As the University of Melbourne continues to build its AI capability, staff are increasingly moving beyond experimentation to explore how generative AI can solve real workplace challenges.

GenAI@Work is the foundational platform for shaping this journey for academic and professional staff across the institution. Driving impact through a hub-and-spoke model that combines central guidance, domain-specific guidance, and supported technologies, the model enables connected community learning and discipline contextualised innovation. Through Communities of Practice meetups, showcases and training sessions, and events such as hackathons and practice exchanges, The hub leads with a future focus and is a core enabler within the University to empower people and performance by adopting GenAI in their disciplines.

This session brings that approach to life through two practical demonstrations from staff who have used AI to address genuine workplace problems. One showcase explores how an AI-enabled solution was developed while keeping human judgement at the centre of complex decision-making. The other demonstrates how AI was used to transform large volumes of unstructured information into organised, reusable insights to support planning and analysis. Beyond the solutions themselves, presenters will share the challenges they were trying to solve, the decisions they made along the way, and the lessons learned through experimentation and implementation.

Attendees will gain practical insight into how to identify suitable opportunities for AI, assess where it can add value, navigate governance and risk considerations, and select approaches that best fit the problem. The session is designed for staff at all levels of AI experience and focuses on practical takeaways that can be applied regardless of role, discipline or preferred AI tools, and your confidence with using GenAI today.

Participants will leave with ideas for their own work, a clearer understanding of how AI-enabled innovation can be approached responsibly, and connections to a growing community helping turn curiosity into capability across the University.

Cory Dal Ponte, Skill & Capability Lead, Organisation Development

Rina Gao, Collaboration Applications Manager, Enterprise Technology

Rahul Grover, Experience Design Engineer, Service Transformation, Enterprise Services Group

Tom Cougan, Service Improvement Lead, Service Transformation, Enterprise Services Group

Grace Pelchen, Service Improvement Analyst, Service Transformation, Enterprise Services Group