Managers are moving from the information age to the age of augmentation as artificial intelligence adds to our capabilities, leadership development consultants Rasmus Hougaard and Jacqueline Carter suggest. AI offers us a chance to combine its powers and our own human abilities in wondrous ways that initially will put managers off balance because they will need to replace old habits with new practices. So far, we have barely scratched the surface.

In The Harvard Business Review Guide to Generative AI for Managers, management researchers Elisa Farri and Gabriele Rosani offer some specifics – practical guidance – on how to make that new age come real in your workplace today. It starts by viewing AI’s capabilities in two primary modes: Copilot and cothinker.

When used as a copilot, generative AI becomes an efficient collaborator, handling a wide range of administrative, communication and operational tasks. Your main contribution is the initial direction, final review and validation of the output. Your focus in this sphere is on execution and productivity, and it’s the most familiar use of AI these days.

When used as a cothinker, genAI becomes your thought partner, engaging in conversation, suggesting new perspectives and challenging your assumptions or ideas – and that of your team. It can combine with you to reflect in a structured way, evaluating options, assessing risks, considering different points of view and planning how to implement the best choice.

“As a cothinker, you will engage with the AI in a deep, reflective dialogue. This can help you solve problems, become a better leader or brainstorm innovative concepts,” Ms. Farri and Mr. Rosani write.

This is the challenging – head-spinning, actually – path that mangers must consider. Cothinking has always been done with human colleagues, in a continual round of meetings and informal discussions. Management for most of us boils down to strategizing with others – not machines. Particularly not a machine that lacks our tacit knowledge of the organization and operates by just looking at word patterns and spewing out “intelligence.” But we do, from time to time, turn to outsiders who bring other knowledge to the table like executive coaches and consultants. And AI is a compendium of knowledge. Just as a change consultant can lead you through the steps of John Kotter’s famed change process, AI has myriad information that can assist you in applying his ideas. And it will get better, particularly as organizations build their own AI tools, making it more aware of your specific situation. Of course, just as you need to treat advice from those executive coaches and consultants with caution, that will be required here.

In their guide, Ms. Farri and Mr. Rosani identify 35 common management tasks that can be enhanced with generative AI, stressing that is not an exhaustive list. The tasks involve managing yourself, managing your team, managing your business and managing change and are evenly split between copilot and cothinking possibilities.

You probably have edged into this new world in that first category, managing yourself, with summarization of meetings or information, or perhaps even text writing, slide creation and e-mail management or time management assistance. But the two consultants urge you to go even deeper: “When used as a cothinker, gen AI for managing yourself becomes your thought partner. For personal growth, it guides you through deep reflection on your leadership styles and behaviours, as well as on how to solicit feedback for continuous self-improvement. For professional growth, it helps you become an effective communicator, from speech to job interview.”

How about conflict resolution? That seems the last place to turn to a machine – so human, so messy. But in their guide they show how AI as cothinker can help you understand the sources of the conflict, explore resolution options, prepare for critical conversations, and then try to regain team cohesion. For decision-making, they suggest you use AI as a sparring partner, helping your team to probe the issues in a structured way. Yes it lacks experience and intuition, but they note when you leave the realm of recurring low-risk problems and tackle high risk, complex and novel issues, you need more than experience and intuition.

The age of augmentation must remain human, even if at times it will be using a machine as companion. Mr. Hougaard and Ms. Carter, who wrote an excellent book three years ago, Compassionate Leadership, return to those themes in their new book on AI management, More Human. Many people fear AI will create an era of mechanical, impersonal efficiency but they counter that it could catalyze a renaissance, redefining leadership itself. “Paradoxically, AI can make leaders more human,” they write. “AI can help leaders mine, manage and maximize the best of our human potential.”

Their interviews with senior leaders at major corporations and research with academics indicated AI can save time, which frees managers to focus on creating more human experiences. It can enable managers to create ultra-personalized leadership. And by improving manager’s skills, it can elevate their humanness.

To get the best of the age of augmentation, they urge you to keep three qualities of leadership front and centre: Awareness, wisdom and compassion. Their research has found leaders rated by their followers as having high awareness, wisdom and compassion provide employees with a better work experience, which can lead to higher performance.

Be human, but also take advantage of AI’s possibilities.

Harvey Schachter is a Kingston-based writer specializing in management issues. He, along with Sheelagh Whittaker, former CEO of both EDS Canada and Cancom, are the authors of When Harvey Didn’t Meet Sheelagh: Emails on Leadership.