Issue 6: 100% On the Deck

This week’s issue comes from a real deck of a real boat off Paxos in Greece. I’ve just started two weeks holiday on a yacht with my family, a yearly pilgrimage to the Ionian islands in search of true switch off.

Life on a yacht for two weeks is the polar opposite of my life on land. Me and my increasingly-space-taking teenage family potter around from bay to village to taverna, sometimes under sail sometimes just a slow motor.

Yachting conjures up the idea of luxury, and my goodness do we see some incredible boats on our travels, our sailing boat are more oversized caravan, cramped, sweaty on hot nights (every night), one rather smelly bathroom with limited water, a fridge that relies on a lot of big bags of ice and a kitchen the size of a small desk - and as far as I’m concerned it is the perfect antidote to home life. And what we miss in mod cons, we truly make up for in sunrises and sunsets, mooring off deserted beaches and in lazy evenings chatting, playing Uno and hanging out in stunning harbours. We shop for each meal, eat local food, have to work as a team, sailing, anchoring, cooking or taking out the rubbish....

For many this would definitely not be their idea of relaxation, for me it is complete and utter heaven.?

Why ‘On the Deck’?

I thought it was time to explain why I called my newsletter ‘On the Deck’.

When Mackenzie and I started Atheni in January this year, it was the megatrends described by the OECD of AI and automation, demographic shifts, globalisation and the workplace trends like flexible working, that formed the foundation of our business. Without recognising and acknowledging the affects of these huge trends sweeping across every workplace, how can you make informed decisions about hiring or remote work or AI training? What if you are a leader trying to determine what decisions to make in the face of the incoming storm of these trends, the currents of rapid change, squally winds and shifting sands, OK, OK enough…you can see why sailing and boats fits perfectly.

And with our love of storytelling, the sailing analogy sprang to life. Mackenzie’s background in human capital economics meant she couldn't be better placed to comment on the trends themselves from a top down viewpoint - hence why her newsletter is called ‘A View from the Nest’, leaving me ‘On the Deck’ with my lived experiences.

I’m a 54 year old woman, who took time out for kids, worked part time, having previously set up and sold a PR agency, whose communication background, leadership and change experience, excitement about AI and its potential for building on human capability, put me in a position to add to the debate.

I’m no expert, but I’m a pragmatist and a dot connector who has lived a good bit of life and feel passionate about changing systems in the world of work that are no longer fit for purpose.?

—-

Three things I used AI for this week

Actually, this week I’m going to rewind a bit and I’m going to talk a bit about AI mindset.?

Much of what I read at the moment about AI (and everything else) is completely polarised viewpoints. AI is the future, AI will take all our jobs. AI is useless, a hedge fund has called the end of the hype (or words to that effect) and that means it is not worth investing time, effore and money into.?

However, as with most things, there is a middle ground and that’s where most of the value will be. AI is already changing the work landscape, only very small changes at the moment, and I’m no deep tech expert, but I am a fascinated bystander and an avid user of generative AI, which is currently loitering like a misunderstood teenager (I have experience).

Firstly…?

Generative AI?

• isn’t going to do your job for you. DO NOT expect it to do that, you will be hugely disappointed. And if you rely on it to do your job, create dodgy clunky content with unverified facts then you will be found out!

However…

• Generative AI can do (some) aspects of your job quicker and more comprehensively than you can, but it will be a first step, not the last one.?
• Want to analyse some data quickly, or summarise a report or explore a field you have some interest in, use it, but as your enthusiastic assistant not as your boss.?
• Curious as to different perspectives, ask your Gen AI to act as a devils advocate (or in specific job role) - you’ll be amazed how helpful it is to have something that has the amount of data it has at its finger tips to analyse your work, your pitch, your investment paper, your case, your opinion. I find that invaluable. It allows me to make way more informed decisions in conjunction with my own judgement than ever before.???
• Generative AI has the scope to take mundane tasks and obliterate them. Want to create a google form with 375 questions but don’t want to spend 10 hours uploading or getting someone else to do it?? Ask Claude.ai to generate code to upload and do the task in 15 minutes. And you don’t even need to have a clue about coding, just to know how to copy and paste.?

When we start to see what generative AI can do WITH US, that’s where the magic is. And it requires a complete change in the mindset to the one most of us were taught in school, ie to be able to work independently and gather huge knowledge through years of practice.?

Suddenly we feel challenged, unsure and so at best see it useful for a few small task replacement activities only. But we do not trust it, or want to trust it. Our instincts scream, imposter!?

But once you start to see what you can do To HELP AI to HELP YOU…then boom, incredible results. It’s like a partner that allows you to turbo charge your own capabilities, a super booster, but without your judgement and capabilities, is somewhat of a loose cannon.?

So next time you start something, see what happens if you create a thought through prompt to get a different perspective….some prompting tips next week.?

And finally

Usually I look at something in the news to discuss. Today I'm staying away from the news however and I’m going to look at some profitability and productivity figures?around AI.

Surely these types of estimates are worth discussing with your executive team? And do include your head of people, head of comms as well as your head of tech. To get the most out of generative AI, you need human plus AI.

• According to McKinsey & Company, businesses that effectively implement AI technologies, including generative AI, could see a 20% to 30% increase in productivity. This boost primarily comes from automating routine tasks, enhancing decision-making processes, and improving the speed and quality of work output.
• From a profitability perspective, McKinsey also estimates that AI adoption could translate to a 5% to 10% increase in profit margins by reducing operational costs, optimising resources, and enabling the creation of new products and services.
• And this is just the basic off the shelf generative AI. The tech is already ubiquitous, cheap and accessible - your challenge is getting your people to use it.
• Additionally, if you want to delve deeper and look at more technical options. A study by Accenture found that companies embedding AI deeply into their operations could see 50% faster revenue growth compared to those that do not adopt these technologies. The same study suggests that the return on investment (ROI) for AI implementation could range from 20% to 40% over a three to five-year period, underscoring the long-term financial benefits.

At least explore your options...

Kalispera!?

Louise?

PS photo is me looking for the towel we just lost overboard…