Last week Magnifica Humanitas was published, the new encyclical by Pope Leo XIV.
The text revolves around an uncomfortable question: what will happen to human talent in a world where artificial intelligence is increasingly capable.
It isn’t a technical question. It’s a question of judgment: what we understand by value, by contribution and, ultimately, by what is human within organizations.
The encyclical arrives at a moment when artificial intelligence has stopped being a technology of the future to become a reality that is already transforming the way we work, learn and make decisions.
Throughout the text we don’t find a pessimistic view of technology or a warning about the advances to come. On the contrary, it acknowledges the enormous potential artificial intelligence can bring to knowledge, human development and social progress.
The concern appears elsewhere.
In the possibility that we devote more time to developing our tools than to developing the people who are going to use them.
Because the more capable the technologies around us become, the more important a question seems to grow that directly affects organizations, leadership and talent development.
What place will the human occupy in an increasingly intelligent world?
There are three ideas that recur throughout the encyclical that are relevant to HR.
The first has to do with human intelligence. It isn’t limited to processing information or solving problems: it includes creativity, judgment, empathy, awareness and a sense of purpose. And these are probably the capabilities that will gain value as technology becomes more competent.
The second is speed. Artificial intelligence advances rapidly, while the development of people and organizations doesn’t always do so at the same pace. Adopting tools is important, but learning to use them with judgment and responsibility matters just as much or more.
The third is the future. When many organizations gain access to similar technologies, the difference will still lie in people: in how they lead, how they learn, how they relate to one another and how they’re able to contribute what no tool can replace.
If you look at it calmly, this reflection goes beyond the debate about artificial intelligence and points to something organizations have been trying to solve for years: how to help people unfold all their potential in increasingly complex environments.
And this is where it connects with what we’ve already been observing within organizations.
Driving talent and people’s development no longer depends solely on the knowledge they’re able to acquire. It’s increasingly important to understand from what physical, mental and emotional state people learn, collaborate and put that knowledge into practice.
That’s where Humántica® is born.
An approach that puts the human at the center of development.
For years, talent development has focused mainly on two dimensions: knowledge and practice. Both remain necessary. However, there is a third dimension that decisively influences how people learn and unfold their talent: the state of the body, the mind and the emotion.
That’s why the Humántica® Learning Experiences incorporate this third element into the learning processes.
It doesn’t matter whether we’re talking about leadership, communication or teamwork. The same tool, learned by two different people, can generate completely different results depending on the state it’s applied from.
That’s where many organizations have a clear opportunity.
Artificial intelligence will keep increasing speed, productivity and efficiency. The question is whether people’s development will be able to keep pace.
If you’re interested in exploring how to apply this approach within your organization, write to me and we’ll look into it.
Which human skill do you think will be most important in the age of artificial intelligence?
— Berta
