How we’re upskilling and preparing our workforce for the age of generative artificial intelligence 

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We stay at the forefront of innovation by prioritising our people’s learning and development (L&D) journeys and creating opportunities where we can all learn, adapt and grow in the face of new challenges and technologies. Discover more from Dr. Bonnie Cheuk, Global Capability Lead – Digital, Data and Learning Agility, and Marc Howells, Vice President, Talent & Development, about our journey to be more agile with digital and data insights, and what we’re doing to upskill our workforce in the age of artificial intelligence (AI). 

The prevalence of AI across all aspects of our lives is growing every day. From creativity to productivity, AI provides us with limitless opportunities to become more efficient and simplify the way we work. Rather than replacing the need for humans, these technologies work alongside our teams to augment human intelligence, transform and simplify our ways of working, and help drive innovation across our organisation. 

Now generative AI technologies have become widely accessible, we want to make sure we upskill our employees through a series of activities designed to increase awareness and readiness, so they feel equipped to use emerging generative AI tools and feel confident to experiment with generative AI in a responsible way. As one of the first pharmaceutical companies to publish principles for AI and Data Ethics, we’re committed to building a continuous learning environment where people can enhance their digital capabilities.

As the world becomes increasingly more integrated with technology, so too have our learning practices. Technology gives our people autonomy over how they choose to learn and empowers individuals to engage with materials in a style and at a pace that suits them best. Today there’s an increased demand for personalised learning experiences that are accessed via user friendly and convenient technologies, anytime and anywhere. Our global learning platform offers a number of digital and AI learning content pathways in 12 languages, creating a digital community of learners across our company. 

The generative AI accreditation programme 

Leaders from across IT, HR, AI governance, business and corporate communications worked with internal and external experts to create a programme that focuses on how we can use generative AI in our daily work and be intentional about our relationship with AI.

Our generative AI accreditation programme is a self-guided training course to upskill our workforce in using generative AI tools, through practical, peer-to-peer activities to enhance the learning process. Open to all our employees globally (who are not AI/Data Science specialists), no matter their experience or comfort level with the technology, it aims to increase people’s confidence in using generative AI tools ethically and responsibly, as well as nurturing the human skills needed to thrive in the age of AI so we can better prepare for the future.  

We ask participants to undertake a range of learning experiences; from keynote seminars and lab sessions to reflection activities and strategic thinking workshops, everyone is invited to take an active role in their learning. It’s about encouraging our people to be curious, to think critically, ask questions, speak up, and use the tools in an informed and ethical way. 

The data and insights gained from questions, comments and reflection activities shape the future of the programme so that it continuously evolves. Currently, there’s over 3,300 people in the cohort, with over 2,000 joining online forums, and more than 1,000 employees participating in each live session – demonstrating our culture of curiosity and lifelong learning, as well as the mass appeal of understanding generative AI technology no matter your job role or location. Over 90% of the participants reported the learning is relevant to their work and has increased their work performance.

The connection to our wider L&D philosophy 

According to Marc Howells, one of the sponsors of the programme, its structure demonstrates our commitment to inclusive learning practices that empower our people to learn in their own way and help to make learning digital, data and AI part of a lifelong learning habit.

“We make no assumptions about prior knowledge or experience and invite everyone to learn together, at their own pace, so we can create a high impact programme and maintain a psychologically safe learning environment for everyone to think together, experiment together and learn together.

Our journey began five years ago, when we started to build digital skills, adapting to more collaborative and agile ways of working, evolving from ‘doing digital’ to ‘being digital’. Over the years, we have created resources that increased awareness, empowered our people and enabled them to thrive in an ever-changing world.  And now, the generative AI programme is not just about mastering new tools, it's about cultivating a mindset of curiosity and lifelong learning within our company. By encouraging our people to explore the possibilities, we not only enhance our digital capabilities but also support our drive for innovation. Staying true to our Values, we recognise that curiosity is part of the fuel that drives us to push the boundaries of science.”

By upskilling our employees in generative AI, we enable our people to make informed generative AI related business decisions whilst we accelerate innovative science and the delivery of life-changing medicines to patients. 

Note: In addition to this programme, we offer a range of learning programmes for AI and data science specialists, and support colleagues who have an ambition to gain deeper AI expertise.