Published: 4/6/2025

Do we still have the need for experts now that we have AI for any knowledge work? This was a question I was trying to answer this week when I stumbled upon this debate on being an expert in a tool vs being of value. How the new age of AI is rapidly changing the world around us. Do we still learn those programming languages? Those Excel formulas? Those image editing skills ? When we have AI to do all of those. The conclusion I came to was that we can divide the jobs (aka work) into 2 types of required skills – those requiring an expertise in tools (rockstar coder, Excel ninja, Photoshop warrior, etc.) and those of being of value (the guy who can provide what the other wants). Those who are able to figure out what the other person needs and become that “person of value” can flourish more than the one who follows the conventional path of picking up an expertise in a tool and being known to use it effectively.

How is the world around us changing with AI ?

With the introduction of AI, we are seeing our regular tasks being automated or delegated. It has caused a bit of fear among a few for the loss of their job and becoming irrelevant. But is that so? Will we all become irrelevant as AI progresses? My answer would be No, a big NOO, and the reason behind it is any big technical advancement has led to job losses but also created new jobs in the same industry; hence, just moving from doing 1 thing to another.

Adaptability as a skill has favoured those who accept the change instead of fighting it and use it to their advantage. This is where understanding if you are just a tool master or a person of value comes into the picture. If you are just a tool master, you would still be in demand, but you would notice that the number of opportunities will shrink over time vs if you choose to be a person of value; any technical advance would be your competitive edge. If you can incorporate any new technological advance faster than your competitors, you can actually gain an edge over them. In the worst case, it gives you differentiation, and in the best case, an edge, which is quite valuable.

What can we do to stay relevant?

Now, being an expert in a tool might make you valuable and indispensable for a period, but eventually the value you bring to the table is replaceable. You can always hire someone else to manage your large Excel files or create a pretty presentation, but can you hire anyone who understands your needs and your taste and delivers the work that suits you? That is what I call being of value. A person who is smart enough to understand what the other person requires can figure out a way to provide it to them. This person is selling a solution vs an expertise in our previous case, and hence this person is less likely to be replaced. Can you think of AI understanding your requirement and suggesting you a solution to it? No, right! Well, this is where our topic relates to, i.e., becoming a person of value and not a tool expert. Being a person of value gives you the mindset to figure out how to stay relevant and how to make use of tools to get what you want. This is an irreplaceable skill and can stand the tests of time, whether it's AI or any other technological advancement.

I hope you learned something of value in this week's blog. Stay tuned to learn something new every week. :)