AI and the Human Factor: Overcoming Challenges in Adoption

Everywhere we turn these days, someone is telling us that AI is going to change the way we work. 

“AI: A Whole New Way of Working,” Microsoft proclaimed in a recent article. “Next-generation AI will transform work for everyone.” 

Even though Microsoft is in the business of selling AI, there is no reason to doubt what they have predicted for the future of work. As many of us struggle with what exactly AI is all about, it is slowly but surely changing our lives. This is particularly true when it comes to the way we work. 

In a 2023 global survey of IT professionals, IBM found that more than 42% of organizations were already using AI in day-to-day business, suggesting the hype around AI has not been misplaced. Yet the rush to adopt AI has encountered its share of speedbumps.  

By most estimates, between 80 and 85% of AI projects fail to meet their objectives: twice the failure rate for non-AI IT projects. This rate owes to a long list of problems, but the failure to properly support workers in adopting new AI tools certainly ranks near the top. 

That same IBM survey found 20% of respondent organizations do not have the employees with the right skills in place to use new AI tools, and 16% cannot find these skills on the open labor market. Even more worrisome was the finding that only 34% of respondents were providing resources to help employees use these new tools. 

There is little doubt AI has the potential to change the way we work. However, there is also ample evidence that more time and energy is being invested in developing the technology, and less on helping people use it in the most effective ways. 

In many ways, this inherent flaw in AI adoption is hardly surprising: organizations implementing all kinds of change initiatives frequently put their time and money into the shiny new idea or program, and much less on supporting people after deployment to get the best results.  

Technology can revolutionize our working experience, but organizations will not reap the rewards of their investments unless we help our people work in completely new ways. Right now, the debate about the creation of new ways of working is lost in muddy definitions and misplaced priorities. 

Towards a better definition of NWoW 

The Dutch claim responsibility for coining the term “new ways of working,” and its ubiquitous acronym – NWoW. According to academics, it is connected to a Dutch idea – “Het Nieuwe Werken” – which described the ability of people to work anytime and anywhere, allowing them to “adjust their work conditions to personal preferences.” 

Although it has been studied and debated for much of the 2000s, NWoW gained enormous prominence during the global pandemic, when public health restrictions forced those who could work from home to do so. Pent-up demand for more flexible working schedules, locations, and conditions converted what started as a stark necessity into a driving force for recruitment and talent management.  

In short, people got a taste of WFH during the pandemic, and many found they liked it—a lot. Now, employers are weighing the need to offer flexible or hybrid work conditions as table stakes in the search for skilled talent 

However, the focus on "where" people were working took a lot of attention away from "how" and—more specifically—how workers needed to change the way they work to embrace new tech tools.  

Even today, the NWoW has been siloed in a discussion about flexible work schedules, remote technologies, and even different approaches to office design. Missing from this equation is a systemic approach to training, upskilling, and supporting workers to make use of the new technology, and feedback mechanisms to allow people to describe how it is changing the way they work. 

The key to getting value from new technology is changing behaviors 

Many organizations are so focused on the acquisition and deployment of new technology, they forget to help people change their work behaviors to account for the introduction of new tech tools.  

With something as potentially impactful as AI, day-to-day working experiences can be completely upended. This isn’t just about swapping out a screwdriver for a wrench; new tech requires new behaviors and mindsets to ensure full value is achieved. 

That means creating a specific process to change behaviors. You can tell people they need to change, but if you don’t define how they must change and provide support to help them change, your organization will be stuck with promising technology which will never achieve its potential. 

Ignoring behavioral change creates a number of risks. Without proper support, you will see some employees flatly refuse new technology and quietly—even subversively—continue doing things the old way. There is also a high probability that a group of vocal dissidents will try to undermine the new tech, hampering wider adoption.  

Any effort to help your people embrace and apply new technology will involve three distinct components: organization, employee, and leader. 

The ‘HOW’ for Organizations 

• It’s important to remember that adopting powerful new tech is, in essence, a change management challenge. Organizations need to pay close attention, identifying the things which must change to make full use of the tech, supported by robust communication and training. 
• Organizations must also identify a point during deployment of the new tech tools where a concerted troubleshooting effort is put in place. Who is using the new system and who is pushing back? It’s important to identify those who are struggling—or actively resisting—and provide them with additional support. 
• Remember that AI is constantly evolving. Systems must be put in place to help employees deal with the constant change the future will bring. This involves well-defined plans to help employees through updates, the introduction of new features, and training to help people incorporate these tools into everyday tasks. 

• Involve individuals, particularly front-line workers, in planning for the change. Sometimes this isn’t possible, but the earlier the most-affected people are involved in a technology project, the greater the buy-in down the road. 

The ‘HOW’ for Individuals 

• Although the introduction of new tech triggers change, the key determinant of how much value you will get will be determined by how individuals respond. Initial skepticism, disillusionment, or anger will limit the impact of the new tech. 

• An individual’s appetite for learning will largely determine who is quick to embrace new tech, and who struggles. It’s important to profile employee skill strengths, weaknesses, and learning histories. If someone struggles, you need to know what is holding them back, and how to get them back on track. Don’t assume they will eventually “get with the program.” 

• Close attention must be paid to creating a compelling adoption narrative to resonate with individual workers, built on explicit examples of the new system’s benefits. If some employees are not engaging with communication or training for the new tech, efforts must be made to reach out on an individual basis to find out why they are struggling.  

• Nothing combats skepticism as effectively as positive feedback. Individuals need to see data on their performance. Those who embrace new tech tools and prosper should be celebrated. Those who resist the new tools need to see data showing how their performance is lacking.  

The ‘HOW' for Leaders 

• As is the case in any change initiative, the success of your new tech will be largely determined by front-line leaders who must change their own behaviors to help those they lead change in turn. Our hands-on experience and published research indicate leaders must: 
  1️⃣Align on expectations 
  2️⃣Observe performance 
  3️⃣Remove barriers to performance 
  4️⃣Provide feedback on performance 
  5️⃣Establish a coaching relationship 

• Leaders must also lean on their peers for support. The establishment of Change Agent Networks—where leaders talk to other leaders about the challenges of new tech adoption—can ease concerns and cultivate best practices in managing change. 

• Finally, leaders must understand that the people they lead will have different capacities and tolerances for adopting new technology. Boilerplate approaches will not only leave some people behind, but they will also create ancillary concerns that go beyond the tech itself. Leaders who take the time to bring all members of their teams up to speed end up getting the best results from new tech. 

CONCLUSION 

Although the primary challenge may be deploying new technology on-budget and on-time, the broader challenge is ensuring that your people are changing their behaviors to fully change the way they work.  

Many organizations focus most of their time and attention on the new tech’s initial roll-out. Yet, they fail to follow through with a strategic plan assessing how well these new tools are being used and whether everyone is on the same page regarding their uses. 

In the final analysis, introducing new tech is a three-dimensional challenge that involves  

leaders, individuals, and organizational perceptions and priorities. Ignoring any of these constituencies will mean lower adoption and fewer realized benefits.