ChatGPT is not an AI strategy but it should be viewed as a strategic tool in organisations, according to Bryan Kirschner, Vice President, Strategy at DataStax. He suggests that the use of large language model (LLM)-powered tools like ChatGPT may provide a new option for information workers to carry out tasks much faster, albeit with a slightly lower quality. This could still result in high-quality decisions if strategic and intentional choices about quality are made.
- Generative AI tools, like ChatGPT, can prove useful for producing new ideas and generating immediate feedback and examples to cause good conversations, even if they’re not perfect.
- Project teams can lean on this capacity to prevent making bulletproof arguments before presenting to management. Instead, they could engage managers and executives early on in the process, generating a greater variety of perspectives and better refining solutions.
- Generative AI may also help cut down time spent creating artifacts such as presentations and emails by at least 25% while maintaining about 80% quality. While this might not fit into a perfectionist model, it’s a great fit for a model that emphasizes quick iterations and collaborative conversation.
Kirschner explains that this collaborative way of working also predates generative AI, referring to Roger Martin’s recommendation that bosses should be given ‘smart jobs’ early on in a project, rather than waiting until the ’11th hour’ to review a near-finished project. He believes that such a model can be very highly productive when combined with generative AI capabilities.
He ends his argument by comparing this to the transition from steam power to electricity where the major gain came when factory floors reorganized themselves to take advantage of the new technology. He envisages a similar shift in our usage of Generative AI where we completely rethink about our ways of working to exploit the technology to its full potential, particularly in knowledge work.
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