Beyond the Prompt: Managerial Muscle in the Age of AI

A debate about the use of AI in education is raging. An analogy with calculators is often apparent. Should calculators be allowed in a math class? The answer, as usual, is that it depends. If you want to prepare students to learn how to add, then there are two ways to do the same: 1. Learn how to key in numbers on the calculators, pressing the ‘+’ button between the two presses of the numbers. 2. Learn how the addition happens the manual way, understanding ‘carrying over’ of the sums, or another similar approach. Using a calculator in the latter case serves little purpose, if any. That is, if one wants to learn about the mechanics of a domain–e.g., management–technology may be a distraction. But if the objective is to solve a complex problem where addition is merely a sub-step, the calculator may be a necessity.

I use the metaphor of a car to build on the nuance in management education. Most new technologies–like AI or the car–augment human capabilities. A car can go way faster than a human running. And, before that, a horse-based carriage system could do the same as well, run faster. Although Formula 1 racing thrives, the 100m sprint remains a pinnacle of human achievement. Why?  Human societies need to build two competencies–that of an athlete and that of a driver. Some espouse running a 100 m race and others may say that they want to master the way to reach the farthest using a car. The former are called athletes, and the latter are called drivers. Can champion drivers be people who ignore athleticism? Likely not. 

Good drivers are good athletes as well. Similarly, managers without a strong mental managerial muscle developed through foundational management theory—independent of AI—may not drive the machine. Leveraging AI may entail auditing the machine, navigating high-stakes ambiguity, contextualizing decisions and so on. Unless one has the managerial muscle, navigating the machine to make a decision may not be productive. In fact, without proper physical muscles, one may not even be able to drive a normal car. The same is true for managerial mental muscles, as these help manage life, family, organization, and society. Therefore, in management education and training, one would need to create both athletes and drivers, managers who can think managerially rigorously and who can also drive AI for decision-making. 

The metaphor offers a simple way to guide educationists as they think about using AI. Two implications are clear. First, management institutes and educators may create novel courses, curricula, or content that teach students how to leverage AI to enact complex managerial actions (and when not to use it). Second, even more important, we need to have content and assessments about the fundamentals of management, to build students' mental managerial muscle, even stronger in the age of AI. As management educators think about creating drivers and athletes, beyond the simple metaphor, a more nuanced focus on the purpose is warranted. In my previous writings on purpose, I have underlined the need for managers to remember their core purpose of leveraging technology capabilities for creating human value–an emotional endeavour. If developed well, a mental managerial muscle that can leverage AI will further the purpose of education, leading us to a golden age of management, and away from the doomsday scenarios hyped by many.