AI is no longer an experiment – it is a competitive advantage

AI already plays a major role in our work life. For many, it starts with a chatbot: it helps us draft an email, an agenda or create a summary. All of these things are important, but they are only the first step.

Julie Ekner Koch, Head of Digital Learning & Leadership at Mannaz, explains: “The real value emerges when AI becomes part of the processes that deliver results. This requires managers and employees to work together to decide and define: What should AI solve? What should people do? And how do we design the work so that it becomes both more efficient and more meaningful?”

As part of the partnership, we contribute to developing Digital Dogme’s AI Leadership Compass and AI Competency Model, which emphasise that AI competencies must be embedded at all levels and integrated into day-to-day work. It is not just about writing a good prompt, but about assessing quality, understanding limitations, working safely with data – and using AI where it creates the most value.

“The point is that AI competencies must be promoted broadly and collectively, so that the technology is used responsibly and in a way that creates value. Not as an add-on, but as part of everyday practice. In this way, AI moves from being a ‘smart feature’ to building competence,” says Julie Ekner Koch, who continues:

“At Mannaz, we work on the basis of a single principle: if it cannot be used in practice, it provides no value.”
That is why we use the competency model as the basis for our learning design. For example, by:

• Linking courses to specific skill levels so that progression is clear
• Integrating AI into the learning objectives – rather than adding it as an afterthought
• Letting participants work with real-life problems, tools and case studies from their everyday work
• Focusing on practical application and behavioural change – not just inspiration

Together with CBS, Mannaz has taken the lead in developing the next logical step in the competency model: an AI leadership compass designed to enable managers in small and medium-sized enterprises to:

1. Develop an AI skills strategy
2. Support employees’ skills development in the field of AI
3. Master leadership in an environment where technology and people work in close collaboration
4. Navigate a landscape in which the role of the leader has changed because employees are adopting AI. Leaders must be able to move quickly whilst guiding people through the change – with a focus on tools and cybersecurity, guidelines and ethics – but also on needs, uncertainty and motivation, as AI becomes a key player in task completion.

At Mannaz, we are constantly rethinking our courses and client programmes to ensure that AI becomes a natural part of what we offer. This applies to project management, leadership and process facilitation alike.

“Clients need to prioritise, implement and lead with AI – and our skills development must reflect this. That is why we are integrating AI into, among other things, project management and leadership programmes, where the focus is on both human skills and the technological prerequisites for leading in the age of AI,” explains Julie Ekner Koch.

Right now, we are testing AI-supported facilitation: an agent that can listen in at the tables and pick up on the smaller discussions so they can be brought back to the plenary session. This leads to more collective learning, stronger knowledge sharing and better shared sense-making.

This ties in with what we call AI-augmented facilitation: using AI as an integral part of the facilitation process to enhance the quality of strategy processes and leadership programmes, where human judgement remains the guiding principle. This gives us – and our clients – the opportunity to:

• inform decision-making with data, scenarios and perspectives
• challenge assumptions and introduce new perspectives into the discussion
• speed up analysis and synthesis work in workshops
• support better implementation and follow-up

AI should not replace facilitation, but enhance it. The facilitator sets the direction, reads the room and translates input into action. In this way, Mannaz remains true to its core competencies – people development – whilst integrating technology.

“The crucial thing is that AI does not become an autopilot. The agent gathers and suggests topics, but it is still the facilitator who interprets and prioritises. When AI can ‘listen’ more broadly, the facilitator receives better input, and this means that participants benefit more from the session,” says Julie Ekner Koch.

What is surprising is just how much one can expand one’s listening ability. With the right context, the agent can also highlight deviations – what falls outside the expected. This reminds us that AI is not just about speed, but about quality, when we design it wisely.

But competency development doesn’t stop when the course ends. Much of the impact occurs before and after the actual training day – and the challenge lies in ‘learning transfer’: putting new knowledge into practice in a busy working day.

“At Mannaz Digital we are currently developing an AI-supported coach that helps participants apply what they have learnt in specific work situations after the course. To be precise, you can use the AI coach for dialogue and reflection on the new learning and your own practice, with the coach providing material and concepts from the course,” says Julie Ekner Koch enthusiastically, adding:

“You could say you have a ‘coach in your pocket’ that draws on teaching materials, case studies and concepts from the course you’ve just completed. It helps translate learning into action, for example in a difficult conversation or a complex project challenge. This is precisely where we move from a standard ‘course’ to continuous professional development. And this is where AI really makes a difference for the individual and the organisation.”