A reliance on artificial intelligence (AI) for workplace communication may hinder the development of essential human skills, according to Leena Rinne, vice president of leadership, business, and coaching at Skillsoft. She attributes this issue to leadership gaps rather than the technology itself.

Rinne defines "socially offloading" as outsourcing interpersonal skills that require human judgement, empathy, or courage to AI. An employee told Rinne she could not crack the code of working with her boss because it was just his AI and her AI going back and forth. "If I'm always asking AI how do I respond to my boss, I don't actually learn how to engage with my boss. I don't actually learn how to build a relationship with my boss," Rinne said.

She stated that AI is not the cause of the problem, but rather a leadership vacuum. She noted there is an assumption that Gen Z are already ready for the pace of change or to navigate it. Leaders are not equipping younger employees to navigate change, communicate effectively, and have good judgment. "We're just kind of expecting them to enter this crazy whirlwind moment and be able to navigate it effectively," she said.

Managers are still needed to turn strategy into results and execution, develop talent, and hold a team together. She stated organizations risk treating the span of a leadership's role like it's a math problem, when this is really a capability problem. "There's a risk that organizations start treating the span of a leadership's role like it's a math problem, when this is really a capability problem," Rinne said. "The risk is then that we don't develop these critical skills that we can use in the moment, because we don't know how to navigate emotional intelligence, if AI is navigating emotional intelligence for us."

Why It Matters

Skillsoft is an edtech and skills management platform that uses and sells AI tools to its customers. The company's product, CAISY, allows people to practice having conversations and provides feedback before they have important work conversations. Rinne stated that Skillsoft's AI teaches people how to develop intrapersonal skills rather than providing direct answers on what to say. "I'm actually building my skill of navigating a difficult conversation or navigating a client conversation because I've had the practice," she said. Young people enter the workforce and are thrown into the deep end without the decades previous generations had to learn how to navigate change.