While AI can help you increase productivity, defining productivity is a baseline for understanding what your business wants to achieve.
“We are very dependent on formula and structure for the way we run our organization, and most have not evolved rapidly for decades,” Livesey noted. “All of a sudden, there has been a huge change in the way people choose to work.
“Of course, that's largely possible through access to technology outside of the office. Technology has actually supported shifts. In the same way, AI can actually make that even more possible.”
What Livesey sees in the struggle is understanding what the new formula looks like, and that becomes the board's problem.
“It's an issue for the executive team, but it's an issue for our team and our workers, because we don't know yet,” she pointed out. “It is extremely difficult to coexist with some of the opportunities that come.
“I think the momentum and pace are being picked up. New work, new world The report shows that the adoption of generated AI is not uniform.
“In the next three years, we believe that only about 13% of our businesses will significantly adopt generative AI.
AI is not a silver bullet to address the challenges that every organization has from a productivity standpoint.
“What it really teaches us is to build up these new organizational formulas, seeing how we use human and digital talent in this new way,” Livesey proposed.
This must be supported by the way the organization builds trust. How do they reskill? Controlled by regulations. Show value.
Impact on leadership
Examples of how Cognizant incorporates this into its own organization come from initiatives such as Vibe Coding Week, which aims to promote AI literacy and innovation in its employees.
“We've actually been recognized by the biggest hackathon Guinness Records book, but if we're thinking about what's working,” Livesey said. “We recommend that all teams take part in using AI. We have chosen to select AI tools that are actually fulfilled for different skill competencies.
“We have very skilled engineers, and we have very traditional workers in areas that are not technology-ready, but more supportive features.
“What we did was that they were able to use AI to take on projects, some on teams, some on individual projects.”
“What it's doing is to encourage cultural change in the organization and give teams permission to innovate,” Livesey explained. “It's about changing your workforce. One of the biggest things we can do is to expose talent to AI use and give you the opportunity to experiment in a safe way.”
This isn't just about teaching about technology, but about the considerations you need to take when choosing how to use AI and how to use it.
This includes what it means in the way that the role is performed.
“We're looking at the use of [AI] It's really just beginning to emerge,” she said. “But it is going to shape the way we think about organizations.
“It will shape our thinking about structure and the type of products and services we offer to individuals.”
Every leader needs to learn about AI, but yeah, they don't just need to learn about technology, Livesey points out. They need to learn what opportunities they create, and they need to understand the risks it introduces into their organization.
“They need to think about the types of skills that will be important in their organization,” she said. “I think you’ve come into contact with the fact that some of these soft skills, such as empathy, critical thinking, communication, adaptability, and more, become more important than ever as you navigate the period of greatest change.
“I think we'll see most of our careers, especially in the current set of leaders.”
Livesey said it creates new career paths and new opportunities for different types of leaders. They may have a cross-section of business and technology skills that are rising into the organization's territory due to the needs and opportunities it creates.
“I think every leader needs to rise right now. I'm really thinking about how they adapt and navigate. That's challenging.”
Start with intention
For Livesey, in order for AI to become a business capability, the word intent must support the beginning of the journey.
“Most of us are going to learn every day. It's the power of human action that we are constantly learning,” she said. “We talk a lot about social and cultural changes within our organization.
“Some are incredibly intentional, but not the masses now. A major element of an organization that exists today is the “What should I do?” stage. “
What is reluctant to deploy AI is the uncertainty of which technology to use. How to use it; the best use case. Or they are reluctant to unfold it as a result of what they want.
They also pointed out, Livesey wants to understand how to set up a team that has AI through the organization and not let everyone else get confused.
Starting with your intention as an organization that understands deployment, adaptability, and how to use AI to serve customers involves managing value, ethics, trust and regulations.
“Your intentions regarding how you manage your values, ethics and trust are really important,” she said. “If you want to succeed, you have to start with the intent and purpose of it, not with technology.”
