Boss overusing ChatGPT

[GladysPeterTalullah]

I have a new boss. He hasn’t operated at this level before and I get that must feel vulnerable and overwhelming. But he uses ChatGPT for everything.

It’s really obvious and it’s getting my back up tbh. Yesterday he asked me to do something, which I did, spent some time on it and then today I’ve had a response back which I would bet my house has been written by ChatGPT again.

I know it’s incredibly efficient yadda yadda. I use it occasionally myself to suggest changes to structures or refine ideas, but I’ve never used it for personal communication and I feel… handled. Manipulated. Annoyed! I’m not someone that needs careful handling in the workplace, i’m easygoing and good at my job but honestly, are we just completely giving up on human interaction now??

I have a colleague who overuses it in personal communication and it is so obvious. Honestly we have a laugh at his expense. But like you I wonder where all this will end up.

Oh God I feel your pain!! I have a direct report who is using AI really heavily, and it’s so obvious. I have worked with them for a few years and so couldn’t figure out why their emails were suddenly weird and also often winding me up. Then I clicked it was due to the use of AI! Our line of work is heavily dependent on both relationships and nuance in terms of written work, and AI just doesn’t cut it. I also don’t find it efficient. It takes longer for me to tell AI what to draft, and then check it / edit it, compared to how long it does to just draft it myself?!

It just makes me feel like there’s no point trying to build relationship or do any more than give him basic facts back. Which is shit but honestly what is the point in me investing in communication with his computer?!?

Do you/can you feed this back to them? I can't imagine it will do their career any good, if their work is winding people up.

Translate it as laziness and lack of confidence, nothing personal.

He put the prompt summing up what he thought, and sent you what he thought was a better version. Roll your eyes and stick with the content, not the form .
You can't really make him change.

In many industries, it's banned for confidentiality reasons, but not everywhere unfortunately.

This sounds like you're taking it personally

I hate ChatGPT and AI for many many reasons

What he is doing is simply proving that a human being isn't required for much of his job. But it isn't any reflection on you. It's a reflection on him.

I think you should just give him the basic facts needed to do the job! It sounds like you wanted more out of the job though. I just see jobs as necessary evils to pay bills.

I know quite a few people who are really pleased with ChatGPT and use it for everything. They will ask ChatGPT to draft them different versions of communications for colleagues. Yes, you can always tell, but my point is often that by the time you've worked your way through the different version you've asked for, you might as well have written it yourself. I think those people are low in confidence though.

You’re right @EmeraldRoulette, I definitely am taking it too personally and I need to step back from that and reclassify it as their shortcoming, as you and @TheZanyZebra say.

I think it just feels dishonest to pass off your half of a conversation as your own when it isn’t- if he’d started the email with “I threw this into ChatGPT for some ideas, what do you reckon”, it would feel completely different but when it’s posted as his own thoughts I feel hoodwinked.

I will work on taking a step back and keeping work in it’s box a bit more! I am generally a bit terrible at that!