Episode overview

Most organizations are excited about AI. Far fewer are actually ready for it. In this episode of The Pluralsight Podcast, host Josh Burkhead sits down with Faye Ellis — AWS Hero and Pluralsight Author Fellow, cloud architect turned educator, and AI upskilling strategist — to talk about what separates organizations that are stuck in AI curiosity mode from those that are building real, measurable capability.

Faye brings a practitioner's perspective to some of the most pressing questions in L&D and technology leadership today: How do you close skills gaps when the technology keeps moving? How do you bring non-technical teams along without losing them? And why are 80% of AI pilots still failing to reach production — even as investment in AI continues to climb?

Whether you're leading an L&D function, managing a technology team, or trying to figure out where to even start with AI upskilling, this conversation is packed with frameworks and honest perspectives you can take back to your team.

In this episode:

• Why fear is not an AI strategy — and what to do instead

• How to move from AI curiosity to a skills-first, outcome-driven program

• The case for AI literacy at every level of the organization, not just technical teams

• What a successful upskilling program actually looks like in practice

• Why the organizations getting it right treat learning as a continuous journey, not a project

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Connect directly with Faye Ellis on LinkedIn.

Questions or comments? podcast@pluralsight.com