AI moves in on job market disruptions

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Already proven to make difficult tasks much easier, the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in a number of fields has, in the last few years, significantly revolutionised labour markets and how people work, a phenomenon which experts believe is catching on with great speed locally.

Said to be the next big disruption for labour markets post-COVID-19 pandemic, the proliferation of AI, which further cranked up in November 2022 following the release of the large language model generative AI chatbot, ChatGPT by OpenAI, continues to turn the corner with improved solutions such as AI agents already poised to become a next phase of the technology.

According to Adrian Dunkley, CEO of data company StarApple Analytics, AI agents are autonomous AI systems designed to perform various tasks without human intervention. From data processing to making decisions and even taking actions, Dunkley said they are able to do it all. ‘Empowered to act on behalf of another’, the functions of these agents have largely been in sync with the aforementioned dictionary definition.

“Think of them as ChatGPT 5.0. Instead of just asking it to write you a business plan, it will write it, get it vetted, create a website for you, find you clients, get a team to develop a proof of concept (POC) and even find you funding partners,” Dunkley said.

The integration of these models, which he said have already taken off in parts of North America, are not yet as widely used in the Caribbean, though their complimentary role to human activities sees some experts in the data and IT field, including himself, looking to integrate their services more as they help to trim workload, eliminating the need to have staff waste time on repetitive tedious tasks, while saving businesses much time and money.

“At my company we actually now have two of our employees in the form of agents. They are fully digital and not actual beings but they respond to e-mails autonomously, submit documents and several other data-driven autonomous work. Though it’s a fact that it can replace the work of employees who do routine or autonomous stuff, we did not use it to replace anyone but instead have added them as a form of support to our human employees in their day-to-day activities,” Dunkley told the Jamaica Observer .

“We use them in areas such as operations, sales and marketing and even to vet different forms which they can red flag and indicate where checks are needed or even identify where issues need to be resolved. Acknowledging that they, too, like most other technologies, also have some amount of flaws, I’m still, however, trying to get more of my clients to use it,” Dunkley added.

Urging businesses to prepare for the rise of agents as societies and the digital wave move forward, Dunkley said they were not necessarily designed to take over human roles, but to instead make the usually mundane activities performed by some employees more efficient and accurate.

“This means your team can get the chance to redirect their energy toward innovation, strategic decision-making and tasks that require a human touch. By embracing AI agents, businesses can unlock their potential to maximise productivity while fostering a more innovative workplace culture. With the help of agents companies can also benefit from having less individuals doing the same job they previously hired more people to do,” he said.

Dunkley also argued that businesses that are slow to adopt the technology will run the risk of falling behind, allowing competitors who leverage these tools to benefit from enhanced efficiency, reduced operational costs and the delivery of superior customer experiences.

“By getting ready for AI agents now, you position your company at the forefront of this technological wave, ensuring that you stay competitive and agile in a market where AI-driven solutions are becoming the norm. Embracing AI agents today is about leading the charge into the future,” the IT expert stated as he reiterated popular sentiments from an economist that it isn’t AI that will be replacing jobs, but somebody using AI that will.

“The reality is that people will lose jobs…how much? We really can’t say, but considering the fact that new jobs will also be created, what we need to do as humans is to begin to embrace these models more, even as we remain cautiously optimistic about their capabilities,” Dunkley added.

Human resources (HR) consultant Joni-Gaye Cawley, who further asserted that entry level jobs across a wide range of administrative and clerical roles locally were already coming under pressure from AI, is of the view that very soon much of these positions will begin to suffer greatly as the disruption worsens.

“Given the advanced capabilities of new technologies we are already seeing where very soon we will not need people to draft e-mails, write letters, set-up meetings or to do most other administrative duties, a lot of which ChatGPT can already do. I believe that a time is coming when there will be no need to pay a human to get these tasks done. The same goes for other routine jobs in areas such as customer service where a vast number of chatbots are being created by companies and organisations to handle queries, in some cases providing real-time settlement to customer complaints,” she said.

The HR consultant, who has long embraced AI, said she uses it personally and on a full-time basis to manage the affairs of her office which now services more than 300 clients.

“I do not have an administrative assistant so I handle hundreds of clients by myself. I have ChatGPT to write the job descriptions and advertisements, e-mails and letters for me. I am also a justice of the peace so my recommendations and most other documents are being done through AI. Requiring only about 20 per cent of my effort to double check and contextualise the documents created, the technology has so far transformed my life, helping me to become more efficient while allowing me to make more money amid increased time and cost saving benefits,” she said.

The growth of online job platforms such as Fiverr and Upwork and many others which come as another side of the disruption, she said, also allows employees to take advantage of multiple job opportunities in a day, which traditionally they would have not been able to do when they are confined to long and laborious work hours.

Employees who often use these part-time jobs or side hustles to supplement earnings from their main jobs, after sometime only connect for a few hours to gigs spread across translating, virtual assistance, data entry, online coaching and many others.

Further along the spectrum are social media influencers who, she said, have been using technology through platforms such as Instagram and YouTube as modern work spaces. In sharing various content these players use the space to attract thousands and even millions of subscribers and pay per views, sometimes earning way more than a traditional office or desk worker. Similarly, there are also those budding entrepreneurs and business owners who use the space as a store front to showcase and sell products which they sometimes ship to buyers across the world.

Asked to share her thoughts on how Jamaica is positioned in the technologically advanced era, Cawley said we are in a very good place even though we have not yet hit the desired mark.

“With a declined birth rate in Jamaica, in a next couple of years we may not even have enough people to replenish the labour force, so other than having to import labour we may have to further rely on the use of technology to assist with boosting productivity in a number of industries, so it’s a good thing that we are already having the discussions as we look to craft new policies and to put more plans into action regarding the changing nature of work,” she said to the Business Observer .

Other experts say the propagation of AI, which could also affect income and wealth inequality across various economies, must be properly managed if individual countries are to ensure that no one is left behind.

“We may see polarisation within income brackets, with workers who can harness AI seeing an increase in their productivity and wages — and those who cannot falling behind. Research shows that AI can help less experienced workers to enhance their productivity more quickly and to this end, younger workers, which may have a better grasp and command of the technology, may find it easier to exploit opportunities, while older workers could struggle to adapt,” one study noted.

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