Knowledge at Wharton

AI implementation is an incentives problem, says The Wharton School senior fellow Scott Snyder. Citing research from EY, Snyder notes that while many employees are already using AI at work, only 5% say they are using it to transform how they work — and more than half do not trust AI and worry it could take their jobs. Snyder lays out incentives to jumpstart use, including AI innovation prizes, team bonuses for AI impact, and "employee-level gain sharing," where employees can invest time made available by AI to experiment with it or take a course on it. He also offers ways to adapt existing incentives to reward AI innovation, including by tying AI-created value to compensation gains, for employees at all levels, and also specifically leaders. In summary, he explains, "Without thoughtful design and careful integration with other key elements of your AI transformation efforts, financial incentives alone will lose their impact and fail to grow and sustain the skill set, mindset, and trust needed to win in the AI future." #ArtificialIntelligence #AI #AIAdoption #OrganizationalChange #Technology

Are we overly outsourcing our thinking to AI? Research from The Wharton School Professor Gideon Nave and postdoctoral researcher Steve Shaw found that people feel more confident about AI answers, even when they're wrong. Nave spoke to Forbes about his concerns about a decline in critical thinking skills, leading this week's faculty in the news roundup. Swipe through for... 1️⃣ Nave on "cognitive surrender" to AI: https://whr.tn/3PHdN0X 2️⃣ Judd Kessler on how AI is changing the value of cover letters: https://whr.tn/4v28fOH 3️⃣ Susan Wachter on the impact of the Iran war on home refinancing: https://whr.tn/4uUASNL 4️⃣ Peter Cappelli on office gossip: https://whr.tn/4dSdNFo 5️⃣ Jessie Handbury on the rise of higher-income shoppers at dollar stores: https://whr.tn/482DvTS

How do you evaluate whether AI is in a bubble? And if so, what kind of bubble is it? To make these determinations, start with this simple decision tree laid out by Stefano Puntoni, co-director of Wharton Human-AI Research, and Shlomo Benartzi, professor at UCLA Anderson School of Management and senior fellow at the Wharton AI & Analytics Initiative. While case studies suggest AI is already creating significant value, the amount and areas of positive value vary greatly within research – in particular, contrasting reports from The Wharton School and the MIT Sloan School of Management. However, Puntoni and Benartzi note, this is indicative of early-stage technological growth, rather than "tulip mania," the historic Amsterdam tulip bubble from the 1600s. "In this environment, the critical question for business leaders is not whether AI will eventually create value — it will — but how long it will take for their industry to realize that value," they write. "We can offer a simpler recommendation to executives: Invest your time. In many industries, effective generative AI deployment will be crucial to survival — not in the distant future, but in the competitive landscape emerging right now."

Too few women are working with emerging tech – and that exclusion is driving a growing divide in pay, according to a recent study from The Wharton School professors Prasanna Tambe and Tiantian Yang. The paper, published in the MIS Quarterly journal, finds that women are much less likely than men to apply for jobs that require expertise with emerging tech, and slightly less likely to hold them. Because these jobs pay more, that pattern widens the existing gender pay gap in the IT sector. Emerging technologies are defined in the study as tools that came about in the past decade and have grown quickly in usage, such as AI, blockchain, and programming tools like Golang and Flutter. Yang said that structural barriers, rather than any lack of ambition, are to blame for keeping women out of the lucrative tech jobs. “These are good jobs, they pay well,” she explained. “The issue is not that women don’t want them.” Swipe for more takeaways from the study and the researchers' practical steps companies can take in response. #EqualPayDay #GenderPayGap #PayEquity #WomenInTech

When navigating change, is it better to expand your network or lean further into existing connections? A new study co-authored by The Wharton School's Tiantian Yang and Marissa King and INSEAD's Yiftach Yarmar sheds light on the power of strong relationships during times of uncertainty – and how men and women respond differently. Their research into mergers and acquisitions within health care revealed that women intensify their focus on existing relationships with other women, creating denser, more supportive networks. Yang dives deeper into the findings and their broader implications to lead this #WomensHistoryMonth edition of our monthly newsletter rounding up insights from the Wharton Podcast Network. Also featured:  - This Week in Business: Nancy Rothbard on leadership under pressure - Moneyball: Ken Pomeroy analyzes college basketball success metrics to Eric Bradlow, Shane Jensen, and Abraham (Adi) Wyner - Marketing Matters: MANSCAPED’s Marcelo Kertesz explains the value of humor for a brand to Barbara Kahn and Americus Reed II - Where AI Works: Dr. Pari Pandharipande, Penn Medicine's Chair of Radiology, shares thoughts on AI in health care with Christian Terwiesch

How do you carve out a niche in an industry dominated by established giants? By thoughtfully leaning into humor and having a clearly defined audience, men's grooming brand MANSCAPED has been able to take a stake of the competitive grooming market share, CMO Marcelo Kertesz told hosts Barbara Kahn and Americus Reed II in a recent episode of #WhartonMarketingMatters Kertész explained how the company found its niche customer segment amid the rise of skincare and grooming cultural shifts, norms, and trends, to become approachable rather than preachy. " We want to be like that older brother who is cool," he said. Success thus far has helped Manscaped branch into wider pockets of the grooming market, moving from primarily offering full-body trimmers to also offering grooming products for men's faces and heads. #Marketing #MarketingPodcast #MarketingInsights

While typically raises are spread like "peanut butter" – modestly, across all staff – Korn Ferry reports that managers would prefer to give higher raises to top talent to avoid attrition. Management professor Iwan Barankay spoke to Bloomberg about the struggle to retain the highest performers to lead this week's The Wharton School faculty news roundup. Swipe and click through for... 1️⃣ Barankay on the competitive market for talent: https://whr.tn/4sYkQRe 2️⃣ Ben Keys on home insurance price inequity: https://whr.tn/47MAEhM 3️⃣ Kent Smetters on the federal debt: https://whr.tn/3PrZRrw #Wharton #UPenn #UniversityOfPennsylvania

As the college basketball season reaches its peak, Ken Pomeroy's statistical analysis also peaks in its relevance every March. The statistician and founder of statistical archive KenPom joined our #WhartonMoneyball podcast earlier this month to explain the "four factors" he identified as markers of success. He also shared how he evaluates prediction accuracy and calibration across a full season with Moneyball hosts and The Wharton School professors Eric Bradlow, Shane Jensen, and Abraham (Adi) Wyner. Tune in to the full episode here: https://whr.tn/4sQDKcB #SportsAnalytics #CollegeBasketball #NCAATournament #MarchMadness

College classroom phone bans led to measurable gains in student performance, especially for low-performers, found research from professors Alp Süngü (The Wharton School), Pradeep K Choudhury (Jawaharlal Nehru University), and Andreas Bjerre-Nielsen (Københavns Universitet - University of Copenhagen). “Once phones are out of reach, classrooms dynamics noticeably shifted. ... The overall picture is a classroom environment that is calmer and more conducive to learning," said Sungu. The benefits were strongest for students who were struggling academically as well as first-year students, perhaps because their study habits are still being formed. “Phone bans can cut achievement gaps," Sungu added. "By disproportionately lifting outcomes of low-performing students, the policy narrows the gap between stronger and weaker students.” Swipe for more key takeaways, and read the full story here: https://whr.tn/40DVV9G