This article is the first in a series of AI-focused content for talent development leaders written by Brandon Carson. Explore the rest of the series here.
Several factors determine successful implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) across the enterprise, and it’s critical for a business to formulate a clear AI strategy to ensure that their workforce can deliver sustained value from AI implementation. Before the workforce adopts AI, they need to understand its benefits, trust how it’s implemented and used, and receive the training and support to leverage it in the most efficient and productive manner. In this playbook, we focus on the near-term impact of generative AI (GenAI) on the corporate learning and development (L&D) function and provide six actions that executives should take as they prepare their organizations for human-machine collaboration and job augmentation with GenAI.
PWC forecasts that AI will add nearly $16 trillion to global economic output by 2030. And according to the World Economic Forum’s latest Future of Jobs survey, 39% of the workforce’s skills will be transformed or become outdated from 2025-2030. This skill instability brings a daunting paradox to companies: How can they maximize value from investment in AI while simultaneously preparing their workforce to execute the strategies that result from that investment? Companies must strengthen their data systems and processes, develop workforce capability, and establish clear AI guardrails—all before implementation begins. Organizations that invest thoughtfully across these areas will be better positioned to realize AI’s long-term potential.
By harmonizing implementation of both smart technology decisions and strategic workforce skilling and development, companies will accelerate their long-term impact with AI and grow business value. Contrary to the many comparisons made with other disruptive technological innovations, AI is a workplace transformation rather than a technological transformation. The first step is to recognize that the L&D function must become a key component in the overall business strategy and needs to evolve its operating model.
Corporate L&D is a critical component in ensuring a substantial return on AI investments.
Why does this matter now? From the perspective of work, the sheer power and promise of AI offers a transformative opportunity, moving from a landscape of manual processes and skill gaps to an era of enhanced productivity, innovation, and growth. However, with this transformation comes the responsibility to manage the workforce transition. As companies integrate AI and automation, they must focus not only on the efficiencies gained but also on repurposing talent and existing expertise. This requires a proactive approach to ensuring that workers are skilled for new roles within the organization or supported in their transition to external opportunities.
In no other era in modern history have companies faced the challenge of simultaneously blending smart technology investments with broad new skilling of their workforce. This means that L&D can’t exist in an operational silo; it must be woven into the fabric of the business. It’s not just about updating skills, it’s about determining how humans and AI effectively work together.
In no other era have companies faced the challenge of blending smart technology investments with broad workforce skilling.
A foundation for transforming L&D
These six strategic actions provide the foundation for transforming L&D in the age of AI. Implementing them demands a fundamental shift in how organizations view both L&D and AI itself. In a world where AI and automation are transforming every aspect of business, L&D’s role should be reconsidered, rethought, and re-architected to more effectively guide organizations through this workplace transformation.
A critical nuance over the next several years will require L&D to focus deeply on human-specific skills. Clear communication, critical thinking, and problem-solving will become the primary skills that humans use to interact with AI in the flow of the work.
Currently, AI serves as a tool for people to solve problems and augment their intelligence, but AI is not just a tool, it’s also a skill. The paradigm shift we’re experiencing is moving people away from a tools focus in the work to a skills focus where they work directly with AI. People need new skills to effectively utilize AI models to solve problems.
As AI matures, it will take over routine tasks and even create its own tools to get work done as it becomes our coworker rather than our assistant. People will need to focus more on developing deep, specialized knowledge in their fields. We see this happening in software coding now with more than half of all code submitted to GitHub last year being written by AI.
The paradigm shift is moving people away from a tools focus in the work to a skills focus working with AI.
As L&D departments lead their companies toward skills-powered development, they must bridge two worlds, developing human talent through thoughtful AI integration to help organizations thrive both today and tomorrow. The re-architected role of L&D places them in a unique position to drive organizational transformation in our new AI-enabled world of work. Learning leadership must be elevated to the highest organizational level, recognizing performance support as a strategic priority. Here’s how organizations can strengthen L&D’s impact:
Establish L&D as a strategic partner in shaping the organization’s transition to an AI-augmented workforce where humans and intelligent systems collaborate effectivelyWe’ve identified six strategic actions that executive teams should take to prepare L&D for the age of AI. These actions help ensure organizations are ready as AI ushers in a new era of work:
- Prioritize AI literacy development across all employee levels
- Position L&D as an integral voice in business planning and workforce strategy discussions
- Build enterprise-wide partnerships to create a data ecosystem that captures skills development, learning progress, and business outcomes
- Establish L&D as a strategic partner in shaping the organization’s transition to an AI-augmented workforce where humans and intelligent systems collaborate effectively
We’ve identified six strategic actions that executive teams should take to prepare L&D for the age of AI. These actions help ensure organizations are ready as AI ushers in a new era of work. We outline steps to take for each action to help you customize them to your specific context and begin transitioning your function for our AI present and future.
The question for every organization is: “How will you ensure your workforce is not just prepared for, but thriving, in the AI-driven future?” Companies must urgently recalibrate their L&D functions as AI significantly reshapes the workplace and redefines the very meaning of work itself. These six strategic actions provide the foundation for this transformation, enabling organizations to shift from traditional training to augmented performance support where AI literacy and fluency become core competencies. The future of work relies on collaboration between humans and AI, and those who embrace this transformation will unlock unprecedented business value. Now is the time for decisive action. How will you help your organization succeed in this new era of work?
Ready to get started? Dive in with Action 1: Transform AI understanding into strategic AI literacy and governance
About the author
Brandon Carson
Brandon Carson is a globally recognized leader in learning and currently serves as Chief Learning Officer at Docebo. He has held prominent roles such as CLO at Starbucks, where he led their global Learning Academies and the Future of Work practice, and Vice President of Learning and Leadership at Walmart, where he was responsible for global leader development and corporate onboarding. Brandon is the author of Learning In The Age of Immediacy: Five Factors For How We Connect, Communicate, and Get Work Done and L&D’s Playbook for the Digital Age, both from ATD Press. He is also the founder of L&D Cares, a nonprofit that offers no-cost coaching, mentoring, and resources to L&D professionals, empowering them to grow and thrive in their career.