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No one can deny that AI is rapidly changing the way we work, the number and kinds of jobs that will be available, and the training we’ll need to do them. What may be less clear is how, exactly, human resources (HR) and learning and development (L&D) leaders can best leverage the technology to meet this tsunami of change. Here, we take a closer look at how AI can impact talent for the better. 

As with any new technology, AI has garnered both acolytes and detractors. If the 2025 Generative AI Report: Learning Fuels Human + AI Collaboration survey by ������ý Workforce Solutions is any indicator, it’s everyone in between who may stand to learn the most. The report surveyed 604 leaders and workers in the U.S. to better understand how HR and L&D professionals are using AI effectively. Nearly half of the surveyed professionals reported wanting to learn how to work with generative AI (GenAI). 

Furthermore, the report suggests that employees are not the ones holding companies back. In fact, they tend to use AI regularly and eagerly await opportunities to develop greater skills and proficiency with the tool. 

Now is the time for leaders to take charge in terms of implementing AI not just for their business objectives but also for upskilling and preparing their workforce. Tools and opportunities continue to proliferate, and the methods continue to evolve. Here are four ways L&D leaders can get started.

Upskilling and reskilling are arguably more important than ever. For example, data analysis and information processing are generally on the decline as AI takes on these tasks. That raises the question: What does your workforce need to know instead? 

Once you identify the skills your workforce should have, you can assess the actual, measurable gaps between what your employees know and what you need them to know. Matching the right people to the right roles in a skills-based taxonomy was once a time-consuming task. Now, AI can do it quickly. 

From there, it’s simpler and faster to create career-based pathways and L&D programs specific to your industry, whether that’s healthcare, finance, IT, manufacturing or something else.

You already know that your employees’ humanity is integral to their role. Well, technology is there to enhance what they do, potentially making them more productive, more accurate and more creative. Communicating that can allay workers’ fears of obsolescence. At the same time, as people move up the career ladder they may need to understand how to “manage” AI technologies in a very literal sense — much as leaders manage their fellow humans. 

AI should be considered a sort of team member rather than a tool for offloading work. Sure, workers may be able to leverage ChatGPT™, Microsoft® Copilot®, Perplexity® and other tools for some tedious tasks. However, relying too heavily on AI can be risky. A 2024 study by the Center for Strategic Corporate Foresight and Sustainability in Switzerland found a negative correlation between frequent AI use and critical-thinking skills, especially among younger employees who tended to depend more on the AI tools. 

Interestingly, those with more education did not see an adverse effect from AI usage. 

This could mean that HR and L&D teams, as well as managers, will need to tailor learning pathways to organizational needs while also understanding employees’ use of AI. They may need to walk a line between useful applications and overuse that might impair other important skills.

GenAI can be a useful way to teach a wide range of practical (or “hard”) skills, like coding, data analytics, writing and project management. For example, scenario-based AI skills assessments can give employees the chance to demonstrate that they understand what they’ve learned. 

But don’t forget “soft” skills. Problem-solving, teamwork, collaboration, critical thinking, creativity, communication and conflict management are all desirable too, both when recruiting and developing staff. According to a Society for Human Resource Management article, 77% of HR professionals said critical thinking was a top skill in early-career professionals, but fewer than one-third thought recent college graduates typically were good at it. 

Simply offering teams a chance to hone these abilities (also called “durable skills”) with AI could help transform a workforce in vital ways. A 2024 Wiley Workplace Intelligence survey suggests that only about one-third of employers offer soft-skills training. Yet AI-powered video assessments can give team members the chance to practice communication skills in situations that are relevant to a given company. And personalized learning pathways created by AI can include both practical skills training and opportunities to improve soft skills — each tailored to an employee’s needs and learning style. In this way, AI can help learning leaders address company-specific needs as well as those workforce demands (like critical thinking) that affect virtually all industries. 

Not everyone is eager to use AI tools. Women lag behind men in both usage (25% vs. 36%) and confidence (39% vs. 47%), and older employees aren’t keeping up with younger workers in their use of GenAI, according to the UOPX 2025 Generative AI Report. Those gaps could significantly affect AI’s impact on optimizing productivity, accuracy or other important metrics unless intentionally remediated by learning leaders. 

Organizations may be wise to give employees a voice in how they embrace artificial intelligence. A recent Stanford University project looked at the impact of AI agents (systems that independently perform tasks and create workflows) by surveying 1,500 workers in 104 occupations across 844 occupational tasks. The researchers asked employees where they did and didn’t want AI to automate their work and found that for 46% of tasks, respondents were open to automation, most often because they believed it would free them up for “high-value work” and reduce repetitive tasks and stress. 

The project also found a mismatch in some areas where AI was good at taking over a task but employees wanted more human involvement, or the reverse. The important (if complex) takeaway for L&D leaders is to try to balance learning for specific tasks and skills with what your workers tell you they want to do. Striking that balance has potential benefits for job satisfaction and retention of a company’s best talent.

The number and types of AI-driven learning and development solutions will continue to grow, at least in the near term. To navigate the options, it will be important for leaders to consider:

• What work needs to be done? 
• How do employees factor into that work? 
• What are the skills of an AI-prepared workforce?

If a company has already figured out how to optimize a task or project without AI, then leaders can look to the remaining work to see what’s necessary, and how AI can help, either in terms of identifying skills gaps or remediating them. Using AI for skill development among employees may be a different way of doing business, as well as a different way of thinking. 

For leaders who don’t jump aboard the AI bandwagon, they need only look to the national level. There are serious reasons why the U.S. is pressing the gas on AI innovation. Similarly, companies may choose to implement AI for its opportunities, efficiencies and eventual returns on investment. But they also may just want to keep up with the competition.

Welcome to the future. 

Transform your workforce into a strategic asset by combining technology with targeted learning. With AI-driven insights, ������ý can help you understand your current skills gaps, explore the potential of your internal talent and uncover skills your business needs to adapt in a changing market. 

Learn more about options and opportunities at ������ý.