Knowledge management is crucial to business success in today’s complex and highly competitive business environment. The rapid advancement of digital technologies, artificial intelligence and intelligent machines presents new challenges for the creation and management of knowledge within companies. The current phenomenon of automation, associated with the intensive use of AI and robotics, involves all workers regardless of their skill level. While it was initially assumed that new technologies would have a negative impact on low-skilled workers by replacing them, studies show that the current advancement of automation could impact all workers regardless of their skill level. However, rather than witnessing a simple replacement, we observe a transformation of working practices, which require the creation and management of new skills aimed at integrating with emerging automation models. It is therefore essential to train workers, especially the youngest, providing them with increasingly qualified skills and allowing them to become complementary to AI. This can avoid the skill mismatch that makes it difficult to enter the world of work, thus contributing to increasing the productivity and wealth of the country. It is important for companies to prepare for technological change and the new generation of specialized workers, thus becoming attractive for talent and easier knowledge management. Companies that delay in implementing change will have greater difficulty remaining competitive on the market by failing to attract workers. If we combine this with an aging population, a declining birth rate, a lack of skills and greater sensitivity to welfare and work-life balance, the challenges for companies become increasingly complex. If we consider that the pandemic period has seen the spread of the phenomenon of large resignations, following which a significant number of people have chosen to leave their jobs with a significant impact on employment. Workers show a growing preference for a balance between professional and personal life and for a work environment that reflects their values. This inevitably leads to an excess of demand for labor, increasing the difficulty for companies that cannot find the workers they need due to a difficulty in finding and managing skills. We can say that the best performing sectors will be those linked to new technologies even if this may seem counterintuitive because many people say that automation will destroy new jobs. In reality we must see automation and AI as a process innovation. That is, human labor is replaced with robots or artificial intelligence, continuing to produce the same type of goods or services. Specifically, to implement and make the most of process innovations, it is necessary to produce the technologies themselves such as robots for car assembly or software for online banking. This implies the creation of new companies that see software, mechanical equipment and artificial intelligence as their products. What we can expect is a generational change with the entry into the labor market of young people trained to interface in a complementary way with the use of AI. The track aims to stimulate and contribute to the scientific debate to deepen the relationship that exists between Knowledge management, AI and Corporate Competitiveness to reflect on the new paradigms that are imposing themselves on the market.

Maria Zifaro, Mercatorum University, Italy
Andrea Presciutti, Mercatorum University, Italy
Anna Bisogno, Mercatorum University, Italy
Giovanni Spatola, Mercatorum University, Italy
Giuseppe Ambrosio, Mercatorum University, Italy