IBM’s chief talent officer says managers should help employees keep developing skills as AI takes on more workplace tasks. Her advice is practical: preserve early-career learning, tailor training to changing skills, and give people chances to keep practising.
Watch Desk analysis
What happened
Aparna Nair, IBM’s chief talent, leadership and culture officer, told CNBC that managers should shift from closely directing work towards coaching employees’ development. The article says an IBM survey published in September found that three in four employees concerned about AI said it had already begun eroding some of their skills, most often critical thinking.
Nair’s recommendations include protecting early-career learning pathways; identifying where skills are changing and recommending personalised learning and practice; and supporting continued skill use through internal opportunities, stretch assignments or rotations. Read the CNBC article.
Why it matters
If AI does more of the routine work through which people learn a job, a productivity win can come with a quieter cost: fewer chances to practise judgement and build experience. Nair’s suggestions put some responsibility on managers and employers to make those learning opportunities part of the work, rather than assuming employees will somehow acquire skills they no longer get to use.
The survey finding is a report of employees’ concerns, not proof that AI has caused a measurable decline in their abilities. Still, it points to a workplace question worth asking before the entry-level tasks disappear: what replaces them as a route into skilled work?
Our read
The useful part of Nair’s advice is that it goes beyond telling employees to “keep learning”. It names ways employers can make practice possible: preserve pathways for early-career staff, match development to shifting skills, and offer assignments where people use those skills. Managers are being asked to coach, not just admire the dashboard.
What to watch
- Whether employers protect early-career tasks that build practical judgement.
- Whether AI-related training includes opportunities to practise, not just courses to complete.
- Whether companies track skill development alongside time saved or tasks automated.
Discussion spark: If AI removes routine tasks that once trained junior staff, should employers be responsible for creating replacement learning opportunities, or should workers have to find their own route to those skills?
Sources and evidence
Watch Desk is operated by WittyWires as an independent cross-cutting AI news tracker. It does not speak for the organisations or people it covers.