We are at the dawn of major changes and upheavals in the future of work and its redefinition for all types of positions and sectors.
In this new era of AI that is advancing at an impressive speed and faster than expected, change management, the ability to adapt and digital literacy will be required to evolve in society.
The Financial Times recently published an article titled ‘Sam Altman, the AI executive with eye on the risks’, where OpenAI CEO Sam Altman testified on Capitol Hill, Washington recalling that if AI was not properly controlled, it could lead to troubling consequences for humanity as he called for regulation of AI and admitted, with disarming understatement:
« If this technology goes wrong, it can go quite wrong. »
-Sam Altman, CEO, OpenAI
HEC Montréal, Executive Education, held the webinar ‘Robots and AI: are we all going to lose our jobs?’ on May 17, 2023, with panelists Valérie Pisano, President, Mila – Quebec AI Institut, Joé T. Martineau, Associate Professor at HEC Montréal and Alexandre Le Bouthillier, Co-founder and partner at Linearis.
« The speed at which everything is developing, and the risks associated with AI are worrying » says Valérie Pisano. AI has a formidable ability; « it is now impossible to distinguish between what is produced by AI and humains (e.g. photos, videos…) ».
Joé T. Martineau indicates that major issues need to be managed, that a large-scale ethical, social and economic debate is upon us, that tasks will be transformed and that we will have to reinvent ourselves.
Different types of AI exist and some of these technologies cause problems, in particular generative AI and malicious uses with a risk of dual use (e.g. propaganda). « Right now, there are no controls! » says Joé T. Martineau.
On the other hand, Alexandre Le Bouthillier mentions that health industry would like AI to develop more quickly. « In research, it’s extraordinary; in radiology, the advances are enormous. »
« On the health side, AI will save lives! »
-Alexandre Le Bouthillier, Linearis
What will become of the labor market?
AI will transform the labor market. We are talking about productivity gains, but also that all areas will be affected, some less than others and that some sectors are doomed to disappear or be reduced.
Valérie Pisano specifies that there will be cycles of evolution, that we will have to rethink our way of organizing ourselves, demonstrate self-criticism and have an enormous capacity to change and reinvent ourselves. The biggest changes will be in the management of human resources.
Several questions arise, says Valérie Pisano: how to avoid misinformation and how to replace jobs properly? Not to mention legal issues and data sources. It will be necessary to provide « lifelong » tools for change management. You will have to recharge your batteries, learn to learn. Human resilience will be at the forefront.
« The labor market will be turned upside down » says Joé T. Martineau; « there will be job losses, but also job creations ».
The World Economic Forum in its ‘The Future of Jobs Report 2023’ estimates the net loss of jobs worldwide at 14 million by 2027. Artificial intelligence and economic and social conditions are expected to cause 83 million job destructions, for only 69 million over the next five years.
The problem is that there is a mismatch in the job market; « we also have to think about the requalification of workers, which risks being a difficult transition – we should perhaps think about employment as being a corporate social responsibility » mentions Joé T. Martineau.
How to act as manager?
« Change management will be important » indicates Joé T. Martineau, it is necessary to have a global thought and not only on numerical gains and it is necessary to exercise its critical spirit by raising the question « should we establish an internationl code of ethics? ».
Valérie Pisano adds that choices must now be made, that all managers must inform themselves and that the HR function will be completely changed, even reinvented.
« We are at a time of choices, what place are we giving to AI? »
-Valérie Pisano, Mila – Quebec AI Institut
Taking an inventory of the date is inevitable, but once this inventory has been made, how to use this data well? The responsability is great as to their reliability.
Everyone agrees that there are risks, impacts and ethical issues, especially regarding their malicious use.
And how will AI impact HR?
In the article ‘L’intelligence artificielle s’invite dans la gestion des ressources humaines’, published in April 2022 by Jean-François Venne in the Revue Gestion – HEC Montréal, Xavier Parent-Rocheleau, CHRP and assistant professor in the Department of Human Resources – HEC Montréal, specifies that the main interest of AI remains to be able to process a large amount of data and to identify trends that could escape humans.
In this sense, artificial intelligence can help improve certain processes, « but it should not be used to take control and decision-making out of the hands of human resources professionals ».
AI and regulation
AI is advancing at such an impressive speed that controls and regulations have not kept pace, and it is now urgent to act. Major AI players, including Elon Musk, are calling for a slowdown in this pace to allow for the proper and necessary regulation of AI, espacially generative AI-type systems.
Yoshua Bengio, Professor at the University of Montreal and founder and scientific director of Mila – Quebec AI Institute, published on his blog; « I recently agreed to sign an open letter proposing a slowdown in the development of giant AI systems more powerful than GPT-4, those that currently pass the Turing test and therefore can fool a human being into believing that he converses with another human being and not with a machine. »
« In the short term, regulation is essential.»
-Yoshua Bengio, Founder, Mila – Quebec AI Institut
Moreover, an article published in The New York Times on May 27, 2023, titled ‘Canada Needs to Hurry on A.I. Oversight, Experts Warn’, advocates for AI oversight stating that two of the three godfathers of AI, Canada-based professors – Geoffrey Hinton of the University of Toronto and Yoshua Bengio of the University of Montreal – call for a pause in AI development as measures of a proposed artificial intelligence bill will only come into effect too late in 2025 in Canada.
At the time of writing, a group of business leaders, including Sam Altman, released a statement that « extinction » threats loom over humanity. « Addressing AI-related risks should be a global priority…» the signatories wrote on the Center of AI Safety website.
This fatalistic statement is surprising, but one fact is certain, AI is now unavoidable and the repercussions will be felt in all spheres of life, including in the redefinition of work and the fragmentation of all types of jobs and levels.
Stefanie Rochford, CHRP, CRHA
President, Rochford Executive Search