24 Jan How Organizations, Global Mobility Pros Can Identify Strategic Opportunities for AI and Workers

Generative AI is suddenly on everyone’s radar, with some organizations deploying AI techniques across multiple business units and processes. However, Gartner research shows these mature AI organizations represent just 10% of those currently experimenting with AI.

In this experimental stage, companies are also seeing more of AI’s potential than the attendant risks, especially when the opportunities are just too big to ignore: 

• Develop smarter products and services
• Make business processes and functions (such as accounts, sales and HR) more intelligent
• Automate repetitive or mundane tasks to free people up for more value-adding activities
• Automate manufacturing processes

The promise that AI brings is crucial for companies to grow and stay competitive. Even non-tech companies that may lack in-house talent need AI. Organizations clearly need to partner with global mobility specialists to find the right AI talent and get up to speed quickly.

In PWC’s annual global CEO survey, it found that 69% of leaders plan to invest in technologies such as AI this year but its global workforce survey indicates the uncertainty of these technologies’ potential impact on them. 

However, companies must be aware of the risks involved in adopting AI, including developing rigorous protocols, evaluating use cases, prioritizing cybersecurity, addressing ethics and bias, and investing in training and development. A measured, thoughtful approach can help organizations maximize the benefits of AI while proactively managing the risks.

Global mobility specialists can play a pivotal role when it comes to recruiting and managing talents. With their expertise in managing talent, understanding diverse markets, and navigating complex regulations, they are uniquely positioned to provide strategic guidance and support when fear is overriding ambition among workers. 

Tech workers have found themselves getting laid off left and right, so it’s important to know the technology issues to consider and future-proof certain jobs — what technology is required to achieve our AI priorities (ex. machine learning, deep learning, reinforcement learning); what systems needed to be put in place and if the right technology is in place already. Few workers (less than 30% of workforce) believe AI will create new jobs or skills development opportunities.

New and disruptive opportunities

According to Gartner, Generative AI could significantly impact shareholder value by creating new and disruptive opportunities to drive enterprise goals such as:

• Increase revenue. AI will help enterprises create new products more quickly. Pharma, healthcare and manufacturing (CPG, food and beverages, chemicals and materials science) will become AI-first industries as they develop new drugs, less-toxic household cleaners, novel flavors and fragrances, new alloys, and faster and better medical diagnoses. 
• Create greater customer engagement. By disrupting existing value chains and business models, and enabling organizations to create and distribute content directly to consumers, thus bypassing traditional intermediaries such as publishers and distributors, generative AI can improve customer engagement.
• Reduce costs and improve productivity. GenAI capabilities can simplify processes and speed up results, whether by augmenting the efforts of human workers (e.g., summarizing, simplifying and classifying content), generating software code or optimizing chatbot performance. GenAI can also make use of previously unused (and thus wasted) data.

Global mobility assistance

On the other hand, global mobility specialists can assist with:

• Recruiting and developing specialized AI talent across regions. Their networks and experience identifying scarce skills helps build robust, multidisciplinary AI teams.
• Providing market insights to identify opportunities for generative AI. They research trends and analyze emerging technologies to inform strategic decisions.
• Ensuring compliance with regulations and ethical AI principles across markets. They advise on localized laws and steer initiatives to align with responsible AI standards.
• Facilitating collaboration for global AI projects. They bridge cultural gaps and foster effective communication between multinational AI teams.
• Developing a comprehensive roadmap for AI strategy and implementation. They align initiatives to business goals, prioritize key efforts, and manage rollout.
• Anticipating and mitigating risks around data, biases, and ethical concerns. They implement processes to ensure AI integrity across regions.

With their multifaceted expertise, global mobility specialists are critical partners in developing and actualizing a generative AI strategy that embraces opportunities while proactively addressing challenges. But on the whole, organizations may need to temper their outlook on AI. Some experts in the field are voicing existential angst about the potentially unintended consequences that could emerge as AI grows. 

Tug-of-war between executives and managers

There’s a current tug-of-war between the executives and managers seeking to rapidly tap the potential of generative AI for competitive advantage and the technical, legal, and other leading striving to mitigate potential risks. 

Deployed well, GenAI will become a competitive advantage and differentiator, building on the ability of AI in general to automate repetitive and tedious tasks and generate new insights, ideas and innovations with predictive analytics, machine learning (ML) and other AI methods. 

By then, generative AI would have the potential to radically transform existing economic and social frameworks, as did the internet and earlier innovations such as electricity. The question for your business is how AI will support enterprise ambitions and drive stronger results.