Might Employees’ Career Development Hinge on Their AI Prowess?

Should workers have to prove their knowledge on artificial intelligence (AI) to receive a promotion?

Some organizations, including Amazon’s Ring LLC, are saying yes — and given the speed at which AI tools and skills are being integrated into more industries, experts anticipate that others will follow.

Presenting this type of policy with crystal clear expectations and data can serve as a motivator for workers, said Sara Hillenmeyer, the vice president of AI and data science at compensation software and data company Payscale.

“When employees see that building any skill — whether it’s an AI skill or another type of skill — translates to pay and career growth, they’re more motivated to embrace learning, stay engaged and develop that skill,” Hillenmeyer said. “For companies that are estimating an effectiveness gain from these AI skills from folks that have them over their peers, it’s certainly worth rewarding.”

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‘Get Over the Fear of Getting Started’

Encouraging the workforce to adopt and become proficient in AI technologies and skills is quickly becoming a requirement for organizations looking to stay relevant, said John Bremen, the managing director and chief innovation and acceleration officer at consulting firm WTW. In fact, he noted, many experts believe that because of the ubiquity and availability of AI tools, utilizing them doesn’t actually help companies become competitive, but it can help them stay competitive.

By requiring adoption through a policy tying the demonstration of AI-led results to promotion, organizations may help their workers overcome initial hesitations about where to start with developing these skills. But it’s also vital to launch this type of framework within an “experimentation culture,” said John Deal, the senior director of product marketing at HR technology company Phenom.

“It gives folks a bit of a nudge to get over the fear of getting started,” he said. “Even some of the tools are not great yet — the tools are experimenting, and the people using them should be given the freedom to experiment.”

Avoid ‘Check-the-Box’ Adoption

According to Hillenmeyer, without setting clear goals and expectations of the skills being measured and how they pertain to individual roles, organizations run the risk of workers falling back on superficial compliance rather than engagement and progress.

“Without transparency, employees might see the policy as pressure or exclusionary rather than a genuine growth opportunity,” she said. “They might be driven to just ‘check the box’ rather than develop the skills that actually will create an impact on the business by driving innovation.”

If training and resources aren’t equitably distributed, organizations may find that pay and career gaps widen because some employees have less access to learning. So, if AI adoption is a prerequisite for career advancement, Hillenmeyer said everyone needs the same access to it.

In addition, keep compliance top of mind. “Employers are advised to follow all relevant laws, rules, regulations and competitive practices when it comes to skill proficiency requirements,” Bremen said. “For example, blanket policies that impact all roles — even if a skill is not required for job function — can be problematic.”

Tips for Implementation

Showing employees how their AI adoption can advance the organization — and benefit them, in turn — will help the policy serve as a motivator, said Nancy Romanyshyn, the senior director of total rewards strategy and solutions at pay equity platform provider Syndio.

“Say to employees, ‘We’re rewarding you, and this is how. We’re making space for you to adopt these skills, and we will advance you as you’re able to transform the business,’” she said. “That brings employees along in a way that will be helpful from a change management standpoint.”

Romanyshyn also noted getting workers on board is important, but don’t sugarcoat the consequences of not meeting the requirements.

“The danger is not emphasizing enough how important AI is going to be to your organization and its general health,” she said. “Bring your employees along and make sure you’re encouraging them, but also be clear: ‘Our business will suffer if you don’t do this.’”

Hillenmeyer added employers can clearly define what AI fluency looks like in different roles, which will look different for a software engineer, a supply chain analyst or an HR manager. And while structuring rewards for AI skills, don’t overlook the importance of continuing to reward and promote leadership, collaboration and communication.

“Don’t overemphasize AI skills at the expense of foundational skills,” she explained. “If an organization rewards only AI skills, it may ultimately suffer in efficiency and effectiveness because your teams can’t work together.”

Phenom’s Deal urged organizations to start small by piloting a policy with employees who are already driving impact with AI tools. He suggested employers:

• Gather feedback, measure output and expand accordingly.
• Educate employees on the skills they need to develop.
• Train managers both on the policy itself and how to support workers as they get up to speed.

“It’s not just, ‘Flip a switch, go over to AI or you’ll start getting phased out,’” Deal said.

Instead, organizations should carefully consider the specific AI skills they’ll reward with advancement opportunities. Deal said some will vary by industry, organization and role. Skills to consider include prompt excellence, the ability to map process bloat in AI, and the ability to build AI assistants and agents.

Plan for the Future

Whatever the relevant skills may be, be specific, Bremen emphasized — and make sure employees are being rewarded for the right reasons.

“Any proficiency requirement must be tied back to job requirements for both individual contributors and management or leadership roles,” he said. “Just because AI skill requirements may be new, that doesn’t mean we forget everything we know about good total rewards policy and program design.”

Even though AI is currently an in-demand skill and skills-based pay is becoming more popular (Payscale data found more organizations are investing in upskilling and reskilling in 2025 compared to previous years), using AI tools in the near future may be as mainstream and normalized as using computers or Excel today. Organizations requiring AI skills for promotions may want to keep that shift in mind when assessing the future relevance of a policy that rewards only AI skills.

“I believe it will become integral to the position and to the performance review: ‘Here’s the stuff I’m working on, and here’s where I’ve seen success — and, oh yeah, of course I’m using AI because everybody is using AI,’” Deal said.

Editor’s Note: Additional Content

For more information and resources related to this article, see the pages below, which offer quick access to all WorldatWork content on these topics:

• Employee Compensation
• Employee Recognition
• Organizational Performance
• Workforce Engagement