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GenAI is changing roles, skills and leadership at an unprecedented pace. However, whether this transformation succeeds is not decided in the IT department, but in the minds of the employees. Kristina Gerwert, member of the board of adesso SE, explains why HR in AI change management must move from a companion to an active designer – and how adesso builds acceptance and new skills through dialogue at eye level.
Executive Summary
HR in AI change management: Transformation begins in the mind
- The challenge: Generative AI is changing work, role profiles and leadership at a rapid pace. Many companies focus primarily on technology and efficiency gains. But without acceptance, orientation and new skills among employees, the hoped-for added value will not be achieved. The real challenge lies less in IT than in the cultural and mental change of the organization.
- The solution: The article shows why HR plays a central role in AI change management. The example of adesso shows how dialogue-oriented formats, targeted empowerment, cross-departmental collaboration and practical application help to build trust and actively shape change. HR turns from a companion into an active driver of a participatory, learning-oriented AI transformation.
- Your benefit: Companies are increasing the acceptance of AI, developing future-relevant skills and ensuring their adaptability in a dynamic working world. HR strengthens its strategic role, promotes orientation and participation – and thus makes a decisive contribution to sustainable competitiveness.
- Focus: HR in AI change management, generative AI and the world of work, role and skill change, empowerment and learning, cultural transformation, participatory change management.
Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) has an impact on our everyday lives that is not yet foreseeable. What is already certain is that the way we work and generate business is under strong pressure to transform. HR plays a central role in successful transformation. This time, the change is mainly taking place in the minds of the employees. The dimensions are enormous: GenAI primarily automates routine activities in highly qualified professions – from software development to the legal department to marketing.
GenAI not only changes processes, but roles, skill sets and leadership. It forces organizations to rethink responsibility and collaboration. HR must not only be a companion, but must also be an active designer. With a series of measures, we at adesso create curiosity, genuine interest, competence and, last but not least, acceptance for this topic. For us, these are the keys to a successful future.
Challenges as opportunities for AI change management
GenAI applications are now established in many areas of adesso. This affects the entire software development process and thus our core business. Central areas such as sales and, last but not least, recruiting are increasingly using the potential of agent systems, which are ultimately based on large language models and therefore represent the prime example of GenAI.
We are in the middle of the transformation process. Today, no one can say with certainty to what extent GenAI applications actually take on the tasks of software developers but also other well-trained specialists. What is certain, however, is that GenAI is sustainably changing our working world at an unprecedented pace.
This is no cause for alarm: our work – independent of GenAI – is subject to constantly accelerating change. When it comes to transformations, we are tried and tested. In order for GenAI to really create added value and for organizations to make an important contribution to their future viability, the people who will work with it and benefit from the technology must first be convinced of the idea and their skills prepared for the new circumstances.
KI-Change-Management now
At adesso we have developed a package of measures with different instruments. We are convinced that change processes are successful when we succeed in arousing interest among everyone involved, engaging them and actively involving them. To this end, we sought direct dialogue in 24 branches. Company founder Volker Gruhn first presented our AI strategy – the New School of AI. We then discussed it with the employees. This is how we came into direct contact with the majority of the workforce.
No question, this is certainly complex. I am convinced that this effort will be worth it in the end. Direct exchange at eye level is essential for both sides. We as the board convey ideas and guidelines; We also get a very good sense of the mood among the workforce on the topic.
In addition, we have set up a task force with a group of AI experts from various areas of the company that fulfills several tasks:
1. Empowerment of all employees
- All employees should be able to use AI tools confidently – recognize opportunities and possible applications, correctly interpret and classify results and assess risks.
2. Knowledge transfer and networking
- Exchange of experiences, tech demos, proof of concepts, joint sessions, hackathons and open consultation hours create exchange and collective learning.
- Knowledge is bundled and impulses are carried throughout the entire organization.
3. Promote mindset change
- Acceptance and motivation arise through practical experiences, such as hackathons.
- Change is shaped together – not top-down regulation, but participation.
4. Visible structures for AI transformation
- Central platforms for exchange, orientation and qualification.
5. Secure strategic alignment
- AI initiatives do not run in isolation, but in a common direction.
- The task force ensures that AI is integrated into projects in a meaningful, targeted and compliant manner.
6. Create practical added value
- Employees experience concrete work improvements through AI-supported processes.
- Motivation grows through experiences of success and practical use of AI tools in everyday work.
Extensive further training and certification options complete our catalog of measures. In this way, we are also fulfilling one of our central promises to all employees at adesso in the area of GenAI: personal development.
At the same time, we and all employees are aware that further training and certification options only form the basis. We are convinced that the actual further development and acceptance takes place through practical application and “learning on the job”. Therefore, integration into our everyday work is the be-all and end-all.
These measures together create perspectives on the one hand and also spark a positive mood in the organization. This was not always the case. The fear of being replaced by GenAI was certainly present. It has now become clear that the way we work is changing significantly. But we also know that it is still people who have to draw the right conclusions from the results of GenAI applications.
Transformation statt Revolution
In many professions, however, the change is leading to a fundamental reorientation of every single employee. GenAI applications increase our productivity to a level not seen in the past 20 years. However, reducing GenAI to the pure idea of efficiency falls short. This is accompanied by a variety of aspects that impact the everyday work of all employees.
We are in the process of readjusting our roles at all hierarchical levels. Previously used skills sometimes fade into the background or no longer play a role at all. New skills are required. Regardless of whether it is a developer in software development or a lawyer in the legal department, everyone needs a well-founded skillset in order to confidently master their everyday work with the respective GenAI applications.
Despite all the euphoria surrounding easier work and technological progress, in the end we as humans are and remain responsible. It is essential to use AI tools efficiently, interpret results and then classify them correctly while retaining control over action. We all have to learn to use the new possibilities to deliver excellent results and do fulfilling work.
The HR department has a big and responsible task here. Our aim is to support the workforce in this process and thus make an important contribution to the successful further development of each individual employee.
Not only personal success, but ultimately also the success of the entire company depends on this. In times of change, it is important to us to communicate and live by constants. We develop the foundations and ideas of our collaboration together, transparently and continuously.
We offer freedom for development and create framework conditions for successful, result-oriented working methods. Trust, fairness and communication at eye level have been the foundation of adesso for us since the very beginning. GenAI doesn’t change that.
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