So many companies are jumping on the AI bandwagon right now and, at the same time, an equal number of professionals are wondering what it means for them. Will it make their jobs obsolete? Can AI replicate what creative minds are currently doing in the workplace?

I believe the answer is that AI has it’s place – it can certainly automate rote tasks, for example – and we cannot ignore that it’s here to stay. But it’s a mistake for company leaders to think they can rely solely on AI, especially when it comes to their company communications.

The reason is this – AI generated content is not creative, nuanced, or personal. It may make what you want to say prettier, but it cannot get to the heart of the meaning because it’s only cobbling together random pieces of content – content that was originally created for some other purpose, specific to some other company. And since the world is constantly changing, generating text based on old content is destined to fall flat. All of this doesn’t even cover the fact that the information AI is generating may not be accurate.

This means that when it comes to injecting tone, or honing its message to a specific group, or bringing the human element to a sensitive topic, AI may be able to draft a message, and it may be able to shorten a message appropriately, but that draft still needs a human touch before it’s unleashed into the world. It needs to be checked for accuracy of information. It needs to be spell-checked. It needs to coalesce with company branding and values. It needs to be evaluated for messaging.

The human element cannot be overstated. Consider this excerpt from an article by Eve Fairbanks in the Atlantic:

Is this how a company wants their communications to clients and employees to be perceived? Of course not!

No matter how your company currently handles communications – whether it’s with a standalone communications department, or through outsourcing to independent communications professionals (like London Writes), it’s important to take a hard look at the value your communications team brings. I’m willing to bet that a company who abandons their writers and editors won’t do so for long.