AI Will Take Your Job? Become a Superworker Instead.
According to a Pew Research Center study, over half of U.S. workers (52%) are concerned that AI will take your job and impact the workplace. However, new data from The Josh Bersin Company reveals a different story. Instead of eliminating positions, AI is creating a new class of “Superworkers” who achieve 30% to 400% higher productivity. Companies that are embracing this model aren’t cutting their workforce. They are empowering existing employees to achieve unprecedented results.
Yes, some highly repetitive jobs will disappear. But the larger narrative isn’t about replacement; it’s about transformation. The real bottleneck is not the technology itself but finding people skilled enough to use these powerful AI tools. Instead of replacing humans, AI amplifies our unique strengths: creativity, critical judgment, and complex problem-solving. The real question isn’t whether AI will take your job—it’s whether you’ll be ready to leverage its capabilities to make yourself indispensable.
What Is a Superworker and How Can They Avoid AI Taking Their Job?
A Superworker is an individual who uses AI in the workplace to dramatically enhance their productivity, performance, and creativity. Think of it as having a highly intelligent assistant that can process vast amounts of information instantly, helping you complete tasks that would have taken days in just a few hours.
The most successful high performers aren’t waiting for their companies to mandate AI training. They are proactively experimenting with AI tools and integrating these capabilities into their daily workflows. This allows them to double their output while maintaining quality. What sets them apart is their willingness to embrace change and focus on outcomes rather than just following a set process.
How AI Transforms Work
The transformation happening in workplaces today follows a predictable four-stage pattern that’s reshaping how we think about jobs and productivity.
- Assistance: AI tools speed up daily tasks. For example, using a tool like Microsoft Copilot to summarize emails or generate design concepts. The job remains the same, but the work gets faster.
- Augmentation: AI handles routine tasks, freeing people to focus on more valuable work. Analysts use AI to crunch data while they focus on delivering key insights. Customer service representatives use AI to access information instantly, allowing them to solve more complex issues.
- Selective Replacement: AI fully automates certain repetitive processes. This could include chatbots for simple questions or systems that approve routine loans. While some specific tasks disappear, new roles emerge to manage and improve these AI tools.
- Autonomous Systems: AI tools run entire workflows, with people overseeing the key decisions. For example, AI can screen a list of candidates while hiring managers make the final selections. Or, AI can automate marketing campaigns that humans direct and optimize.
Most jobs are being transformed, not eliminated. Each stage creates opportunities for those who can work effectively alongside AI.
How Companies Are Embracing Superworkers
Forward-thinking companies are discovering that they need more skilled workers, not fewer. Rather than cutting their workforce, these organizations are creating entirely new roles and transforming existing ones to work alongside AI systems.
- Streamlining Daily Operations: Many companies begin their AI transformation by addressing routine tasks that consume significant employee time. The goal isn’t to eliminate jobs but to free workers for higher-value activities.
- Transforming Core Business Processes: The most impactful changes happen when companies use AI to redesign fundamental workflows like hiring, customer service, or employee development. These transformations often lead to dramatic efficiency gains while improving quality.
- Empowering Internal Career Development: Innovative companies are using AI to unlock the potential of their existing talent. This creates pathways for employees to grow and get promoted within the organization instead of looking elsewhere for new skills.
These examples show that a successful AI transformation focuses on empowering people rather than replacing them. As Josh Bersin, CEO of The Josh Bersin Company, puts it, “Ultimately AI business transformation will be led by companies focused on people, not just technology. Even as AI automates more routine work, it is the human value-add that creates competitive advantage.”
Superworker Skills That Matter
Superworkers share key characteristics that make them effective in AI-enhanced environments:
- Curiosity and experimentation: They are willing to explore new technologies and approaches rather than sticking to familiar processes.
- Critical thinking: The ability to evaluate AI outputs, identify potential biases, and apply human judgment becomes even more important when these systems generate vast amounts of information quickly.
- Communication skills: They can serve as translators between AI capabilities and business needs, helping teams understand how to integrate AI tools effectively.
- Deep problem-solving: They focus on understanding problems thoroughly rather than just executing predetermined solutions.
How to Become a Superworker
You don’t need to wait for your employer to provide AI training. Becoming a Superworker starts with small, deliberate actions you can take immediately.
Practical Steps:
- Identify and experiment: Begin each week by identifying one routine task you could potentially automate or enhance with AI. Start with the most time-consuming aspects of your current role. Research available AI tools and begin experimenting with free or low-cost options.
- Master the fundamentals: Focus on developing prompt engineering skills—learning how to communicate effectively with AI tools to get the results you need. Master evaluating AI outputs critically and integrating these capabilities into existing workflows.
- Share and volunteer: Share your AI experiments with colleagues and managers. Volunteer for projects that involve AI implementation or process improvement to gain practical knowledge and demonstrate your commitment to evolving with the needs of the organization.
The Future Belongs to the Adaptable
The choice is clear: evolve with the changing workplace or risk being left behind. Becoming a Superworker doesn’t require superhuman abilities. It requires curiosity, adaptability, and a willingness to learn. For the most part, AI isn’t here to replace you. It’s here to amplify your capabilities, eliminate tedious work, and free you to focus on activities that truly matter. The Superworker era has arrived. Your career’s next chapter starts with embracing it.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Will AI really take my job?
- What is a superworker and how can I become one?
- What skills are most important for thriving in an AI-powered workplace?
- Are companies actually creating more jobs with AI?
- How can I start using AI in my current job?
Credit: Forbes.com
