Does Your Organization Have an AI Mindset? One Workforce Executive Director Weighs In

In 2025, artificial intelligence is reshaping how we work, learn, and conduct business. The World Economic Forum reports that AI and automation could displace 85 million jobs by 2025, while simultaneously creating 97 million new roles aligned with the evolving division of labor between humans and machines.

For workforce development and education organizations, this creates a complex challenge: conflicting perspectives between employers who want AI-ready workers and job seekers who might be anxious about AI replacing them.

Employers are increasingly seeking candidates with the skills and adaptability to work alongside AI technologies. They recognize that an “AI-ready” workforce is crucial for innovation and competitive advantage. Research by McKinsey suggests that around 30% of hours worked in the US economy could be automated by 2030 due to AI and related technologies. This automation is expected to lead to significant task-level changes for 60% of current jobs. While some jobs may be eliminated entirely, a larger number will be reshaped as AI takes over specific tasks.

Meanwhile, a significant portion of job seekers harbor anxieties about AI’s potential to automate tasks and replace human jobs. This fear, while understandable, creates a challenging dynamic where the very technology employers need workers to embrace is the same technology workers fear will eliminate their opportunities.

SELACO’s AI Sector Strategy

Executive Director of the Southeast Los Angeles County Workforce Investment Board (SELACO), Yolanda Castro, recognized this tension within her own organization. Her team had natural questions and reservations about AI—concerns that AI might change their roles or uncertainty about how to effectively use these new tools. At the same time, she wanted to teach her staff how to conduct a sector strategy, particularly important since many new team members hadn’t been involved in such projects before.

By choosing AI as the focus, Castro created a dual-purpose initiative: address internal questions while gathering external business insights on how other organizations were navigating similar challenges.

Castro’s Five-Step Sector Strategy Process

1. Sector Partnership Advisory Committee (SPAC) – This ad hoc committee engaged employers, education institutions, local city representatives, and service provides, at the start of the project around AI topics to provide input on focus group questions and participants.
2. Employer Focus Groups – Based on SPAC’s input, the team conducted detailed discussions with business leaders to understand their AI perspectives and challenges.
3. Panel Discussions – Industry experts were brought in for panel discussions that explored AI’s workforce implications and addressed ideas/thoughts introduced by the industry focus groups.
4. Job Seeker/Employee Focus Groups – An important audience, the team gathered insights from the worker perspective to understand concerns and readiness levels.
5. Strategic Planning Session – The insights from the research were used to develop actionable plans, with Castro challenging her leadership team to use AI itself to assist in developing their action plans.

Key Insights: Focus Groups and Discussions

What Employers Revealed:

• Businesses preferred redefining jobs rather than eliminating them to reduce employee resistance.
• They seek training focused on AI problem-solving and critical thinking skills.
• Free resources like Microsoft’s AI courses are highly valued.
• Sophisticated tools require training for effective implementation.

What Job Seekers/Employees Shared:

• Job seekers and workers are concerned about job displacement.
• Understanding how AI can enhance rather than replace their work would help reduce anxiety.
• Hands-on experience with AI tools could build confidence and comfort.
• Strategic Job Search Strategies

Strategic Planning Session: Embracing the AI Mindset

At SELACO’s strategic planning session, Full Capacity Marketing introduced the concept of the “AI Mindshift”—a practical approach to embracing AI tools and thinking. This presentation was strategically timed to help participants understand how to transform their organizations’ relationship with AI based on all the insights gathered through SELACO’S sector strategy process.

The AI Mindshift is:

• Viewing artificial intelligence as a tool and partner for problem-solving, decision-making, and innovation
• Understanding how AI can be used effectively while addressing its limitations in a responsible and ethical manner.
• Less about expertise and more about exploration.

This mindset shift is crucial for workforce and education organizations because it 1) helps bridge the gap between employer needs and job seeker concerns; 2) transforms internal resistance into organizational capability;  3) creates opportunities for enhanced service delivery and strategic advantage; and 4) positions organizations as forward-thinking leaders in their communities.

The session demonstrated that successful AI integration starts with changing perspectives—from viewing AI as a threat to embracing it as a collaborative partner that can enhance human capabilities rather than replace them.

SELACO’S Internal Transformation

Following the strategic planning session and throughout the sector strategy process, the impact on SELACO was remarkable. “Once we started eliminating fears, it’s been fun because staff are engaged,” Castro notes. Her team transitioned from expressing concerns to organizing “AI lunch and learn” meetings where they plan to share discoveries about using AI tools.

The transformation included:

• Staff using AI to enhance case notes and daily tasks.
• Regular peer learning sessions about AI tools.
• Leadership using AI to develop strategic action plans.
• Increased curiosity and engagement with AI applications.

Castro’s approach proved that addressing concerns directly, while engaging stakeholders around relevant topics, creates momentum and delivers actionable insights. Her key insight: “You don’t need to be a big organization, a sector strategic expert, or have a lot of money to conduct an insightful sector strategy.”

Interested in Doing This for Your Organization?

Castro’s experience demonstrates that any workforce or education organization can successfully implement a similar approach. Her methodology demonstrated that transformation can begin with a small group of engaged employers and a minimal budget.

Key takeaways for getting started:

• Start small and keep it simple—you don’t need extensive resources.
• Address internal concerns first to build organizational readiness.
• Focus on relevant, immediate topics that create “instant gratification” for employers.
• Use the process as both strategic intelligence gathering and staff development.
• Keep advisory committees temporary and focused (under a 12-month commitment). 

The sector strategy becomes a vehicle for transformation that extends beyond AI, creating enhanced organizational capacity and stakeholder engagement.

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Ready to develop your organization’s AI mindset? Contact FCM to explore how the AI Mindshift can transform your organization’s approach to the future of work, and check out our AI webinar series at https://ailabwithfcm.com/