A strange thing is happening in the business world’s rush to integrate AI into organizational operations: many companies are throwing caution to the wind and diving in without a plan.

Adopting AI into your operations isn’t a simple matter of parachuting in the technology and trusting it will all work out. It requires a proper change management process, led by a new type of change leader.

Today, a successful change manager must bring both technical knowledge and durable skills to the table. These durable skills are core competencies like communication, coaching and resistance management. In other words, the lifelong, “soft” skills you use regardless of your workplace and role — and the very skills that separate humans from machines.

This requires a mind shift: from “doing the task” to “directing the tool.” The future of effective change management lies in cultivating a new suite of human-centric leadership skills to oversee and guide the AI tools being deployed.

Ruth Younie, instructor in the Change Management professional development program at MacEwan University’s School of Continuing Education, is particularly interested in the future of change management and AI’s effect on it. Here are her key takeaways.

Organizational FOMO: the risks of change without a plan

“The rush to implement AI feels like organizational FOMO,” says Younie, “the likes of which have not been seen since the Y2K fervour.” Many organizations skip basic business practices, like writing a business case, as well as the initial stages in change management: letting go of previous ways and reconciling to a new way. Instead, they leap straight into that whole new way.

But, Younie points out that, faster is not equivalent to better. “When an organization introduces change for change’s sake like this,” she says, “it may be exposing itself to reputational risk, financial loss, process inefficiencies and low morale.”

The biggest risk is often a breach of employee trust, says Younie. “People go to work every day believing leadership trusts them to do their job. “Mandating a change — any change — without asking for input or explaining its potential value breaks the trust bond,” she says. Confusion, fear and a loss of productivity result. Younie cites the example of an employee who was asked to highlight tasks in her job description that AI could do. “This approach to implementation is a change management nightmare.”

You can minimize these risks by establishing a change management framework that:

• provides clear direction
• incorporates real data (feedback)
• explains the intended outcomes from the user’s perspective
• illustrates the value to the organization and its customers

Now more than ever, sponsorship is critical. Leadership must set the vision and communicate expectations about how to achieve the future state.

Connecting the dots: setting your team up for success

A critical part of leading people through change when AI implementation is on the horizon is ensuring your team has key foundational skills. “Yes, digital and data literacy is fundamental,” says Younie, “but equally as important are our uniquely human skills, including the ability to connect the dots through critical thinking, interpret data and ensure the tool’s ethics.”

While curiosity and patience are often overlooked in the workplace, Younie believes these skills are critical to successfully working with AI. Before introducing a new technology, encourage your teams to ask questions such as:

• What is this solution expected to achieve?
• How will we maintain this?
• Will this support our long-term growth plans?

If the answer to any of these is “I’m not sure,” you need to step back and further analyze the opportunity.

The future of change management — and those who lead it

Younie notes that change management often feels like it’s “painted on,” another box to check to enhance a project’s optics. In the future, she hopes to see change management fully integrated into an organization’s operations.

Hand in hand with that, she looks forward to change management programs adopting criteria that assess durable, human skills, like the ability to think and work effectively with others. That attitude starts at the top. “Being a successful organization in our world today requires excellent leaders,” says Younie. “Leaders who understand and accept people as they are — valuing their originality, independence and uniqueness.”

Ultimately, successful change management will be defined not just by the AI deployed, but by the empathetic and uniquely human leadership guiding its adoption.