As artificial intelligence reshapes workplaces, knowing how to write effective prompts may no longer be enough to stay ahead. Nestlé CEO Philipp Navratil believes employees need a broader understanding of the technology and its potential to transform businesses.
Navratil, who oversees more than 270,000 employees worldwide at the food and beverage giant, said workers must understand their business, know how to use AI tools and recognise what the technology can achieve.
According to Business Insider, Navratil believes employees do not need to understand every technical detail of AI. However, they should have a broader understanding of its capabilities, emerging trends and potential impact on their organisations.
"You need to understand what is it is capable of, what the trends are, what is happening, how AI can change anything at the company," he told Business Insider.
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The CEO, whose company owns brands such as Nespresso and DiGiorno, said treating AI as just another tool could limit its benefits. Instead, employees should consider how the technology could reshape existing workflows and business processes.
How AI can change the way people work
{{/usCountry}}The CEO, whose company owns brands such as Nespresso and DiGiorno, said treating AI as just another tool could limit its benefits. Instead, employees should consider how the technology could reshape existing workflows and business processes.
How AI can change the way people work
{{/usCountry}}According to Business Insider, Navratil said simply adding AI tools to established ways of working could introduce more complexity instead of making tasks easier.
He argued that employees need to rethink how work gets done, identify unnecessary processes and use AI to simplify operations. This could free up time for activities that require human involvement, including analysing data, meeting business partners and making faster business decisions.
The idea is to move beyond using AI to complete individual tasks and explore how it can improve the way an organisation functions as a whole.
What other tech leaders say about AI skills
Navratil's comments come as business and technology leaders consider which abilities will matter most in an AI-driven workplace.
Coinbase's chief technology officer, OpenAI president Greg Brockman and Y Combinator co-founder Paul Graham have also discussed the importance of human judgement and decision-making as AI takes on more tasks.
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Graham, in particular, has highlighted the value of knowing what is worth creating when technology makes it easier for people to produce things.
As AI becomes more accessible, employees may increasingly stand out not just by knowing how to use the technology, but by understanding where it can make a meaningful difference.