The 4 levels of Gen AI proficiency [New report]
Superman may be faster than a speeding bullet, but so is Generative Artificial Intelligence (Gen AI). Likewise, Gen AI gives superhuman strength to small and midsize businesses (SMBs) that know how to harness it. Knowledge workers, for example, are using Gen AI to automate how they research, analyze and communicate information. Work groups are tapping into the technology’s limitless pool of knowledge.
But this is only true for SMBs with Gen AI proficiency, which isn’t the same as Gen AI adoption. On the scale of Gen AI Proficiency Progression, adoption (Level 1) is where many SMBs sit. To get to proficiency (Level 4), they need to gain ever-increasing skills and experience with Gen AI.
This takes time — and it’s something you can’t outsource, even as a CEO. You and your employees must individually “learn by doing” to collectively reap the rewards of Gen AI. Only through practice will you learn how to intuitively integrate the technology into your day-to-day work. Only through exposure will you learn how to imagine new possibilities powered by it. But as you get better at using Gen AI, it will get better at enhancing your productivity. As you learn, so does it.
Get the report. Generative AI: Automation of the Knowledge Worker
No matter where you are on the progression scale, here’s how to get to the next level.
Level 0: Base
This is the “AI curious” phase. It’s ground zero; the place where everyone begins. At this stage, you’ve heard and thought about Gen AI. But you haven’t yet tried it.
Next steps: Start using any Gen AI tool in any capacity.
Level 1: Simple questions
At this stage, you’re likely using a free version of a Gen AI tool and/or experimenting with several different tools at once. Because you don’t have much experience with Gen AI, you apply “browser behaviors” to the technology. In other words, your prompts for ChatGPT might look the same as what you’d put in a Google search bar. You’re starting to think about how Gen AI can increase your efficiency, and you’re empowering your employees to do the same.
Next steps: Spend 30 minutes a day using a Gen AI tool. Make it a habit.
Level 2: Complex questions
In this phase, you identify your preferred Gen AI tool and upgrade to the paid version. You spend increasingly more time with this tool, which helps you better understand its capabilities and improves your prompting skills. You get comfortable writing more complex questions, harvesting information from within the model, and imagining how Gen AI could enhance organization-wide processes and productivity.
Next steps: Build custom GPTs in your model that reflect your preferences for tone, style and approach.
| Progression level | Sample prompt |
| Level 1 | What is the fastest flight from New York to Los Angeles? |
| Level 2 | Can you provide a list of flights from New York to Los Angeles on June 23? Please prioritize flights with the shortest travel times and list the low-cost options first. |
| Level 3 | Here’s a copy of my calendar for the month of June. Working around existing meetings and time blocks, can you recommend the best itinerary for traveling from New York to Los Angeles during the week of June 23? |
| Level 4 | Book me a flight from New York to Los Angeles on June 23 based on my preferences for an airline, seating position and time of day. Also, book me a cab service from the airport to my favorite hotel in L.A., and make a reservation at a restaurant for me and my client. I’d like to impress them. |
Level 3: Custom questions
At this stage, you roll out an organization-wide Gen AI tool with strong governance in place, ensuring your proprietary information is fully secure. From there, you import company-specific data and insights into the Gen AI model, giving it the intel to understand your company on a deeper level. You encourage your employees to create personas and populate them with their data to produce better results. Finally, you leverage Gen AI to reimagine and reengineer processes.
Next steps: Consider the tasks you’d like an agentic AI to perform independently.
Level 4: Task specific
For this phase, you hire a prompt engineer to build agents or bots that can perform specific tasks for your business. For example, you may want a bot that can independently send meeting invites, book and record your meetings, and then transcribe and summarize the content of those meetings. Once you’ve reached this level, you’re ahead of the curve and ready for when the first Bot Store (think: App Store) opens.
Ask where, not how
On the path to proficiency, CEOs tend to worry about how they’re going to apply Gen AI to their business. What’s more important is deciding where to apply it. AI experts can answer the how question, but CEOs must identify the areas of their business where AI can drive productivity.
From what I’ve observed, CEOs further down this path are realizing personal productivity gains and pulling their businesses forward with them. They’re developing new capabilities to face new complexities, and they’re gaining more value for their business.
Now’s the time for you to reach the next level. While Gen AI proficiency offers a competitive advantage today, it’ll be a requirement by tomorrow. And it’s only a matter of time before Level 0 becomes a disqualifier for a business, dismantling it as fast as kryptonite.
Related Resources
Generative AI: Automation of the Knowledge Worker [New report]
About the Author: Joe Galvin
Joe Galvin is the Chief Research Officer for Vistage Worldwide. Vistage members receive the most credible, data-driven and actionable thought leadership on the strategic issues facing CEOs. Through collaboration with the Vistage community of…
