As AI capabilities grow, PwC US is introducing a certification program to help staffers build and demonstrate critical thinking and judgment.
More than 85,000 employees across PwC’s US and Mexico offices, plus those in its Acceleration Centers, which support client work and business operations, will participate in the program, said Yolanda Seals-Coffield, chief people and inclusion officer at PwC US.
The program is set to start in December.
It’s important to find new ways of developing workers’ skills, she said, because AI is helping in areas such as research, writing, and analysis that were once largely done manually.
“As AI takes on more of these foundational tasks, some of the repetition that really helped our people to develop critical thinking and judgment just won’t be there,” Seals-Coffield said.
Already, she said, first-year associates are doing different work than they did two years ago. A recent PwC analysis of US job listings found that entry-level roles exposed to AI were far more likely to include traditionally senior-level skills, including judgment and leadership, than in 2019.
PwC has identified 15 AI skills and 15 human skills — things like empathy and adaptability — that it says will set employees apart. This certification centers on critical thinking and judgment, which the company considers vital.
In a world where AI does more of the work, Seals-Coffield said PwC’s goal is to develop a framework that will help employees evaluate information, establish context, challenge information and assumptions, refine analysis, and communicate recommendations.
Training for critical thinking
The certification, which the company expects employees to complete over roughly six months, will begin with an assessment to identify a person’s thinking style and how it might shape their judgment, she said. Are they someone who questions assumptions, reflects on things, or is a pragmatist?
The intent is to help workers identify their natural strengths and the areas where they might need the most focus.
To start, Seals-Coffield said, the company is working with professors and veteran PwC staffers to develop classes to help participants sharpen their thinking skills.
The next step will involve “realistic simulations” that let employees apply the framework to their work, she said. From there, a personalized AI coach will help staffers apply what they learned in the simulations to their daily tasks.
The AI coach, for example, could help employees practice difficult conversations or prepare for client meetings. That might mean uploading a proposal, having the coach review it, and then helping the employee anticipate potential questions. Or it could help identify which team member should take on which role.
Seals-Coffield said the firm views critical thinking and judgment as complementing PwC’s focus on instructing employees in areas from responsible use of AI to professional skepticism, and that the content will be customized based on employees’ seniority level.
How PwC will assess the skills
The program will roll out in stages, giving staffers time to apply its lessons in their day-to-day work before development leaders evaluate that proficiency as part of the company’s performance review process, she said. The goal, Seals-Coffield said, is that participants will complete the certification by the end of the company’s fiscal year in June 2027.
“The idea of this certification is not to design a traditional pass/fail exam, but to give people these repeatable skills and then to encourage and create the space for them to be assessed against them at year-end,” she said.
Seals-Coffield said the certification program comes as the company has broadened how it thinks about hiring over the past two years. The firm is hiring more engineers and technologists than ever — across its businesses, she said. While it wasn’t unusual to find engineers in the company’s advisory business, she said, they’re now in its tax and assurance divisions, too.
The company continues to recruit on college campuses, Seals-Coffield said, and make offers to the majority of its summer interns. PwC declined to release year-over-year figures on entry-level hiring.
After employees complete the certification, Seals-Coffield said, the AI coach can deliver instructional content to staffers as the company determines updates are needed.
“We will continue to assess our people against their AI and human skills proficiencies throughout the course of their career,” she said.
