous learning to keep your team at the forefront of AI innovation
Reevaluate your hiring practices to prioritize critical thinking skills and comfort with generative AI
Celebrate and showcase the successes of your AI experts to inspire others and drive adoption across the organization
So there you have it, friends - the secret to building your own army of AI experts.
Embrace the power of your existing workforce, adapt your mindset, and train for transformation.
With the right approach, you'll have a team of Kongs ready to conquer any challenge that comes their way.
AI NEWS OF THE WEEK
Rabbit is toast
I’ve said before that I love big swings and I don’t like to pile on. But if you bought a Rabbit R1, I’d encourage you to watch the latest investigative reports on them. I don’t like scams.
OpenAI and Nonprofits
It’s not the biggest story. But I love that OpenAI is making sure to discount product for nonprofits and taking care of folks who can use it. You can be skeptical, but if you’re a nonprofit, this is good news.
OpenAI and News
Also? OpenAI now has agreements with Vox and The Atlantic. This is getting to be a scene where they’re circling the NY Times by just buying up all the other media on the planet.
Generative AI Tips
I’ve been advising sales teams of late on how to use ChatGPT voice to practice sales calls. It’s amazing. As latency lowers, it’s going to sound like a straight-up client you’re talking to.
The great thing, though, goes beyond being able to assign a role to ChatGPT (a particular customer and demographic) - it captures the entire transcript. That way you feed it back to ChatGPT and ask it where you could have done better, where you missed the mark, if there’s a good framework you can use for these kinds of calls.
It’s an amazing partner to level up your sales skills. Get on it, friends!
