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Building Bridges with AI
AA
Last modified on April 12, 2020 at 11:26 pm
How the UN is using artificial intelligence and algorithms to facilitate more inclusive peace negotiations.

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On April 13, 2020, AA commented on Nudging your way to the top? :

Thanks Mimi – this is a super interesting idea and a great read!

I completely agree that in order for this to be effective, it needs to matter to both the organization and the employee. Personalization will be key to ensure that employees respond and engage with the suggested nudge. If companies start sending out generic suggestions for performance improvement, it is likely that employees will stop paying attention, particularly if they don’t feel the content is relevant to their own behavior or areas for improvement.

To that end, I think it would be great to be able to tie these nudges to suggestions made during annual performance reviews. Often performance reviews surface areas of improvement, but fail to provide actionable ways to work on weaknesses. Even when reviews do provide critical skill enhancing steps, it is incumbent on managers to check in with employees on a regular basis to track progress and keep the suggestions fresh and relevant. Humu or similar software, could serve as this crucial link between review and improvement, by providing employees with the behaviors that will lead to better performance and nudging them to perform those actions at a regular cadence.

On April 13, 2020, AA commented on Books and Movies in the era of AI :

Super interesting Haerin! It is crazy to imagine a world created by AI content!

I think it is interesting to compare the Sci-Fi short film and the Lexus ad. Since both were written by AI, you can see the strengths and weaknesses of using a computer to generate content. The overall themes of the short film make sense given the genre, but the dialogue is nonsensical and the lines don’t flow or work together. In the Lexus ad, there is limited dialogue so the themes are able to convey a more powerful message.

To me, this suggests that AI might be more effective at selecting high level concepts, rather than producing detailed content or scripts. Asking AI to imitate the nuance of human conversation is difficult, but it seems the computer is good at picking out and surfacing common themes and storylines. In addition to the AI tools referenced in the article, I can imagine a world in which AI is used to suggest content subjects, leaving the actual writing to artists and creators! This may narrow the scope of content, but would still allow for creativity to come through in how themes are handled and produced.

On April 13, 2020, AA commented on Should companies use platforms like Zoom and Slack to track employee productivity? :

Great article and post! This is a particularly relevant question given the current pandemic and resultant working conditions!

I think in addition to the privacy and trust issues that you raised, there is also the possibility that increased tracking could actually incentivize unproductive behavior. Instead of focusing on getting work done, employees will be motivated to cater to the metrics that are being tracked, such as screen time on Zoom or number of messages sent on Slack.

Ultimately, metrics drive performance and signal to employees which actions are important and valued. Companies need to make sure they pick both the right metrics, and the right behaviors that lead to performance, in order to get more out of their workforce.