Widening the Lens on Expertise in Teams in an AI Era

This essay argues that today’s teams need a broader, communication-centered, multilevel understanding of expertise in an AI era. Rather than treating expertise as a stable attribute located in individuals, it foregrounds how expertise is enacted and negotiated across people, AI tools, and everyday work practices. I outline three directions for future research: tracing how expertise circulates in AI-mediated work, designing communicative safeguards that sustain accountability, and developing practices that make human-AI expertise legible and durable over time.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Small Group Research
Published
2026-03-11
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1177/10464964261430678
Primary Topic
Education, Healthcare and Sociology Research
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
article

Widening the Lens on Expertise in Teams in an AI Era

Ignacio Fernandez Cruz
Small Group Research
Education, Healthcare and Sociology Research
article

Widening the Lens on Expertise in Teams in an AI Era

Ignacio Fernandez Cruz
article en

Abstract

This essay argues that today’s teams need a broader, communication-centered, multilevel understanding of expertise in an AI era. Rather than treating expertise as a stable attribute located in individuals, it foregrounds how expertise is enacted and negotiated across people, AI tools, and everyday work practices. I outline three directions for future research: tracing how expertise circulates in AI-mediated work, designing communicative safeguards that sustain accountability, and developing practices that make human-AI expertise legible and durable over time.

Small Group Research
Northwestern University (US)
Industry, innovation and infrastructure
Openalex Percentile: Top 33%
Education, Healthcare and Sociology Research
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.