For years, AI was like a silent engine running in the background. Most of us were unaware—unconsciously incompetent, you might say. We knew AI existed, but we didn’t fully grasp its potential or what it could actually do. Then, almost overnight, ChatGPT launched, and AI burst into the mainstream. Suddenly, it was everywhere, and we quickly moved from knowing little to realising just how much we didn’t understand. Let’s be honest—who had even heard of LLMs five years ago?
It’s unsettling. As we progress in our careers, we often feel less confident because the more we learn, the more we realise how much we don’t know. Those "unknown unknowns" become "known unknowns," and this gap is driving much of the anxiety surrounding AI. People are jumping on the bandwagon, trying to keep up, but quietly asking themselves, "What does this mean for me?"
Right now, everyone’s talking about AI, and most assume everyone else is already using it. But the reality is, many are still figuring it out—and that’s perfectly fine.
With investment in AI at an all-time high, you might be wondering what your AI strategy should be. Leaders are being asked by their boards, "What’s our plan for AI?" when there isn’t even a clear understanding of what AI means for their organisation.
Here’s the first step to closing the AI literacy gap: admit what you don’t know. It’s okay to say, "I’m still learning." You don’t need to be an AI expert. Just like you don’t need to know how a lightbulb works, you only need to know what it does, how to use it, and how to plug it in. AI is no different. Start with the basics—learn the fundamentals, explore use cases relevant to your business, and build from there. Get comfortable with what AI can do for you now, and bring in experts to help you see the bigger picture.
And don’t be intimidated by the so-called "experts" or the new wave of AI consultants. Even they are still learning. AI is evolving every day, and while they may know more, they don’t know everything. We’re all on this journey together.
How to Build AI Literacy in Your Organisation
Building AI literacy is essential for staying competitive. However, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach. AI literacy must be tailored to your organisation's specific goals and level of maturity. Whether you’re a business leader, an employee, or part of a tech team, understanding AI at the right level can drive significant value.
For business leaders, having a basic understanding of AI fundamentals is crucial. This includes knowing what AI is, its different AI strands, and how it can support strategic decision-making. Without this knowledge, you risk missing key opportunities and falling behind competitors.
Key focus areas for business leaders:
AI literacy isn’t just for leadership—it’s crucial for employees. Tools like Microsoft Co-Pilot, ChatGPT, and other AI-powered workplace tools are becoming essential for boosting efficiency. To truly maximise their value, employees need practical training.
Key focus areas for teams:
Even if your organisation partners with external AI providers, your technology teams should understand AI to better manage these relationships and, eventually, build internal AI capability.
Key focus areas for tech teams:
There are many AI training programmes available, but not all are suited to your specific needs. It’s important to choose training that matches your organisation’s current level of AI maturity.
How to tailor AI literacy:
Building AI literacy is crucial to unlocking the full potential of AI in your organisation. By ensuring that business leaders, employees, and tech teams have tailored, practical AI training, you can drive growth, efficiency, and innovation. Make AI learning a continuous journey, not just a one-off event, and see how it transforms your organisation.
1. What is AI literacy?
AI literacy refers to the knowledge and understanding of artificial intelligence concepts, tools, and applications. It involves knowing how AI works, how to use AI tools responsibly, and how to integrate AI into business processes for better outcomes.
2. Why is AI literacy important for organisations?
AI literacy is essential for staying competitive in today’s digital world. It helps business leaders make informed decisions, equips employees with practical AI skills, and enables technology teams to manage AI implementations effectively.
3. How can AI literacy benefit my organisation?
AI literacy enables organisations to leverage AI tools like Microsoft Co-Pilot and ChatGPT to improve productivity, streamline workflows, and make data-driven decisions. It also helps in developing long-term AI strategies aligned with your business goals.
4. What are some key areas of focus when building AI literacy?
Key areas include understanding AI fundamentals, using workplace productivity tools like ChatGPT, ensuring data protection, and training technology teams on more advanced concepts like Generative AI and machine learning.
5. How should AI literacy training be tailored?
AI literacy training should be customised based on your organisation's AI maturity level. It’s important to focus on practical outcomes, like creating AI use cases, and to ensure that training is an ongoing process rather than a one-time event.
6. Can AI literacy be developed in-house, or do we need external help?
You can develop AI literacy internally with the right training and resources. However, partnering with external AI experts or training providers can be valuable, especially in the early stages of AI adoption, to ensure you are using the most effective strategies.
Hudson&Hayes collaborated with a large law firm to build Lean capability for their Innovation and Business Change Team through Hudson&Hayes' Lean Practitioner and Intelligent Automation Training.
The client sought Hudson&Hayes' expertise to develop Lean and Intelligent Automation capabilities within their internal team. Although they had some experience with Lean and Automation, they wanted to enhance the team's skillset. They preferred a tailored training approach, focusing on specific examples from their business, ensuring practical learning that could be applied immediately.
We provided a customised learning and development experience by meeting with the team before the training to scope out problem statements that could be used throughout the sessions. We then adapted the training content to incorporate their case studies. Delegates received a workbook, and the training was delivered across five modules interspersed with activities. Throughout each module, we guided the team through their problem statements, solving a real-life problem during the training.
By the end of the training, the entire Innovation team and a significant portion of the Business Change team were well-versed in Lean and Intelligent Automation principles and practices, empowering them to apply their newly acquired skills to drive innovation and efficiency in their daily operations.
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