How to Use AI for Professional Growth, Not Replacement

There's a lot of noise from business leaders about when Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) will arrive. But the real question for them should be "What matters right now?" The reality is that #AI capabilities are jagged at the moment, which means that they can draft PhD-level research, yet fail at simple tasks. Reaching #AGI still requires two things (we need a couple of more years): 1. Continuous Learning 2. Long-term effective memory On the one hand, Continuous Learning is missing. Unlike employees, AI doesn’t “get better on the job.” That makes it powerful for repeatable tasks, but not yet a true adaptive partner. On the other hand, Memory. When AI remembers past interactions, it stops being a one-off tool and starts acting like a trusted advisor. Early implementations are already helping companies plan strategically, maintain context, and personalise interactions. The key takeaway is that you as a business leader should not just wait for AI to get better and better at every task, but focus on today's breakthroughs that can deliver a competitive advantage.

#musings A few weeks ago, I tested Copilot to analyze feedback from our global onboarding cohorts. What would’ve taken hours of manual sorting — patterns, pain points, common themes — came together rather quickly ;) But what stood out was the quality of insights: we could clearly ascertain where new hires struggled most and where our content truly landed. That moment is a reassurance that the AI is actually expanding our lens. It’s giving us data to have more strategic conversations with business partners: → Where are the real capability gaps? → Which learning interventions move performance metrics? → How can we personalize growth at scale without losing the human touch? I recently came across this Harvard Business Review article (https://lnkd.in/gne4D_eU), which notes that AI can improve productivity by up to 50% when paired with human judgment. When used thoughtfully, AI creates space for deeper human work: the capability for designing experiences that drive impact. For me, the future of learning is AI-informed, human-led, and business-aligned.  #cointelligence #LearningAndDevelopment #AI #FutureOfWork

The Skills Gap Is Real. One in three companies have trained even 25% of their employees to use AI effectively. 📊 Survey Insight: Nearly 75% of executives name AI as one of their top three strategic priorities for 2025. ➡️ AI is no longer a side experiment, it’s at the core of business strategy. Investment Is Growing — But So Is Realism. Companies are spending more on generative AI this year than last. But they’re learning that AI isn’t a “plug-and-play” tool — it requires discipline, skilled people, and process transformation to truly create value. 💡 The real competitive advantage isn’t AI itself — it’s how effectively your team learns to use it. #AITransformation #BusinessStrategy #FutureOfWork #GenerativeAI #DigitalTransformation #TebaConnects

At the end of the day, deals need to be closed and clients need to be cared for. No one wants to be sold to by an AI, and no one wants an AI to manage their account. That's people work. It always will (should) be. The real, immediate value of AI in business isn't to replace that work. It's to drive the efficiency that gives humans more time to do it. The current state of GAI suited for exactly this role. It's powerful, but it's not perfect. Every large language model needs a "human in the loop" because it hallucinates, makes things up, and doesn't learn from its mistakes in the way a person does. When a good employee makes a mistake, they learn. They adapt. They get better. A good employee is always trying to get better. An LLM that messes up will often just double down on its flawed logic. That's why the most valuable people are the ones who can guide these powerful tools and then enrich the output with the patina of human experience; the wisdom, common sense, and shared stories that turn sterile data into a real solution. That's the person you want in the loop. #FutureOfWork #AI #ProblemSolving #Leadership #Adaptability #Randstad

Dumping money into AI and seeing no return? You're not alone. 💸 A recent report indicates that a staggering 89% of businesses are failing to see tangible customer value from their AI investments, despite anticipating a 32% increase in spending by 2026. Why should you care? This highlights a critical gap between investment and practical application. It suggests that simply throwing money at AI isn't enough; a strategic, value-driven approach is essential for success. What steps are you taking to ensure your AI investments deliver real results? Share your thoughts! 👇 #AI #ArtificialIntelligence #Innovation #ROI #TechInvestment

