{"resourceId":"jisc-ai-literacy-pro-services-20260922","versions":[{"version":"external-afe39c4523a1d5c3c316934b6e902680256ab0c95bbae022c7d3c3f60014d91f","resource":{"id":"jisc-ai-literacy-pro-services-20260922","title":"Jisc publishes 2026–27 AI literacy curriculum for professional services staff covering assistants and agentic AI","organization":"Jisc National Centre for AI","sector":"Higher and further education (UK)","geography":"United Kingdom","publishedAt":"2026-09-22","publicationDate":"2026-09-22","eventDate":null,"sourceName":"Jisc National Centre for AI blog","sourceLabel":"Public-sector association workforce guidance","sourceUrl":"https://nationalcentreforai.jiscinvolve.org/wp/2026/09/22/ai-literacy-curriculum-for-professional-services-staff/","evidenceClass":"public-sector-association","outcomeClass":"emerging","topics":["accessibility-workforce","operating-model","governance-procurement","knowledge-work"],"finding":"On 22 September 2026 Jisc published its 2026–27 AI literacy curriculum for professional services staff in FE/HE: a three-session pathway (understanding AI including assistants/agentic AI; ethical/responsible use covering privacy, bias, IP; essential skills for Copilot/Gemini-style workplace tools) plus optional deepening sessions, with autumn 2026 live dates. It frames AI literacy as confidence and judgment—not tool cheerleading—and targets admin, student services, IT/libraries, and communications staff. No learning-outcome efficacy study is included.","sledRelevance":"Workforce control for campus-operations AI: as admin assistants and agents roll out, association-grade literacy curricula define the minimum staff capability and risk awareness U.S. campuses often skip when buying platforms.","evidence":"Opened Jisc page dated 22 September 2026 details session objectives, audiences (student services, administration/ops, IT/libraries, communications), Copilot/Gemini practical focus, critical literacy on privacy/bias/accuracy/IP/environment, and booked autumn webinar times. Positions literacy as prerequisite for responsible professional-services AI use.","architectureImplications":"Curriculum assumes staff will use workplace copilots/assistants; pairs with platform pilots (e.g., KnowledgeFlow). Does not prescribe architecture but implies institutions need sanctioned tools (Copilot/Gemini) before training at scale.","governanceImplications":"Treats privacy, bias, IP and professional judgment as core governance content for admin staff—not only faculty academic-integrity rules. Supports role-appropriate AI policy training.","securityPrivacyImplications":"Session 2 centers privacy/data and misinformation risks for professional services—necessary counterpart when assistants access institutional knowledge stores.","caveats":"Curriculum announcement/description, not an evaluated training RCT. UK Jisc context; transferability is instructional design, not legal equivalence. Completion/impact metrics not provided.","streamIds":["campus-operations"],"roles":{"sales":"When pitching admin AI platforms, Jisc’s professional-services literacy curriculum is the missing enablement SKU: three sessions covering assistants/agentic AI, ethics/privacy, and Copilot/Gemini skills for ops/student-services/IT staff. Bundle training and change management; do not imply the curriculum proves productivity ROI. Use it to open discovery on who is allowed to use assistants on finance/HR content and what judgment standards apply.","engineering":"There is no new platform to integrate; engineering work is configuring identity-gated access to sanctioned copilots or institutional assistants and aligning training content with real prompt and data-handling controls. Prerequisites include available Copilot or Gemini seats, published data-classification rules, and logging that matches what staff are taught. Proof of value is pre/post confidence checks and reduced unapproved consumer-AI use among trained cohorts—not model accuracy. Constraint: training without sanctioned tools pushes staff back to shadow AI.","delivery":"Schedule the three-session pathway before or with any professional-services assistant pilot; track attendance by unit; add local policy examples for FERPA and state privacy. Ownership: digital capability or HR L&D with IT security guest modules. Acceptance criteria include target-unit completion, localized privacy modules, and a feedback loop into the AI governance committee. Risks: optional attendance, training outpacing sanctioned tool access, and checkbox compliance."},"roleDetails":{"sales":{"customerProblem":"Professional services staff are already using AI while lacking shared judgment standards for privacy, accuracy and when not to automate.","stakeholders":["CHRO / L&D","CIO","Professional services directors","CISO","Communications"],"discoveryQuestions":["Which admin units will be trained before tool access?","Are Copilot/Gemini (or equivalents) already sanctioned?","How will completion and behavior change be measured?","What local policy examples will replace UK-only content?"],"valueHypothesis":"Role-specific AI literacy can reduce unsafe admin AI use and improve assistant pilot quality if tied to sanctioned tools—Jisc provides a curriculum structure, not outcome proof.","potentialEngagement":"Adapt a three-session professional-services AI literacy pilot for two admin units ahead of an assistant deployment.","unsupportedClaims":["Training alone delivers ROI from AI platforms","Curriculum completion equals safe L3/L4 data use","Agentic AI readiness without architecture controls"]},"engineering":{"fit":"Workforce enablement layer for sanctioned workplace AI assistants/copilots used by professional services.","architectureIntegration":"Depends on existing Copilot/Gemini or institutional assistant access; no new runtime. Align prompt/data-handling guidance with actual tool configurations.","prerequisites":["Sanctioned AI tools available to trainees","Local policy excerpts","Manager sponsorship","Attendance tracking"],"constraints":["UK-oriented framing","No efficacy RCT in the source","Agentic content is introductory"],"security":"Training must reinforce data-classification rules and ban of sensitive data in unsanctioned tools.","proofOfValue":["Pre/post literacy self-assessment","Drop in consumer-AI support tickets/shadow use reports","Staff can identify when human review is mandatory"]},"delivery":{"work":"Deliver three live sessions plus optional deepeners; localize examples; require manager follow-up tasks.","dependencies":["L&D scheduling","IT security content","Tool licensing","Unit release time"],"ownership":"Digital capability / HR L&D with IT co-facilitation.","skillsAdoption":"Progressive path from concepts to ethical use to daily Copilot/Gemini tasks for admin roles.","governanceCheckpoints":["Curriculum localized to campus policy before launch","Attendance threshold before assistant pilot expand","Annual refresh for agentic developments"],"acceptanceCriteria":["Target units complete core three sessions","Local privacy/IP modules included","Feedback loop into AI governance committee"],"risks":["Optional attendance yields uneven practice","Training outpaces sanctioned tool access","Treated as compliance checkbox"]}},"retrievedAt":"2026-09-30T21:56:50-05:00","enrichedAt":"2026-09-30T22:05:00-05:00","enrichmentBasis":"retrieved source","accessibilityWorkforceImplications":"Core accessibility-workforce evidence: builds AI capability for non-faculty professional services and stresses critical judgment, privacy and bias. Offer recordings/alternate formats for access.","procurementImplications":"Jisc membership training pathway—U.S. campuses may need internal or consortial equivalents; tool licenses (Copilot/Gemini) are separate procurements.","operatingModelImplications":"Makes staff AI literacy part of operating the admin function, not an optional IT webinar—pairs with assistant pilots as a change-management dependency.","sourceVerification":{"openedUrl":"https://nationalcentreforai.jiscinvolve.org/wp/2026/09/22/ai-literacy-curriculum-for-professional-services-staff/","referenceExcerpt":"It has also been updated to reflect emerging developments, including AI assistants and agentic AI","promptVersion":"sled-research-v4.0","model":null,"basis":"agent-reported inspection"}}}]}