The Role of AI in Learning and Development: Transforming Employee Growth and Engagement

The realm of learning and development (L&D) is experiencing radical changes, with Generative Artificial Intelligence (Gen AI) tools and Large Language Models steering the transformation. Organisations must align with these advancements to stay current in a fast-paced professional landscape.

Gen AI Revolutionising L&D

The role of L&D is gaining prominence in successful organisations, with its potential to nurture, engage, and retain top talent. However, L&D experts, who are used to guiding others to adapt to change, are now facing the challenge of adapting to Gen AI tools that are becoming increasingly prevalent in our daily lives. One of the most recent and well-publicised examples is the generative AI ChatGPT developed by OpenAI, which can broaden the horizons of L&D. Beyond ChatGPT, there's a plethora of Gen AI-centric platforms that will improve processes for L&D teams.

Cornerstone has been investing in machine learning (ML) technologies since 2014. Over the last five years, the company has made strategic acquisitions of EdCast, Saba, SumTotal, and Clustree, all aimed at bolstering its ML and AI capabilities. Our future-forward Talent Experience Platform combines best-in-class learning with growth-centric talent capabilities and the power of AI to make talent leaders champions of engagement, growth, and transformation.

In a sign of things to come, and signaling a possible policy change by government, the Labor party in its Draft National Platform said it will “ensure that the development of policy in relation to AI both supports uptake in ways that benefit Australians, while introducing guardrails that safeguard Australian communities.”

In essence it aims to protect businesses, citizens, and society from the known and potential dangers of AI, and also will ensure that companies choosing to use artificial intelligence technologies will have a duty to help their current employees learn new skills, to prevent unnecessary job losses.

Advantages of Gen AI in L&D

Increasing Efficiency and Scalability

First of all Gen AI will help L&D professionals to analyze an almost unlimited amount of data available at their fingertips, not only the data available in the company learning management systems but across much larger data sets (crossing industries, job families, countries, languages and more parameters), helping to know what people need to learn and know to be successful in their current and future roles.

Personalising Learning and Work Experiences

AI can assist L&D professionals in creating customised learning experiences tailored to the individual needs of each team or person. With the correct input information, AI can outline a highly individualised learning journey in seconds, and robust learning materials can be developed with a few more follow-up prompts. Cornerstone recently announced an AI-powered engine for its Talent Experience Platform (TXP). It is a comprehensive solution to manage employee development, performance, learning and development pathways, and talent acquisition.

A talent experience platform optimises how organisations recruit, train, and develop their people, aligning employees' career goals with their objectives, providing clear career development opportunities, and suggesting roles based on their skills and interests.

TXPs integrate AI to enhance their functionality by using AI and machine learning technologies to understand employee preferences based on their previous activities, submitted preferences and desired career paths.

Gamification and Interactive Simulations

Gen AI can help create interactive simulations and gamify learning to make it more engaging and memorable. Role-playing scenarios with peers can be customised in real-time to an employee's needs with Gen AI, not just during group workshops.

The Potential Challenges and Risks

Ensuring Data Privacy and Security

Organisations are rightly worried about potentially confidential information being fed into public tools like ChatGPT. However, as Gen AI tools begin to be monetised, they are likely to offer Enterprise License Agreements allowing all employees within an organisation to privately access the tool within the existing IT infrastructure, mitigating the risk of data leaks.

Addressing Skill Gaps

New AI-related skills will need to be developed as many roles will change with the broader adoption of AI. Training on inputting the correct prompts to get useful outputs will be crucial. The role of L&D professionals will shift from being content creators to becoming editors, focusing more on customising content to their company's culture, fact-checking information, and facilitating or program managing.

Facilitating Virtual Coaching in the Future

Virtual career coaches have been available in the form of chatbots primarily in talent acquisition for many years now. The use cases for on-demand virtual coaching are much broader making learning content even more accessible and convenient for all employees. While currently, Gen AI doesn't have the capabilities of experienced certified coaches, our virtual “companions” have developed more conversational skills, empathy, and critical thinking.

Creating a Supportive Environment for AI-Driven Learning

Gen AI tools have the potential to enhance productivity and spur innovation; however, they also introduce risks due to their potential to, among other things, leak sensitive data, introduce security vulnerabilities, violate privacy regulations, infringe third party rights, and provide incorrect outputs. The introduction of AI into everyday work must be well-planned and implemented with buy-ins from across the organisation.

The rise of AI in day-to-day life will significantly benefit L&D professionals in terms of efficiency and productivity. However, the ethical concerns and risks might still currently counter-balance these benefits. As AI becomes more knowledgeable, effective, and nuanced, the benefits will outweigh the risks.

“Not generated in whole or part with Generative AI.”

By Olivier Pestel, Vice President Customer Success and Solution Consulting APJ at Cornerstone OnDemand