Agentic Security Series: Are Employees Ready for Agentic AI? (Part 4 of 6)
FranklyTECH
The Agentic Security Series (Part 4 of 6)
Are Employees Ready for Agentic AI?
Organizations are investing billions of dollars in Artificial Intelligence. AI platforms are being deployed throughout businesses, AI Agents are being connected to critical systems, and executives are looking for ways to increase productivity, automate processes, and improve efficiency. Every day, a new AI solution promises to save time, reduce costs, and transform the way we work. However, the question I do not hear often enough is this: Are employees ready for Agentic AI?
As the owner of a computer training company, I may be a little biased, but after more than 33 years as a professional IT trainer, educator, and professor, I have always believed that education is the solution to all technology challenges. In fact, if I am being completely honest, I believe education is the solution to all of life’s challenges. Every major technology advancement I have witnessed has ultimately come down to the same thing: helping people understand how to use technology effectively, responsibly, and confidently. Agentic AI is no different.
Over the past three decades, my company has helped organizations improve productivity, navigate technology transformations, and successfully execute large scale technology migrations, not only across the United States but around the world. Despite differences in industries, locations, and company sizes, I continue to see the same challenge repeated. Organizations invest heavily in technology, but they often make far smaller investments in helping employees understand how to use that technology effectively.
I have found that employees often use only a small fraction of the capabilities available in the systems and software their organizations have already purchased. Although every company is different, I would feel comfortable saying that employees in many organizations use only about five percent of the capabilities available to them. The software usually is not the problem, and the technology usually is not the problem. The lack of education is almost always the problem. More specifically, the lack of quality and appropriate education is often the challenge.
Technology absolutely transforms organizations. I have seen it happen countless times. Companies invest in new platforms, modernize their infrastructure, migrate to new systems, and fundamentally change how people work. The difference between success and failure is rarely the technology itself. More often than not, it comes down to whether employees understand how to use that technology effectively. The organizations that achieve the greatest return on their technology investments are usually the ones that also invest in educating their people.
One trend I have noticed with increasing frequency over the past few years is the belief that organizations can replace traditional learning with asynchronous, self paced training alone. Self paced learning certainly has value and can be an effective part of a broader learning strategy, but I have rarely seen it deliver a high return on investment when it is used as the sole source of education.
Employees learn differently, ask different questions, and face different challenges based on their roles, responsibilities, and experience levels. Effective learning requires interaction, discussion, coaching, feedback, the ability to apply concepts to real world situations, ongoing long term support, and perhaps most importantly, the opportunity to ask questions live while the information is being presented.
The most effective approach is typically a blended learning model that combines synchronous and asynchronous learning. Live instructor led learning should come first, allowing employees to ask questions in real time, participate in discussions, learn from practical examples, challenge assumptions, and develop a solid understanding of the concepts. Asynchronous learning can then reinforce that instruction by allowing employees to review materials, practice their skills, and revisit concepts at their own pace.
One of the greatest benefits of live instruction is the opportunity to ask questions as they arise. In many cases, the questions employees ask are even more valuable than the planned material because one person’s question may address a challenge that several other people are also experiencing. These discussions can lead to deeper understanding, practical insights, and real world applications that self paced learning alone cannot replicate.
Training should never be viewed as a single event. It should be viewed as an ongoing process. The real value of education often becomes apparent after the class has ended, when employees encounter new situations, have additional questions, and need access to knowledgeable professionals who can help them apply what they learned.
That is one of the reasons I have always believed support should not end when training ends. Employees do not stop needing guidance the moment a class concludes. Some of the most valuable learning may occur days, weeks, months, or even years later, when someone encounters a new challenge and needs help applying the original instruction to a real world situation. Whether through coaching, mentoring, knowledge sharing, or ongoing support, organizations should look beyond the classroom and create a culture of continuous learning.
I have trained students ranging in age from 12 to 81. I have taught executives, government employees, healthcare professionals, administrative staff, IT professionals, and college students while serving as a professor at Mercy College in New York. One of the biggest misconceptions I continue to encounter is the belief that younger generations automatically understand technology and therefore require less training.
My experience has been quite the opposite. Many younger students are comfortable with technology, adapt quickly, and learn new applications easily. However, familiarity is not the same as education. Students may enter a classroom believing they already understand the technology, only to discover that there is far more to learn than they realized. They may be technology savvy, but they often lack formal instruction in how technology is applied within a professional business environment.
To make the situation more challenging, some technology education is delivered by individuals who understand the software but have limited experience working within corporate environments. They may understand features and functions, but they may not fully understand business processes, compliance requirements, management expectations, risk, accountability, or the real world consequences organizations face when technology is used incorrectly.
Agentic AI raises these stakes considerably. Traditional AI primarily answers questions, summarizes information, generates content, and provides recommendations. Agentic AI goes much further. AI Agents can access information, retrieve data, interact with applications, automate workflows, make recommendations, and sometimes initiate actions on behalf of users.
As organizations continue granting AI Agents more authority, the consequences of employee mistakes can become much more significant. A simple error that once affected a single document, email, or process could now trigger actions across multiple systems, impact customers, expose sensitive information, or create consequences that may be difficult, costly, or in some cases impossible to reverse.
Imagine an employee unknowingly providing confidential information to an AI tool, granting excessive permissions to an AI Agent, connecting it to critical business systems without understanding the implications, or relying on AI generated recommendations without verifying their accuracy. None of these actions necessarily come from bad intentions. Most are the result of a lack of awareness, a lack of understanding, and ultimately a lack of training. In other words, the technology is not creating the problem. The absence of education is.
As Agentic AI continues to evolve, AI literacy will become just as important as computer literacy, internet literacy, and cybersecurity awareness. Employees need to understand what AI can do, what it cannot do, what information should never be shared, what permissions should not be granted, and when human judgment should override an AI recommendation.
This education cannot be limited to technical teams. It must include executives, managers, finance professionals, human resources staff, customer service representatives, administrative personnel, and anyone else who may interact with AI systems. A highly capable AI Agent working alongside an employee who does not understand the risks can create significant exposure. Conversely, a well trained employee working alongside a properly governed AI Agent can create tremendous value.
As organizations continue adopting Agentic AI, they should devote as much attention to preparing their people as they do to selecting their technology. The companies that achieve the greatest success will not necessarily be those that purchase the most advanced AI tools. They will be the organizations that prepare their people to use those tools responsibly, effectively, and intelligently.
Technology alone does not transform organizations. Education determines how successful that transformation will be.
I will leave you with this question: If every employee in your organization received access to an AI Agent tomorrow, would they know how to use it safely, responsibly, and effectively?
I would love to hear your thoughts.
FranklyTECH
Technology Examined Frankly.
By Frank Pannacchione
President
Metropolitan Computer Services, Inc.
Next Week in The Agentic Security Series
Part 5 of 6
Can Artificial Intelligence Be Regulated?
AI is advancing at an extraordinary pace. Some people believe stronger regulations are necessary to protect privacy, security, and society, while others believe excessive regulation could slow innovation and weaken America’s competitive position.
Next week, we will examine one of the most debated questions in technology today: Can Artificial Intelligence truly be regulated, and if it can, should it be?
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