Stop screening for AI experience- It doesn’t exist!
Stop screening for AI experience. In 2026, almost nobody actually has it yet!
I keep seeing hands-on AI experience climb toward the top of job descriptions for senior NetSuite and Dynamics roles, and I understand the instinct. But I push back on it, and I think the reason matters for anyone hiring in our space this year.
Here is the problem. Genuine, professional AI deployment experience barely exists yet. The technology is too new for anyone to have years of real production depth behind them. If you try to screen hard for AI depth, you will soon find your talent pool shrinking to virtually nothing.
This week, the market started to wobble on AI spending; semiconductor stocks took a hit as investors questioned whether the returns are showing up. In the ERP world, the reality is that AI doesn’t deploy itself. Even with a strong platform and finance background, someone still needs to map it to your revenue recognition, security model, and chart of accounts. Without that person, it is simply a demo.
So here is the basic truth I keep coming back to. AI fluency is easily learnable. In reality, any sharp, curious professional can get genuinely conversant in months.
Conversely, the accumulated NetSuite and Dynamics judgment, the finance and accounting depth, and the scar tissue from a dozen implementations take a decade and cannot be shortcut.
My advice to clients is consistent: make your must-haves the depth that takes ten years to earn and treat genuine AI curiosity as the tiebreaker among otherwise strong finalists, not the gate they have to clear first.
You can teach this new tool, but not years of experience and the wisdom that comes from it.
How are you weighing this on your own roles right now?
I keep seeing hands-on AI experience climb toward the top of job descriptions for senior NetSuite and Dynamics roles, and I understand the instinct. But I push back on it, and I think the reason matters for anyone hiring in our space this year.
Here is the problem. Genuine, professional AI deployment experience barely exists yet. The technology is too new for anyone to have years of real production depth behind them. If you try to screen hard for AI depth, you will soon find your talent pool shrinking to virtually nothing.
This week, the market started to wobble on AI spending; semiconductor stocks took a hit as investors questioned whether the returns are showing up. In the ERP world, the reality is that AI doesn’t deploy itself. Even with a strong platform and finance background, someone still needs to map it to your revenue recognition, security model, and chart of accounts. Without that person, it is simply a demo.
So here is the basic truth I keep coming back to. AI fluency is easily learnable. In reality, any sharp, curious professional can get genuinely conversant in months.
Conversely, the accumulated NetSuite and Dynamics judgment, the finance and accounting depth, and the scar tissue from a dozen implementations take a decade and cannot be shortcut.
My advice to clients is consistent: make your must-haves the depth that takes ten years to earn and treat genuine AI curiosity as the tiebreaker among otherwise strong finalists, not the gate they have to clear first.
You can teach this new tool, but not years of experience and the wisdom that comes from it.
How are you weighing this on your own roles right now?