The Artificial Intelligence skills imperative

Rob Woodstock at Slalom describes how organisations must avoid the pitfalls of blind AI deployment

 

The UK stands at a pivotal moment in its technological journey. After a notable absence of AI investment in the Autumn Budget, which was considered a missed opportunity by many, the UK Government has since established its AI Opportunities Action Plan as a step towards its ambitious vision to foster innovation, support technology and attract global talent through artificial intelligence. 

 

While this shift in rhetoric marks a step in the right direction, the government must now translate words into concrete action to support AI adoption effectively across both public and private sectors.

 

 

Beyond cost-cutting: Reframing the AI narrative

The Chancellor’s plans to cut Civil Service running costs by £2.2 billion (15%), by cutting down the department’s workforce, have triggered fears about widespread job losses - with many blaming AI and the Government’s investment in the technology as the reason behind the decisions. 

 

Rather than letting negative views about AI become widespread, the Government needs to focus on demonstrating how AI can significantly improve public services. This includes benefits like freeing up civil servants’ time so they can focus on more important tasks and enhancing services for citizens.

 

As the Civil Service and other public sector areas shrink, AI-related jobs in the private sector are likely to grow significantly. AI and digital services can help organisations improve efficiency and reduce costs while maintaining, or even enhancing, service quality. They can liberate both private and public sector staff from repetitive tasks, allowing human creativity and judgment to be applied where they’re most needed. 

 

However, this potential can only be realised through thoughtful implementation and meaningful structural reform.

 

From the outset, AI deployment across government departments must follow a human-centric approach that focuses on three core principles: enabling people, protecting data and prioritising security. Technology should serve as a tool that enhances human capabilities rather than simply replacing jobs. This is the sentiment that should ring true for both public and private sectors, when discussing the integration of new technology into everyday operations, instead of widespread fear mongering regarding job losses. 

 

History consistently shows that technological revolutions such as the internet and the industrial revolution before it, ultimately generated more jobs than they eliminated. But this was only done when technology integration was accompanied by deliberate skills transformation.

 

The government’s narrative around AI must therefore centre on its potential to create new types of employment, enhance productivity and reshape, rather than reduce the workforce.

 

A simple way to achieve this is through investment into the right channels. Just as the Chancellor has allocated £600 million for developing skills in the construction sector, a similar investment is urgently needed to build AI capabilities across the UK workforce.

 

Without this parallel focus on skills development, organisational changes driven by AI adoption risk leading to the unintended consequence of "blind deployment", which refers to implementing technology without the expertise to utilise it effectively or safely. 

 

 

Building AI competency

The risks of deploying AI without sufficient expertise are far-reaching, with potential consequences ranging from biased decision-making to systemic failures that undermine trust in technology. Without a clear understanding of how AI models function, organisations risk embedding discrimination in hiring processes, reinforcing economic inequalities through automated lending decisions or making inaccurate medical diagnoses.

 

Furthermore, a lack of AI literacy among policymakers can lead to counter-effective regulation, while business leaders who fail to grasp AI’s limitations may over-rely on automated systems, sidelining human judgment in critical areas.

 

Therefore, in a rapidly evolving digital landscape, failing to invest in developing AI skills is not just a missed opportunity, rather a fundamental risk to ethical and effective governance, business operations and societal well-being.

 

To prevent such consequences, AI literacy must be fostered across all organisational levels in both public and private sectors. This requires more than surface knowledge. Individuals need to understand the very fundamentals of AI, including how algorithms function, their potential biases and proper interpretation of their results.

 

While technical specialists are essential, everyone from executives and policymakers to frontline staff needs the practical knowledge of what AI can and cannot do.

 

The UK Government is somewhat aligned with this thinking as demonstrated by the establishment of Skills England as a governmental entity, which is meant to ensure that British people are prepared for jobs in the AI-powered industries of tomorrow.

 

Additionally, the AI Opportunities Action plan also emphasises the need to support higher-education institutions to increase the numbers of AI graduates and teach industry-relevant skills, indicating a governmental focus on building AI competency through educational channels.

 

Beyond education, the AI Opportunities Action Plan also underscores the importance of upskilling existing professionals, ensuring that both new graduates and the current workforce are prepared to leverage AI effectively

 

However, there is more that can be done.

 

Training initiatives need to extend beyond technical capabilities to embrace critical thinking around AI ethics, transparency and governance. Organisations must cultivate a culture that questions AI-generated recommendations rather than accepting them at face-value without any further scrutiny.

 

By developing a workforce that truly comprehends AI’s implications, organisations ensure that technology enhances their operations rather than introduce unexpected problems.

 

A key additional measure the UK government should consider is creating a National AI Centre of Excellence (NAICoE). This public-private collaboration would support organisations to smoothly incorporate AI into their daily operations. Working in tandem with Skills England and similar national institutions, the NAICoE could be instrumental in developing essential capabilities across the AI implementation spectrum. This will include building expertise in everything from AI and prompt engineering to data management and product development strategies.

 

Developing AI skills across the workforces will also offer a powerful counter-narrative to fears about technological unemployment. By upskilling current employees, particularly those in roles most vulnerable to automation, organisations will be able to create pathways to new, higher-value positions that complement rather than compete with AI systems.

 

As routine tasks become automated, new roles will emerge that leverage uniquely human capabilities enhanced by technological proficiency such as AI ethicists, prompt engineers, human-AI collaboration specialists, and automated process supervisors. These positions, which barely existed as concepts, decades ago, now represent some of the fastest-growing career paths.

 

This is a clear reflection of how meaningful work can be created while simultaneously improving productivity and innovation capacity. 

 

 

Investment in skills for AI

The UK’s AI future hinges on proactive investment in skills development. Without a strategic approach to equipping the workforce with AI literacy, the country risks adopting powerful technologies without the expertise to manage them effectively.

 

By prioritising AI education across industries, fostering a human-centric approach to implementation and establishing institutions like the proposed National AI Centre of Excellence, the government can ensure AI serves as a driver of economic growth, innovation and social progress. 

 

The AI Opportunities Action Plan serves as a foundation for this effort, but to fully realise its potential, it must be supported by sustained investment and cross-sector collaboration. This will not just be the key in staying competitive in the global AI race, but also in safeguarding ethical, responsible and sustainable AI adoption.

 

The Chancellor’s vision for AI-driven transformation must now be matched by tangible commitments to skill-building, ensuring that AI enhances, rather than destabilises the UK’s workforce and public services. 

 

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Rob Woodstock is Managing Director at Slalom 

 

Main image courtesy of iStockPhoto.com and metamorworks