People are finally realizing what AI cannot do. After months of uncertainty about AI's impact on jobs, something interesting is happening. The more people actually use AI tools, the more they're discovering the limits of machine learning. As creatives, we saw this coming. Our work has always been collaborative: co-creating with clients, audiences, brand strategy, and each other. AI fits naturally into this creative process, but with one critical difference: it's unpredictable. It doesn't follow instructions like software. It interprets them. And its first attempt at doing so is rarely the final answer. This is familiar territory for anyone who makes things. We're used to iteration, to knowing that complex problems don't have single solutions. We refine, redirect, and revise until something feels true and clear. And this is exactly why human judgment is more valuable now than ever. The instinct to know when something misses the mark, when an approach feels off, when work needs another round. Understanding nuance, context, and meaning in ways that can't be programmed ... taste. These skills aren't just important; they're essential. The companies succeeding with AI aren't the ones trying to replace people. They're the ones pairing AI capabilities with human oversight and direction. Because the technology still hallucinates, misinterprets, and requires constant course correction. What we're discovering isn't that AI can't help us. It's that the work of refinement, judgment, and knowing when something is actually done remains deeply human. The future of work isn't human vs. AI. It's human with AI, and humans are firmly in the director's chair. #AI #FutureOfWork #AIandHumans #HumanJudgment #TechAndCreativity

Why do AI tools seem to turbocharge people who were already winning? AI makes the best people better, faster than it helps everyone else. According to this WSJ article, the people winning with AI share a few traits: - They start using tools before they're fully documented. - They're comfortable being wrong in public. - They have enough domain expertise to know when outputs are useful versus garbage. All of these allow them to iterate quickly and grow the "gap." There's a social dynamic at play too. Organizations already knew who their top performers are. When those people use AI, their output gets labeled "innovative." When average performers use the same tools, it looks like they're taking shortcuts. Management reinforces this by giving high performers more autonomy to experiment. Link to article below on how to level the playing field 👇

AI prompting is not a replacement for human skills — it’s a craft. AI doesn’t replace human skills — it amplifies them. There’s a common misconception that AI tools “do the work for us.” The reality? They amplify the work we choose to put into them. Writing an effective prompt isn’t about stringing words together. It’s about: ✅ Clarifying intent. ✅ Understanding context. ✅ Guiding the AI with creativity and structure. ✅ Anticipating outcomes and refining inputs. In other words, prompting requires human judgment, insight, and imagination. Just as a painter chooses their brush strokes or a strategist frames the right questions, an effective prompter shapes the outcome with skill. The AI is the tool — but the craft lies in the hands of the human who wields it. 👉 Instead of asking whether AI will replace us, the real opportunity lies in how we adapt to it — by treating prompting as a new literacy of the digital age that rewards thoughtful input, critical thinking, and creativity. After all, the best results come not from the machine itself, but from the human mind guiding it. #ArtificialIntelligence #PromptEngineering #FutureOfWork #AIandHumanity #DigitalSkills #Leadership #Creativity #Innovation

AI strategy is about more than solving today’s problems; it’s about setting direction for tomorrow. 👉 Looking 2-3 years ahead, what role do you want technology to play in your business: just a helper, a co-worker, or a driver of new growth? - As a helper, AI handles the repetitive work. - As a co-worker, it collaborates with your team on more complex tasks. - As a growth driver, it helps you create entirely new products, services, or revenue streams. There’s no single “right” answer. But defining your vision now shapes your investment, adoption, and competitive edge tomorrow. So... where do you see AI in your business in 2–3 years? Read more: https://lnkd.in/eC7maAdv #AI #AIstrategy #FutureOfWork #AIforBusiness #DigitalTransformation #BusinessGrowth

AI adoption isn’t slowing down, it’s stalling in the middle. Over the past year, organizations raced to pilot AI tools and “see what’s possible.” But what many are discovering now is that the real challenge isn’t the technology, it’s adoption. AI success isn’t just about installing tools. It’s about embedding capability. And that’s where most transformation efforts are getting stuck. A recent report found that only 17% of companies say their workforce is ready to use AI tools effectively. That means the majority are sitting in the messy middle, aware of AI’s potential but unsure how to move from enthusiasm to real productivity. This week I’ll unpack how we bridge that gap, from skills to systems to trust. AI transformation isn’t about speed anymore, it’s about depth. (Image by Nano Banana) #AI #WorkforceTransformation #LearningAndDevelopment #AlluminasAI #Skills