7 September 2026

Get more from AI at work

By Stefan Botha, CEO of Optimi Group

Get more from AI at work with role-specific skills

Are you looking for ways to use AI more effectively in your job? You are not alone. New learning data suggests that practical AI skills are becoming valuable across many careers.

Skillsoft’s Top 100 most-consumed learning assets for 2026 put AI-related skills at the top, with popular titles aimed at roles in marketing, software development and business leadership – to name just a few.

If you already use AI for everyday tasks such as planning meals, drafting messages or summarising documents, you may be wondering how to get more from it in your own role, and you would certainly have a point.

AI is changing how we work

Workforce research by PwC found that South African workers across generations reported productivity gains from AI, with the strongest result among Gen X respondents at 79%, followed by Millennials at 74% and Gen Z at 73%.

Stefan Botha, CEO of Optimi Group, says getting more from AI means “knowing how to give it clear instructions, check its output, handle information carefully and apply good judgement.”

The benefits are as unique as the work you do. In software development, research involving almost 4 900 developers found that those given access to an AI coding assistant completed 26% more tasks.

In a Harvard Business School-led study conducted with Boston Consulting Group, consultants using AI completed knowledge-work tasks more than 25% faster.

“Someone working in marketing will use AI differently from someone in software development, for example. What matters is learning how it can support the work you want to do,” says Botha.

Choose AI skills that fit your role

That is the thinking behind College SA’s AI learning offering. Rather than treating AI competency as a single, generic skill, College SA offers courses that connect AI to the specific work people do.

Courses such as AI for Marketing Professionals, AI for Software Engineers and Generative AI Business Transformation give you a way to develop AI skills for job-relevant applications.

“AI can help you work faster, but it does not remove the need to listen carefully, solve problems, build trust or communicate clearly,” says Botha.

College SA’s role-focused courses are designed to help you build practical AI capability alongside the knowledge and human skills you already bring to your field.

If AI is becoming more relevant to your current role or the career you want to build, explore College SA's AI and Machine Learning courses to find an option that matches your goals.