It's been hard to miss - the ongoing discourse and buzz about Artificial Intelligence: What can it do? What will it do? How will it impact our daily lives and work?
With the introduction of online platforms such as ChatGPT revolutionizing how we work, there is understandably a mixture of both fear and excitement of how things will change in the coming future.
In this blog, we will discuss the capabilities of 3 AI platforms (ChatGPT, Mural, and Microsoft Copilot), their limitations, suggested guidelines for usage, and how these platforms can automate processes when implementing change.
What are some well-known AI platforms (to date)? What can and can’t they do?
1. ChatGPT
Let’s start off with one of the most popular platforms – ChatGPT.
ChatGPT is akin to a chatbot with Natural Language Processing (NLP) capabilities, allowing it to generate human-like responses by analyzing prompts that a user feeds it. It also has Google-like abilities to provide answers to questions based on the amount of detail that it’s provided.
ChatGPT could be great for saving time on creating first drafts for written communication and emails. It takes information and organizes it based on the way that you’d like it to. Which sounds simple, right? Not exactly.
Because ChatGPT is so reliant on the information that you provide it, it can only be as effective as the prompts you use. For example, asking ChatGPT to draft an email without specifying word count or tonality generates a long-winded, formal-sounding response. The platform takes what you give it and generates a response based on those specific parameters. It takes skill and nuance to get it to do what you want!
Another concept used in effective communications is how to best utilize one’s ‘voice’ in written communications. When the communication objective is to lead and guide individuals or stakeholder groups through change, the messaging is most effective and compelling when it resonates with the audience. Doing that requires understanding of complex details including the audience’s individual communication needs, their relationship to the sender, and the sender’s own unique style of phrasing. This is something that ChatGPT cannot do without a lot of parameters in place, nor can it do it perfectly.
What does this mean for Change Management?
ChatGPT can be leveraged to save time in creating first drafts of communications and emails. It can save time by providing ideas on how to phrase statements and structure communications. Where it comes short, is integrating emotional intelligence and contextual nuance into the messaging.
2. Mural
Mural is another AI-augmented platform we have used to facilitate the process of our creative thinking. The platform is a visual collaboration tool that can be used to brainstorm ideas by creating mind maps, charts, and canvases.
Using AI-enhancements, the platform can organize and synthesize ideas based on patterns and ‘cluster’ similar ideas into groups and themes. Where this feature can be used for change management purposes is streamlining our creative thinking process by categorizing different inputs from a change impact workshop into different groupings. The mental resources saved in automating this process can then be spent identifying common themes in perceived change impacts, which requires more critical thinking.
What does this mean for change management?
Like ChatGPT, we found that the AI functionality of Mural helps automate a manual aspect of change management, freeing up mental resources for more creative tasks. In this case, automating the grouping of data into a more organized form allows mental resources to be spent on more complex creative work.
This add-on to the Microsoft Office suite aims to add AI-functionality to its wide range of tools including Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, and Teams. While Microsoft Copilot is still in development and is targeted for launch later in 2023, we are excited to see the promised features of the platform and what processes they will automate.
By augmenting Office programs, Copilot expands what the software currently does. For example, Copilot enables Word to draft and refine communications with user inputs and prompts, much like ChatGPT. Excel’s Copilot allows insights from a spreadsheet to be quickly summarized. PowerPoint can create decks quickly by using existing documents. Copilot allows Outlook to quickly organize and summarize email threads with multiple responders. Teams grants the user the ability get up to speed on conversations, organize key discussion points and summarize action items.
What does this mean for change management?
Like ChatGPT and Mural, the productivity benefits promised by Microsoft Copilot provide increased mental resources to focus on the more creative aspects of change management. This can enable change managers to focus on stakeholder and client relationship management, collect information and insights from meetings and files more effectively, and become more efficient in building presentations and drafting communications.
What can Harbinger do to help you navigate change with AI?
Artificial intelligence can be a game-changer when it comes to automating manual processes and functions in change management. At Harbinger, we are continuing to grow alongside these new AI-augmented platforms, to better enable change for our clients.
Please reach out to us for any tips for leveraging AI platforms to effectively manage your change. As one of our managing partners, Greg Roth likes to say, ‘Don't get left behind while everyone else changes!’
Other AI-driven Platforms that can support Change Management:
Along with the 3 platforms listed above, here are 5 other AI-driven platforms we’ve found that can support Change Management activities and functions:
Grammarly: Generate, contextualize, and polish written communications.
Fireflies: Record and transcribe notes from virtual meetings.
Survey Monkey: Build professional-grade surveys to collect stakeholder feedback.
Edugo: Create courses, and optimize employees’ learning based on individual training needs.
Author
Kevin Loi
Senior People Engagement Specialist
Toronto