Good morning. AI is reshaping jobs faster than workers can retrain for them.
“The skills we need in the AI age are fundamentally different from before,” said Charu Mahajan, senior partner and VP of IBM Consulting APAC, during a panel session moderated by Fortune’s Jeremy Kahn at the Fortune Innovation Forum in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Tuesday.
“There’s a greater emphasis on data literacy,” Mahajan said. “And it’s not just about being an advanced data professional.” It now entails working with machines and understanding what human collaboration with them looks like, she said. Being data fluent—and knowing how to work with agents and robotics—is becoming essential.
‘Thinking outside the box’
For employers, it’s not just technical skills that are most sought after. According to Mahajan, IBM’s CEO research reveals that “the emphasis and premium on creativity, thinking outside the box, and being able to be innovative have become really important.”
