Matt Beane

According to University of California, Santa Barbara professor Matt Beane, the way we’re redesigning work to take advantage of intelligent technologies is a key reason we’re not yet seeing massive, related gains. We’re driving innovation into increasingly illegitimate places – the shadows of our organizations. As Beane explains, today’s workers have fewer approved opportunities to experiment and adapt on the job. Why? Because sophisticated tools like artificial intelligence are making it easier to watch and measure employee behavior, pushing them to less observable and appropriate practices to learn and innovate. We can still innovate and adapt in this shadowy environment, but the standard playbook won’t do, says Beane. In this presentation, he explores deviance in work involving machine intelligence. He also shares his vision that flips the current reality into one of distributed, AI-enhanced organizations that empower us to innovate out in the open.

Artificial intelligence and robotic systems allow organizations to streamline processes and ensure output quality, but they can also have unintended consequences. In this eye-opening presentation, University of California, Santa Barbara technology management professor Matt Beane explains that we are unintentionally removing humans from processes and siloing tasks, which can lead to employees becoming disengaged and behind on building skills. An expert on human-machine interaction, he’ll illustrate how on-the-job learning, the traditional route for skill-building, is under threat, but there are ways to bring it back stronger than ever. Audiences will gain strategies for implementing tech solutions while enabling workers to build skills and connections with each other, greatly enhancing an organization’s human capital.

Firms have begun to push – hard – for AI related ROI. But, according to UC Santa Barbara technology management program professor Matt Beane, Ph.D., unless leaders push smart, their organizations will blow apart the talent pipeline, leaving the company vulnerable. In this provocative, practical presentation, Beane draws on over a decade of research, his acclaimed book “The Skill Code,” and current startup experience to show that the firms that win will turn AI into an ally – a new tool to jointly optimize productivity and worker skill development. Audiences learn that skill comes from working with experts, not from training, and default AI designs and implementation patterns block skill development by novices. With a nod to his renowned 2019 TED Talk, Beane shows that if leaders handle AI initiatives right, organizations will see improved, measurable productivity gains and enhanced skill development that will drive results and loyalty now and into the future. Audiences walk away with an accessible understanding of the three “Cs” that leaders need to protect and enhance as they implement AI – Challenge, Complexity and Connection – the critical skill development opportunities workers need to win in tomorrow’s competitive AI landscape.

With on-the-job learning and mentor/apprentice relationships falling by the wayside due to increased automation, how will novices learn from experts in the future? In this fascinating presentation, University of California, Santa Barbara technology management professor Matt Beane will describe what he calls “our chimeric future.” He’ll outline a vision for a global learning infrastructure that will match mentors and mentees through artificial intelligence and other cutting-edge technologies. Explaining that such systems will allow workers to build skills by connecting with experts, regardless of location, Beane gives audiences a window into a future where virtual on-the-job learning will still be possible and just as vital as it always has been.