The challenge
Upskilling engineering teams to utilize AI tools with confidence
Generative AI tools were spreading quickly, and CII’s engineering team needed practical skills to put them to work with confidence. Mike Croft, Chief Architect at CII, saw that many people adopt these tools without understanding how they work and wanted his team to build the foundational knowledge to apply AI in their workflows.
As software developers, CII’s engineers needed expert-led technical learning, not generic business training. Mike also needed a program he could manage without a dedicated learning team.
Most people are jumping into AI tools without knowing how they work or that the answers can be wrong. My team is all software developers, and I'm not a learning professional, so we needed something built for engineers that I could actually run.
Mike Croft
Chief Architect, Cambridge Innovation Institute
The solution
From AI learning goals to a focused plan
Pluralsight gave the team reputable, well-known technology learning that is not tied to any single AI tool.
- Iris® AI: Pluralsight’s in-app AI assistant, helps leaders build learning plans through conversation. By describing a topic, audience, and skill level, leaders receive relevant course recommendations with explanations for each selection.
CII used Iris® AI to recommend three courses across four AI topic areas. Mike reviewed the recommendations, selected the best fit, and organized the learning into Channels.
I could have searched for every one of these courses myself, but Iris® AI made it so much easier. I told it the topic, who would be using it, and their skill levels, and it recommended courses for each area and explained why it chose each one, so I didn’t have to read every description and guess. Then one click added them to our channel. Honestly, it’s pretty amazing.
Mike Croft
Chief Architect, Cambridge Innovation Institute
- Channels: CII organized recommended courses into learning paths, progressing from beginner to advanced. Engineers could find relevant learning in one place without searching independently.
- Skill IQ® assessments: Assessments helped engineers identify knowledge gaps while giving Mike a department-wide view of skills to prioritize.
- Analytics: Learning reports showed which courses engineers started and completed, helping Mike understand engagement and guide program communications.
- Account team partnership: The Pluralsight team helped CII develop a two-week, bingo-style learning challenge, including program materials, communications, and ongoing support.
Key benefits of Pluralsight for Cambridge Innovation Institute
I'm not a learning professional, so I wasn't sure where to start. The Pluralsight team asked what we wanted to get out of the platform and came back with a program I wouldn't have thought of myself. They helped me build it, kept me on track, and made it easy to get my engineers started. Now we're on our second round, and the team is learning.
Mike Croft
Chief Architect, Cambridge Innovation Institute