A Businessman's View

Everywhere you look, someone is debating AI:  is it useful, ethical, or even trustworthy? After all the noise, the verdict is still the same: inconclusive.  I’m not here to settle that debate. Instead, I want to show how AI can be used effectively without turning it from a tool into a crutch. Why the Bad Rap? First let's acknowledge something.  AI has an entirely different reputation depending on the context in which it is used.  In the corporate world, AI is often seen as a force multiplier while at the same time is derided as potentially displacing several thousand jobs.  The latter has most recently been seen in the elimination of 4,000 jobs at Salesforce all under the guise of AI being used to do mundane jobs that used to be filled by people.  (Whether this is true or not is a topic for a future discussion.) We've been trying to reach you about your automobile warranty. On a personal level, AI often gets dismissed, whether it’s in academics , fake Amazo...

With the recent news out of Salesforce and Oracle, it’s easy to understand why folks affected by layoffs might feel discouraged. Not only are they leaving companies they may have called home for years, but they’re also facing the daunting prospect of job hunting while headlines scream about “AI taking over human jobs.” Not long ago, another company I follow - let’s call it Acme  - went through a similar round of layoffs. Two employees in particular (we’ll call them Jim and John) showed how mindset can make all the difference. Jim had been at Acme for over 20 years. He was reliable, steady, and well-liked, but not exactly the standout type. When he was laid off, he decided to take some time off before even thinking about his next move. After all, he had a severance package. Didn’t he deserve a break after two decades of hard work? John’s story was different. Though he hadn’t been at Acme as long, he’d built a strong reputation and had both technical and leadership skills. Instead of...