ChatGPT Considered As A “Skill Leveler”
Large language-models might reduce the spread between higher and lower-performing office workers
Do large language-models help people do better work?
Many employees in white-collar cubicle-land think so. In a recent Fishbowl study, 30% of officefolk said they used ChatGPT to help do their work. But does one actually see a real benefit from using LLMs on the job? If so, how much of a benefit?
Recently, a group of scholars decided to probe that question. So they went to the Boston Consulting Group and got 758 consultants to participate in an intriguing experiment. The researchers created 18 tasks the subjects would do for an imaginary shoe company …
There were creative tasks (“Propose at least 10 ideas for a new shoe targeting an underserved market or sport.”), analytical tasks (“Segment the footwear industry market based on users.”), writing and marketing tasks (“Draft a press release marketing copy for your product.”), and persuasiveness tasks (“Pen an inspirational memo to employees detailing why your product would outshine competitors.”).
The researchers checked these with an actual shoe company to get their approval that these were realistic tasks a consultant might actually do. These tasks were also things…
