EDUCAUSE Summit | Developing an AI-Ready Workforce: Skills, Literacy, and Continuous Growth 2026

Artificial intelligence is not just another tool—it is transforming the very nature of work. As AI automates knowledge-based tasks, higher education leaders face a pressing challenge: how to prepare and lead a workforce that collaborates with, supervises, and is augmented by AI. This summit focuses on the workforce implications of AI adoption in higher education, equipping participants to lead the way AI reshapes daily operations, academic support, and administrative roles. Leaders must confront the realities of reskilling staff, redefining roles, and aligning culture and strategy to ensure people and AI systems work productively together. Designed for practitioners, team leads, senior leaders, and decision-makers—anyone involved in supporting AI adoption and transformation, the program will explore how AI is moving from pilots and planning into larger scale initiatives with potential productivity gains and workforce transformation. Through case studies, leadership panels, and interactive sessions, participants will examine both successes and challenges—including tangible evidence of improved outcomes in student success, faculty efficiency, and operational performance. Work alongside your peers—addressing today’s workforce realities while shaping the strategies and leadership approaches that will guide higher education’s AI-driven future.