Abstract:

Artificial intelligence (AI) has significant potential to enhance work and learning in companies, such as developing suitable technologies, analyzing employees' progress and preferences, and creating a tailored working and learning environment. This helps learners focus on the areas where they need the most improvement. AI also has the potential to support diversity and inclusion (DI) in the workplace and in learning. So, working and learning approaches using AI should be developed to be accessible, usable, and beneficial to all employees. Companies that support the use of AI to enhance diversity and inclusion practices within the workplace and the learning environment are more successful. Inclusive workplaces enhance employee engagement, and employees are more likely to maximize their potential and achieve satisfaction. AI has the potential to provide immediate, detailed feedback, enable personalized learning experiences, and promote digital literacy among employees. AI can also facilitate accessibility, fostering an inclusive culture. However, the development and use of AI in companies' DI approach initiatives also have many critical challenges, and this process should be carefully done. There is a need for ethical design and continuous monitoring of AI systems used in work and learning to ensure that they support DI goals. AI should complement human-led initiatives and efforts. It is necessary to address the potentially adverse consequences of AI, i.e., by supporting DI. education. Due to their profile, the author focused first on an optimistic DI view in education, but a critical view should address potentially adverse consequences of AI, i.e., by supporting DI also in the workplace.

This paper presents the benefits and challenges of AI use in work and learning, promoting inclusive working technologies, effective communication, equitable outcomes in the workplace, company success, and employee satisfaction. These are also the results of a, a systematic review and analysis of the existing literature on the potential impacts of AI to support DI in the workplace and have been validated through survey research, i.e., by using an online survey questionnaire sent to five European companies that were partners within different projects, discussions with employees, managers, and trainers from these companies

This should contribute to using the power of AI to develop DI initiatives. Examples of how AI can contribute to creating inclusive learning environments, such as Personalized Learning, Language Translation and Accessibility, Assistive Technologies, Early Intervention, and Reducing Bias, are provided, along with AI tools for inclusive learning. Inclusive learning environments can be created by selecting the right tools and implementing them effectively. Big companies have the resources to invest in research for developing such approaches, but ethical concerns, such as risks of AI use, i.e., in amplifying existing bias, should be further monitored; a critical evaluation of various AI applications to contribute positively to DI efforts is necessary.

The author works solutions particularly in cooperation with small and medium-sized companies (SMEs), which have limited resources to evaluate the long-term impact of AI on DI in the workplace and lifelong learning, including its effects on organizational culture, employee well-being, and societal implications; The author helps SMEs to develop and use approaches that combine AI with human-centered work and learning strategies. These include supporting AI literacy, fostering a culture of continuous lifelong learning and adaptation, and creating an inclusive future for all employees. Based on her own experience, she collaborates with policymakers and trainers in developing Competence Frameworks to guide SMEs through this process, supporting both employees and employers in understanding the potential as well as the risks of AI, while engaging them in a safe, ethical, and responsible manner in work and learning. This would include the intersection of AI and other emerging working technologies, which is a significant step forward and a company’s duty to create more equitable and inclusive workplaces and learning approaches.

Keywords:

Artificial intelligence (AI), Diversity and Inclusion (DI), Workplace, Learning.