In the AI era, some say “X-shaped talent” that quickly secures expertise in multiple fields will be more competitive than specialists who focus deeply on a single area.

On Sept. 3, local time, Jess Hertz (제스 허츠), Shopify’s chief operating officer, said on the podcast “Rapid Response” that AI is changing what companies want in employees, and presented the idea of X-shaped talent, Business Insider reported. Hertz created the concept as an expansion of the traditional T-shaped talent model for the AI era.

T-shaped talent refers to people with broad knowledge and deep expertise in one specific field. By contrast, Hertz’s X-shaped talent has peaks of expertise across several fields. She said such people can quickly understand complex concepts, learn new areas and, if needed, perform other roles to a considerable level.

Hertz gave an example of doing data work herself, saying, “If I wanted, I could become a designer at a 7 out of 10 level.” She meant AI can fill gaps in knowledge or skills, allowing employees to expand their activities beyond existing job boundaries into multiple areas.

She expects the shift to affect how organisations are structured. Hertz predicted that it will become more important how people with different types of capabilities combine, not just each employee’s expertise. She said the ability to combine diverse specialisations among team members could determine an organisation’s competitiveness in the AI era.

Shopify has already reflected the use of AI in its HR and work systems. Tobias Lutke (토비 뤼트케), Shopify’s chief executive officer, said in an internal memo in April last year that the company would define AI use as a baseline expectation for all employees and include related questions in performance and peer reviews. Before asking for additional personnel or resources, employees were told to prove why they could not solve the work by using AI first.

Daniela Amodei (다니엘라 아모데이), president of Anthropic, and Jamie Dimon (제이미 다이먼), CEO of JPMorgan, have also stressed the importance of human-centred capabilities such as communication, critical thinking and emotional intelligence. The article said that as AI lowers barriers to specialised knowledge, companies’ criteria for talent are expanding from depth in one field to the ability to learn, adapt and integrate.