HOW will AI or artificial intelligence affect the workplace? Its supporters say it will boost productivity. But on the flip side, will many jobs be lost?
Malaysia’s Human Resources Minister Steven Sim Chee Keong said up to 600,000 workers from 10 key industries could be displaced by AI, digitalisation and green technology.
The estimate was part of a report prepared by TalentCorp in association with several industries on the impact of these technologies. The goal was to prepare workers for the future.
The 10 sectors are IT, global business services, pharmaceuticals, food manufacturing, electrical/electronics, medical devices, chemicals, energy/power, aerospace and even the wholesale/retail trade. These sectors made up some 60% of Malaysia’s GDP (gross domestic product) in 2023.
However, the Minister assured the public that most of the displaced workers could be absorbed into new emerging roles.
One in five Malaysians use AI daily or frequently at work, according to a Randstad survey. As expected, the younger staff use it more, of which 36% of Generation Z (born 1995-2012) and 24& of Millennials (born 1980-1994) have taken up AI regularly.
In contrast, the uptake of AI by older workers is lower, notably 42% of Generation X (born 1965-1979) and 73% of Baby Boomers have never used AI.
The use of AI in organisations has been slowed down by worries about job security, according to UK-based Chartered Management Institute (CMI) CEO Ann Francke.
AI skill demand on the rise
However, AI actually supplements work performance rather than taking over jobs completely, observed Francke in a speech at the Putra Business School of Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) which is collaborating with CMI to offer a professional management and leadership programme to undergraduates.
She further clarified that AI plays a role in filling in data but humans are still needed to use their emotional and social intelligence to check and ensure that AI has done its work properly.
Nevertheless, many company managers are anxious about AI as they are not familiar with it.
While taking note of these concerns, the CMI head honcho cautioned that neglecting AI will only impede the progress of companies to become more effective.
According to the 2024 Work Trend Index released by Microsoft Corp and LinkedIn, 77% of Malaysians feel they lack enough time and energy to finish their work. The report is based on a survey of 31,000 respondents in.31 countries, including 1,000 Malaysians.
To catch up on work, 56% of workers use AI, for example, to summarise missed meetings. As many are aware that meetings tend to drag on, so why not cut to the chase by distilling the conclusions?
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, grunt office work has increased. For example, with every e-mail sent out, there are four (or more) return e-mails that staff have to manage, noted former Microsoft Malaysia managing director K. Raman. AI can help in these basic tasks, leaving staff to do more creative work.
LinkedIn’s head of sales (emerging markets, Southeast Asia) Rohit Kalsy pointed out that there has been 142 times increase of AI-related skills and projects like ChatGPT or Copilot mentioned in resumes.
As for employers, 62% said they would not hire a candidate without AI skills.
What about the pitfalls of AI? Apart from displacing jobs as the Human Resources Minister has highlighted, another challenge is security.
In this regard, Microsoft Malaysia’s Raman has cautioned that the use of AI from external or third parties for work has the potential risk of leaking company data. Thus, a responsible AI deployment strategy is needed. – Nov 23, 2024
