LaylaBird/ E+ via Getty ImagesZDNET’s key takeaways
- High-quality AI training is often lacking.
- Employers should help workers develop broad capabilities.
- Job-specific training and constant updates are key.
AI tools might be common in businesses, but high-quality training is not. Research from technology training and talent provider QA found that 32% of employees have received no formal training, and only 15% receive ongoing or advanced support.
This lack of learning and development has a big impact. Only 9% of employees consider themselves advanced or expert users, and just 13% of professionals are confident in using AI for basic tasks.
Also: 91% of professionals say their firm still falls short on AI – how to fix that
Jo Bishenden, chief learning officer at QA, told ZDNET that her firm’s research highlights a big gap between implementation and education.
“AI is already reshaping how work gets done,” she said. “Yet while organizations continue to invest heavily in AI tools and platforms, most businesses are making the same mistake: they’re spending on AI tools and neglecting the people expected to use them.”
Other research points to a similar issue. The Harvey Nash Tech Talent Salary Report found that while three-quarters of IT staff have access to AI tools, one in five technologists are expected to self-learn, and 23% are waiting for formal training.
Also: Why replacing staff with AI backfires – and 5 ways smart leaders generate real value instead
So what exactly should employers be doing? Bishenden said the best AI training programs get three things right: they ensure AI literacy is for everyone and provide a shared baseline understanding of AI; they provide role-specific learning and development opportunities; and they support behavioral change that allows people to exploit emerging technologies.
Here’s what those three areas look like in practice and what those approaches might mean for your professional development.
Broad AI literacy
Bishenden said it’s important to recognize AI isn’t a plug-and-play service. Emerging technology only works when people know how to use it well, and that reality means employers should develop cross-organization literacy.
“Employees must know how to ask the right questions, interpret outputs critically, apply judgment, and redesign everyday workflows around new capabilities,” she said.
Also: ‘Specialists aren’t required’ anymore: How to stay valuable in an AI agent workplace today
To develop higher levels of literacy, Bishenden said companies should provide a shared baseline understanding of what AI can and cannot do, where risks sit, and what responsible use looks like: “This approach builds confidence, reduces fear, and creates a common language across the business.”
Ankur Anand, global CIO at recruiter Harvey Nash, agreed that broad-based AI learning and development is about developing core capabilities.
“It’s about the security and ethics that must be built in from day one,” he told ZDNET. “People need to understand what responsibility they need to shoulder for the effective use of AI.”
To develop this awareness, the best organizations take best-practice approaches that have worked with a small group of employees and spread them across the wider organization.
Also: Companies embracing AI the most are hiring more people – including entry-level
That’s an approach Emmanuel Frenehard, chief digital officer at biopharmaceutical giant Sanofi, has pioneered within his firm.
Sanofi’s executives completed Drive Digital, a program designed with the ESSEC business school in Paris that focused on key areas, such as use cases and value generation.
More than 100 managers passed through the program before it was extended to more than 1,500 other professionals across the organization. Frenehard told ZDNET that Sanofi continues to look for fresh ways to develop everyone’s AI literacy.
“We do a lot of workshops. Once a month, we have these AI hacks where somebody will come and teach a lesson on great prompting,” he said.
“I learned something from the latest AI hack, where someone had a different approach. So, we’re training people in a way that’s like gaming. We make it playful.”
Role‑specific education
Bishenden said a common mistake she sees in companies is that managers focus on exploiting tools rather than delivering outcomes.
“If people don’t know how to use AI well, the technology won’t matter,” she said. “Teaching people about AI is not the same as enabling them to solve real business problems with it.”
Also: AI is getting better at your job, but you have time to adjust, according to MIT
When training isn’t clearly connected with day‑to‑day work activities, said Bishenden, it quickly becomes disconnected and forgotten.
“Training must move quickly into practical use, showing how AI supports real tasks in real roles, from analysis and decision‑making to communication and leadership.”
Harvey Nash’s Anand also recognized the importance of role-specific AI training.
“You can’t just have arbitrary, standard training for, say, Copilot,” he said. “If it’s a finance, HR, or marketing professional, the training has to be specific to how these employees use AI.”
Also: The new enterprise AI expert every company needs – and why
Companies also need to recognize that some people will need more help to make the most of AI in their roles than others.
Freshworks CTO Murali Swaminathan told ZDNET that a professional in a line-of-business area, such as finance, might not have the awareness of a software engineer who’s been using agents for months.
“That means you must bring them up to speed on how to use AI, the best practices, what to do, what not to do, and then give them the right tools to make them successful in their jobs,” he said.
“We have been talking internally about how to bring everybody on board. So, everybody has access to Claude and other technologies, but they need to do it the right way. That’s where we’re trying to guide them.”
Also: How Workday and other software providers plan to survive AI
His Freshworks colleague, CIO Ashwin Ballal, told ZDNET that these role-specific training programs should be bolstered by certifications that prove on-the-job credentials.
“With AI, it’s often like we’re trying to give people a Formula One car, and say, ‘Drive,’ But F1 drivers must get used to the track and get certified,” he said.
“That’s the level of certification we need for AI. We need multiple layers — a consumer level, a pro level, and then an advanced level.”
Continuous learning
Bishenden said companies should also recognize that effective AI training is a constant work in progress. “Learning must be continuous, she said. “AI evolves rapidly, and capability needs to keep pace.”
New models emerge almost every week. Training programs that look good today could be outdated tomorrow.
Also: AI agents are your new colleagues – how to get the best results
“AI training is often treated as a one‑off awareness session, a compliance requirement, or something reserved for technical specialists. However, AI capability is not an IT project; it’s an organizational mindset shift,” said Bishenden.
“Emerging technology changes how work gets done, how decisions are made, and how accountability works. Learning programs must encourage experimentation, critical thinking, and ethical judgement if AI is to scale successfully.”
Stephen Wood, chief operating officer at Rathbones Asset Management, said his organization aims to educate its staff about AI as regularly as possible.
“We want to develop their skills. We create structures, like digital champions, but with an AI focus. We want to be in a scenario where AI is on people’s minds 24/7, so they fully embrace it,” he told ZDNET. “We’re in a very fortunate position that everyone in our business is engaged in AI. They’re excited; they want to learn. I’ve got people knocking on the door, saying they want more training.”
Also: The 3 types of people who will excel in the AI agent era, according to tech leaders
Louise Newbury-Smith, head of UK&I at technology specialist Zoom, said her organization also focuses on helping people develop their skills on an ongoing basis.
Her organization has AI enablement teams at the local and global levels that showcase individual successes and spread best practices.
“Having people who understand enablement, rather than pushing training, is one of the keys to success, and that means really bringing AI to life and making it real,” she told ZDNET.
“Our approach is about repeating those best practices and sharing knowledge, and if you create that kind of environment, then you can’t go far wrong.”
