This simple question helped Amazon teams get future ready: AWS AI and data chief
Jan 10, 2024
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Swami Sivasubramanian, VP of Data and AI at Amazon Web Services, discusses the importance of democratizing access to AI training, the skills gap in finding AI talent, and the transformative impact of AI on businesses. He also shares various initiatives and resources offered by AWS for developing AI skills, as well as the potential applications of generative AI. The chapter also emphasizes the importance of leadership buy-in and managers' involvement in upskilling efforts for AI, and the challenges and hard work involved in the innovation process.
Reskilling is crucial in the face of AI advancements and AI skills are not limited to technical roles.
Leadership buy-in and bottom-up innovation are vital for successful AI upskilling efforts within organizations.
Deep dives
The Importance of Reskilling for AI and Machine Learning
In this podcast episode, Swami Sivar Subramanian, VP of Data and AI at AWS, emphasizes the need for reskilling in the face of AI and machine learning advancements. He highlights that technology is rapidly changing, and jobs will be transformed in the next five years. Subramanian encourages both managers and workers to prioritize getting AI-ready and shares free programs available at Amazon to democratize access to new technology. He also dispels the misconception that being highly technical is a requirement to learn about AI, offering programs that demonstrate the possibility of learning and training algorithms without coding. Subramanian underlines the importance of making AI accessible to a broad workforce, as it has the potential to transform every aspect of business.
AI Talent Shortage and Upskilling Opportunities
According to research conducted by Amazon, businesses recognize the transformative power of AI and consider hiring AI talent as a top priority. However, there is a shortage of workers with AI skills, which is expected to increase as 93% of businesses aim to deploy AI solutions in the next five years. Subramanian highlights the opportunity this presents for workers, as employers expect those who upskill in AI to earn up to 47% higher salaries. He acknowledges that AI skills are not limited to technical roles, but also benefit marketing, finance, HR, and other domains. These findings reinforce the integral role of AI in enhancing productivity and driving innovation across various industries.
The Importance of Leadership Buy-in and Bottom-up Innovation
Subramanian stresses the significance of leadership buy-in for successful AI upskilling efforts within organizations. He encourages managers to prioritize skilling their workforce in generative AI, as it can lead to creative applications and innovations. He shares the example of Amazon's yearly planning cycle, where leaders are asked to consider how they plan to use machine learning to improve customer experience. This approach has fostered a culture of making machine learning an integral part of everything the organization does. Subramanian also emphasizes the importance of bottom-up innovation, where employees at all levels contribute novel ideas to drive real transformation and innovation within their teams and organizations.
Swami Sivasubramanian’s first experience using a computer was in high school in India, where there was just one computer for the entire school. While each student could use the computer for just a few minutes a day, those few minutes sparked his lifelong passion for technology, one that led to his current role as VP of Data and AI at Amazon Web Services. It also drove home to him that any exposure to new technologies can be transformative. He talks to Meet the Leader about why it's critical to prioritize access to AI training for a range of ages and backgrounds, especially those in non-technical fields like HR or Marketing where new possibilities will be on the horizon. He also shares a slate of free AWS programming for cutting edge AI tools as well as guidance for leaders setting training priorities for the year ahead. He’ll also explain how he's changed as a leader and technologist since starting at Amazon as a mere intern and the key questions that can help teams get future ready, including one that helped teams at AWS maximize technologies like machine learning.
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