McRae suggests companies include use cases and examples that not only demonstrate how the organization wants employees to use genAI, but also spells out the corporate philosophy about the technology. And it’s important to make clear what impact genAI will have on roles and workflows.
“For example, it could include sharing how genAI was used to develop first drafts of software programs, and software developers were assigned new workflows or roles that involved extensive review and testing of the GenAI-produced drafts,” McRae said. “Meanwhile, the organization was able to move people interested in software development — but without much experience in the field — into prompt engineering roles where they create the prompts to generate the first drafts of the software programs.”
Because of the risks associated with genAI hallucinations, and the fact that even if employees aren’t using genAI tools themselves they will be receiving content that has been produced using the technology, McRae recommends annual training on “Information Skepticism.”
“Information Skepticism training will be similar to how most organizations have an annual training on phishing followed by unannounced tests that direct any users who fail to remedial training, in order to manage information security risk,” she said.
Information Skepticism training should also be followed by followed by random tests to ensure employees are staying aware and vigilant of the risks, McRae said.
Heidrick & Struggles’s Alba believes the more hands-on employees get, the better — even beyond any bootcamps or courses academia can offer. He compared education on genAI to learning the possibilities of the Internet in the mid-1990s, saying it’s a new frontier and most organizations will have to “roll up their sleeves” and try out the tech to see where productivity gains lie.
“The reality is the academic part of it is interesting, but these are new models that we don’t even know what they can do yet,” Alba said. “I don’t think the educational institutions will catch up to the hands-on reality of playing around with these.”