As generative artificial intelligence reshapes corporate workflows, Birlasoft faces a familiar challenge with an unfamiliar urgency: how to prepare employees for jobs that barely existed a year ago. The Indian technology services company’s response offers insights into how businesses might navigate the collision between human skills and machine capabilities.
“Agility is not a buzzword here—it’s a mindset,” explains Deepak Arora, the company’s vice-president for learning and development. His team has spent the past year redesigning Birlasoft’s training programmes around a central premise: as AI automates routine tasks, human skills like creativity and complex problem-solving become more valuable, not less.
The approach reflects a broader shift across India’s $254bn technology sector, where companies are grappling with AI’s dual nature as both disruptor and enabler. Whilst automation threatens to eliminate certain roles, it also creates demand for workers who can collaborate effectively with AI systems.
Beyond technical training
Birlasoft’s strategy rests on two pillars: developing human capabilities that complement AI, and ensuring employees can actually use generative AI tools effectively. The company has revamped its Digital Learning and Technology Leadership curriculum to emphasise skills such as complex problem-solving, creativity, and analytical thinking—areas where humans retain advantages over current AI systems.
"We have incorporated specific learning journeys designed to strengthen competencies such as complex problem solving—helping employees identify challenges and develop sound strategies based on reasoned judgments," notes Arora. The modules also focus on leadership, social influence, and resilience.
This represents a departure from traditional corporate training, which often prioritised technical certifications over softer skills. Now, the company argues, empathy and judgement have become essential differentiators in AI-augmented workplaces.
The technical side involves democratising AI literacy across all business functions, not just technology teams. Each business unit must identify and implement generative AI use cases, supported by Cogito, Birlasoft’s in-house AI platform.
To systematise this effort, the company established a Generative AI Academy built on three components: foundational learning through “Generative AI Essentials,” domain-specific knowledge for different business areas, and technical depth for engineering teams. The academy ensures AI training connects to immediate business contexts rather than remaining theoretical.
