In today’s world, you have to know AI—at least a little bit. Every tool has its “hooks” into AI now, but we all know the truth: AI is only as good as the prompt you give it and the data it has learned from. Full disclosure: This blog was written with the assistance of AI, but the heart of it is 100% mine.

This isn’t your typical technical deep dive. This is about how you and I can actually use AI effectively. We’re going to cover the Who, the What, and the Why.

The WHO: It’s All About the Trainer

The “Who” is obviously you. But to use AI well, you have to keep three things in mind:

  • AI isn’t a person: It doesn’t have feelings, humor, or passion. Because of that, you have to be its coach. You need to provide “constructive criticism.” Be picky! Tell it, “I hate this,” or “I love that, but it feels too robotic.” * Training is the differentiator: The people who will be most successful in an AI-driven world are those who have trained their AI systems the best. When you tweak a response, give that feedback back to the AI. Let it learn your specific style and needs.
  • Don’t hunt for validation: AI is programmed to be polite. It will tell you, “That’s a great idea!” but don’t let that trick you. This is your work. If the AI suggests something that doesn’t improve your point, cut it. AI doesn’t care if you delete its “contributions,” and neither should you.

The WHAT: From Emails to Agentic Automation

What are we actually doing with this tech?

  1. Leveling up communication: I’ll be the first to admit I’m not the world’s best writer. Tools like Google Gemini help me take my raw thoughts and make them coherent. Just ensure the final word is always yours.
  2. Smoothing out the “drudge work”: This is where Agentic AI comes in. A simple, effective use case is building an agent that ingests all your company documentation and makes it searchable via Slack or Teams.
  3. Complex Operations: In our world, AI can process runbooks and take the first few steps to clean up simple errors before leaving the “real” problems for the experts. I actually have this exact scenario set up as a demo for Workload Automation. If you want to see this in action, feel free to reach out to me at Leon.dodenbrett@hcl-software.com or call 763-280-0574.

The WHY: It’s About Personal Leverage

This is the biggest question: Why do it? If you’re doing it just because a “boss” said so, you’re missing the point. For me, the “Why” comes down to leverage.

In workload automation, we are constantly told to “do more with less.” AI is the first tool that actually makes that possible on a personal level. It bridges the gap between having a great idea and actually getting that idea onto a screen or into a script. It acts as a force multiplier for your brain—whether that’s researching complex company policies in seconds or organizing a scattered thought process into a coherent plan.

Ultimately, every workload automation environment is a “snowflake”—it’s unique, complex, and doesn’t have a one-size-fits-all solution. You aren’t using AI to replace your expertise; you’re using it to scale it. You find the specific needs of your company, and you build the Agentic AI to fill those gaps.

The “Why” isn’t about the technology; it’s about making yourself more effective in a career that moves faster every day.