AI, or artificial intelligence, is fast becoming part of day-to-day life, and it could also have a big impact on how people work in the years ahead.
By tackling some of the more routine tasks, the technology may help some people to free up their time to focus more on how they can make an impact in their career.
Perhaps the time saved could be used to brainstorm with colleagues or to focus on a particular project. Or maybe the technology could even help you brush up on your presentation skills.
Recent research from jobs and hiring platform Indeed indicates that one in four workers feels “excited” about how their role may develop in an AI world.
But a quarter don’t feel prepared to adapt to changes in the workplace.
Nick Hedderman, senior director of modern work at Microsoft UK says: “Generative AI is a really powerful tool to help supercharge your career.”
Whether you’re feeling excited or cautious about the new technology, here are Hedderman’s tips for making the most out of AI:
1. Enhance your creativity
Hedderman says AI can help people to “overcome classic creative hurdles, like writer’s block”.
He says it can generate relevant suggestions, researching and summarising information.
“If you have a range of documents with key information to sift through, AI tools can also be a great help in summarising the key themes across them all,” he adds.
2. Use time saved to upskill
“A really key benefit of recent AI tools is in allowing employees in all industries to give themselves more time to actually focus on the creative and strategic aspects of their work,” says Hedderman.
“Or, with the time you’ve saved, could you finally tick off that action item that’s been at the bottom of your to-do list for months, or spend time meeting with team members or potential customers to build those face-to-face connections?”
3. ‘Be there’ when you can’t
AI can help if you’ve missed a meeting, says Hedderman, by summarising notes from meetings you may have missed.
It can also help with preparing for upcoming meetings. Hedderman says tools can even suggest how to make meetings more engaging.
4. Let AI to help you improve how you communicate
Hedderman says an AI-powered presenter coach can be used to go over presentations and source feedback on how you’re delivering them.
He says: “Whether its body language, tone, or even whether you overuse specific words or phrases, AI can now help you make sure you’re as engaging as possible.”
5. Use AI to help with a career switch
Hedderman suggests: “It’s worth considering whether there are any new job roles or even new industries you could apply for with AI as a support.
“Do you have a basic, working knowledge of coding languages, which could be bolstered by AI to enable you to apply for a more tech-focused role?
“Even if you don’t feel like you have the immediately transferable hard skills, focus on your soft skills, which are things like communication, creativity, and interpersonal skills. They’re all highly valued by employers and can help you evidence the distinctly human value you can add in a competitive job market.”
In addition to Hedderman’s tips, it’s also vital to read up on your employer’s policies and guidelines around AI use, to make sure you comply with them.
