“Digitalization: in the age of ChatGPT & Co., that sounds as dated as ‘electronic data processing’.”
(Richard Seidl)
So, have you tried them yet? ChatGPT, Midjourney or Jasper? “Write me a column of about 4,000 characters for IT-Spektrum on the future of agility. Short sentences, casual style.” Or “What exactly does this regex do? rege(x(es)?\ xps?)” Oh yes, it turns me into a young explorer again, curious and fascinated by the prompt ideas my colleagues and friends come up with.
That Feeling of the Past
And for a few days now, I keep catching myself at it: when I think of the word “digitalization”, it gives me a nostalgic feeling, as if I were thinking of audio cassettes or “electronic data processing”. Maybe you know that feeling?
I sometimes get it at the gas station too. When I’m holding the nozzle in the tank, the diesel is glugging into our old Ford, and I’m looking over at the row of Tesla Superchargers. Not wistful or envious, more with a sense that the old is ending and something new is beginning.
The Threat
My clients have this moment in their day-to-day business as well. They are somewhere on the journey into the digital future, some at the start, others further along.
And then something like ChatGPT comes along, and everyone gets worked up: Will ChatGPT replace me as a programmer or tester? Does anyone still need our product? Do we have to hire prompt engineers now? Should we ban AI in the company? Or regulate it?
Fear, uncertainty and the need for stability naturally play a big part here. None of us feels comfortable with something new and unknown at first. But then comes the moment that matters:
Dealing With the New: The World Has Always Been Changing
A no ends the discussion. A ban stops creative thinking. Ignoring it freezes us in place. With all the uncertainty landing at our feet right now, I see us retreating into this attitude far too often: say no, ban it, ignore it. That reaction is understandable. But the world is changing, and it always has been. Nokia started out as a pulp mill, went on to make rubber goods and later electronics. Wrigley didn’t start with chewing gum but with soap. And IBM, known today as a technology company, began by making scales, time clocks and tabulating machines. August Oetker experimented with a freckle cream as a pharmacist before he discovered baking powder. Photography and film went digital. Trained graphic designers illustrated by hand and pasted up Letraset before they were replaced by media designers and later by 99designs.
Times change. The idea that everything will stay as it is is a fairy tale. More than that: “If we want things to stay as they are, things will have to change,” as Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa knew. Because ”… those who don’t move with the times will be moved on by them” (attributed to Friedrich Schiller). It doesn’t have to be a blind “yes”. A “yes, let’s see” is plenty. For example, with a few new questions: How could we try out ChatGPT as a team? Which interesting prompts could add to our knowledge and our work? How can I use it to create better test data? Or better code?
Maybe we won’t end up using it in production. But we’ll gain experience. Knowledge. A real engagement with it. Or something else entirely. Easier work. Efficiency. Fun. A new product. A new line of business. Or …
With that in mind, try this prompt: “Give me 10 concrete examples of how AI can support me in [your industry].”
