Management Perspectives

The speed of new technology disruption seems to be accelerating. Studies have predicted that as many as 375 million jobs may be at risk to automation by 2030. Against this backdrop, you might expect growing enthusiasm to invest in new skills. So why are we not seeing a rush from established professions to become more technology savvy?

As we get older, we become less enthusiastic about new work tools

We spend much of our early careers fighting to establish ourselves, to reach a level of competence and comfort. This shapes how we relate to new things in very specific ways. Everything is new, and nothing is familiar. Consequently, we approach almost everything with a sense of inadequacy and insecurity. A pervasive sense of needing to survive, to prove ourselves and to receive recognition.

As we enter our middle career years, where on average 75 per cent of today’s workforce sits, our early naïve enthusiasm and need to prove ourselves are gradually replaced by a growing confidence and sense of security. We move from apprentices to masters in our fields…. From freshers to seniors. At the same time, our lives become more diverse, more complex. Not only does work become less the center of our universe, but the job takes less of our effort… indeed, we put some parts of it on a kind of ‘auto-pilot.’

Imperceptibly, but inevitably, we become more complacent. Sub-consciously, we reason, we have fought hard to establish ourselves in our careers and we have now earned the right to relax and breathe. Our state of mind shifts from fighting to be the master of something, to instead seeing anything new as unwelcome inconveniences that disturb our comfortable equilibrium.

Organisations versus individuals perspectives – the ‘slothful induction fallacy’

One of the major obstacles all organisations face in introducing change is apathy. Conventional wisdom focuses on rational arguments for adopting change along the lines of why it is important for the company and what the reward/consequence may be for employees. And yet, the generally accepted wisdom of all change initiatives, is that up to 85 per cent seek to avoid, delay, or even actively resist change.

The reason, we believe, is explained by an insufficient understanding of how the majority of the workforce relate to change. Change is unwelcome, not because the rational arguments are not compelling, or because change programs have not explained the consequences. The fundamental problem is the entirely natural but often overlooked act of self-delusion we practice as we get older.

The desire to protect our comfortable cocoon of stability and security is very powerful. We filter company attempts at nudging us from our familiar routines through a lens of cynicism and fallacious logic. “Sure...” we say, “the company is introducing yet another change program… it will be just like the last one… lots of waving of hands and slick presentations but it will blow through just like last time.” And “yeah, technology may change everything… eventually… but my time horizon is shorter than that… and my relationships will protect me from anything too bad.”

We might liken the challenge to requesting a teenager clean their room. The more an authority figure relies on the familiar tools of rationalisation (this will be good for you), task responsibility (you promised to do this), coercion (you’re grounded if you don’t), or incentive (ice cream), the greater the risk of witnessing a huff, rolling of eyes, and half[1]hearted compliance.

The power of reframing and creating powerful individual narratives

There are increasingly few occasions where imposing something new on individuals in the workplace is very effective. Particularly when it comes to knowledge workers, and specifically when it comes to leveraging the benefits of a high impact technology like AI, we are generally looking to engage individuals in the shared exploration of possibilities. Consequently, the notion of imposing such a tool on individuals would be akin to forcing a farmer to take a coding class and expecting greater crop yields.

This is why we believe we must take the time to understand how new technology like AI will be viewed by individuals. How it may be viewed at best as an unwelcome complication to their status quo and at worst an existential threat. The good news is that once we’ve taken the time to understand that adopting something like AI, at its heart, requires us to overcome individual behavioural obstacles, we can look at some far more effective approaches.

Early adopters versus laggards

Over the past 40 years, we have helped organisations manage through large scale change. In particular, we have looked at the differences in perspectives of individuals at the beginning, middle, and end of their careers. What we have found is that the biggest determiner between the so-called early adopters and everyone else, is how they ‘frame’ it psychologically.

While it sounds simple and perhaps intuitive, it is remarkable how little we use this knowledge when trying to encourage the adoption of something new. Individuals who relate to something as interesting, fun, useful, or even social, are significantly more likely to embrace it enthusiastically. Obviously, the reverse is also true, those individuals who relate to something as a threat, an imposition, a requirement, will at best adopt it reluctantly, mechanistically, and at worst try to sabotage it.

How do you help your colleagues avoid sleepwalking toward obsolescence?

Consequently, the most effective way for managers to help their colleagues to explore and experiment with applications of AI, is to reframe the subject to make it more appealing and engaging. In basic psychological terms, the best approach is to find ways to make the exploration of new skills something that has independent and personal appeal for each individual.

We have developed a mnemonic to help managers more effectively reframe the adoption of AI- FUEL

F - Make it ‘Fun’: Gamification is an example of this. Introducing something new in the form of a game or competition. If you can point to examples of new technology that have a fun dimension, you are halfway to reframing it from chore to entertainment.

U - Make it ‘Useful’: We find it fascinating how many things get done around the house nowadays based on watching a YouTube video. If you can find something small that could be fixed today by applying ChatGPT… suggest your team tries it to see what happens.

E - Make it ‘Easy’: It is critical that trying something new isn’t too daunting. Fortunately, most entry examples to AI are extremely user friendly. Remember, however, to keep the bar modest… at least at first.

L - Make it ‘Light’: In our experience it is easier for people to experiment and try new things if they are encouraged and not judged. We recommend recognising all attempts kindly and generously. Role model this yourself. Share your own stumbles as a great example of honest and authentic endeavour.

Finally, we are reminded of the deceptively powerful wisdom in the novelist Will Thomas’ quote “there’s no fear when you’re having fun.” In our experience, even when it comes to confronting unwelcome change in your professional life, he is absolutely right.