Summary of Key Points
The central argument of this article is that the exponential advancement of AI technology has left traditional corporate methods of "linear talent training" behind, unable to keep up with the pace of technological updates. The competitive gap between companies in the future will no longer lie in how quickly they can train new employees, but in how early they can identify those individuals who have the ability to continuously harness and evolve with AI. HR professionals must shift their focus from building training systems to enhancing talent identification processes, and organizations must transform from being "learning-oriented" to "evolutionary," otherwise they will be surpassed by AI.
Why Is Training Becoming Less Effective in Helping Companies Win?
In the past, companies could gain a competitive advantage through training because technological advancements were slow, and skills such as Excel proficiency could remain useful for many years. However, AI is developing at an exponential rate—like a snowball that grows faster with each addition of fresh powder: popular AI tools today may become obsolete by tomorrow, and newly acquired skills may become ineffective within months. Corporate training, on the other hand, follows a linear model: you attend a class today, practice tomorrow, and apply what you've learned the day after, which is simply not fast enough to keep up with the rapid changes in AI.
What truly matters now is not "existing knowledge or experience" (for example, 10 years of experience in creating PPTs, which can be easily replicated by AI), but the ability to "continue learning and restructure one's skills." The focus should shift from who can train the fastest to who can identify those with the necessary abilities to adapt to these changes.
LinkedIn Data: What Makes the 14% of Leading Companies Different?
A LinkedIn report indicates that only 14% of companies possess "talent effectiveness," meaning they have the ability to quickly adapt to changing circumstances. These companies do not wait for their employees to grow naturally; instead, they establish mechanisms to identify new skills early on:
- In the past, recruitment focused on educational qualifications, work experience, and industry background (for example, seeking a market manager with five years of experience in the fast-moving consumer goods sector).
- While these factors are still important, they are no longer sufficient because AI can quickly replace repetitive tasks (for instance, AI can generate marketing reports more efficiently than someone with five years of experience). What these companies look for are individuals who can maximize the value of AI—those who can use AI to analyze user data and combine it with their own insights to develop strategic plans.
What Skills Should Companies Screen For in the AI Era?
The focus should not be on whether someone can use a particular AI tool (such as ChatGPT), as tools will evolve. Instead, companies should look for four key abilities:
1. AI Comprehension: Understanding what AI can and cannot do. For example, while AI can help with research, it cannot make strategic decisions; AI can write copy, but it cannot determine whether the content aligns with a brand's tone—you need to know when to rely on AI and when to make your own judgments.
2. AI Collaboration: Treating AI as a partner, not an opponent. For example, you might ask AI to draft a proposal and then provide feedback (e.g., "Emphasize the product’s strengths"), and AI will refine it based on your comments, in a continuous iterative process rather than a one-time request.
3. AI Coordination: The ability to manage multiple AI tools effectively. For example, you could use one AI to collect customer feedback, another to analyze keywords from that feedback, and yet another to generate improvement suggestions—acting like a director directing different AI "employees" to complete complex tasks together.
4. AI Evolution: This is the most critical ability. Skills learned today may become obsolete in half a year, so you need to maintain a habit of constant learning and trying new things. For instance, immediately test out new AI features when they are released or research how to use emerging tools in your industry—instead of simply trying to catch up with AI, work alongside it to evolve together.
HR Must Change: From "Training Talents" to "Identifying Talents"
Over the past 20 years, HR has primarily focused on addressing employees' skill gaps by providing training. In the next decade, the core value of HR will be in identifying potential candidates with the ability to learn continuously:
- The focus shifts from asking "What courses do employees need?" to "Do they have the ability to learn consistently?"
- From building training systems to developing talent identification processes (e.g., using AI tools to assess learning speed and collaboration skills).
- From evaluating employees based on their experience to measuring their learning pace.
- From hiring those who can perform current tasks to recruiting those who can drive organizational improvement.
Training will not disappear, but it will no longer be a competitive advantage. The real advantage will come from identifying individuals who are willing to learn, capable of learning, and able to collaborate effectively with AI.
Organizations Must Evolve: From "Learning-Oriented" to "Evolutionary"
Organizations in the industrial era were designed to be "learning-oriented," where employees acquired knowledge and organizations accumulated experience. In the AI era, they must become "evolutionary"—capable of adapting and changing on their own:
- They should not just create knowledge libraries; instead, they need to develop systems with "memory" (e.g., using AI to store employee skill data), "learning capabilities" (e.g., automatically updating job requirements), and "decision-making abilities" (e.g., using AI to assist in adjusting team structures).
- They must continuously update their skill sets (for example, upgrading from basic PPT skills to advanced AIPPT optimization), reorganize roles (e.g., creating positions for AI collaboration managers), and change work methods (e.g., allowing employees to work alongside AI).
- They should attract individuals who can evolve quickly, as these individuals can drive the entire organization forward.
Who Will Not Be Overcome by AI?
It is not those who can use AI, but organizations that can evolve faster than it. The companies that will succeed in the future are not those with the best AI models or the most tools; rather, they are those that can quickly restructure their organizations, achieve effective collaboration with AI, and continuously evolve themselves. In the end, AI will transform not just the tools, but the organizations themselves. Those that evolve more slowly than AI will be left behind.
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