Artificial intelligence has become her “business partner,” and Iliana Sutton told Greenville Rotarians on Thursday they should start treating it like a co‑worker, not a curiosity.
Sutton, CEO and founder of AHA Workforce Education and AHA Interpreting Solutions, spoke to the Greenville Rotary Club about how tools such as ChatGPT, Canva and other emerging platforms are reshaping the workplace, from drafting newsletters and grants to building presentations, videos and even corporate policies. With nearly three decades in workforce, education and community systems, she also serves as a U.S. Department of Labor Apprenticeship Ambassador and has been recognized nationally for her work expanding registered apprenticeships.
“Since day one, I’ve utilized ChatGPT,” Sutton said, calling the program her “partner” and “best co‑worker.” She said her business has “grown drastically” in the last several years, which she credits in part to embracing AI to speed up routine tasks and unlock new creative content.
Sutton polled the room, asking how many members had tried ChatGPT, used it daily or wanted to learn more, and urged everyone to open an account and “just jump into it and start using it.” Comparing it to Google, she said ChatGPT gives direct, tailored answers instead of long lists of links, and has evolved into version “5.2” with improved text, coding and image capabilities now embedded in products from Microsoft, Google and Canva.
She demonstrated how she uses ChatGPT to draft speeches, grants, social media posts and LinkedIn content, and to turn ideas that “live in your head” into polished writing with stronger grammar and clear targeting for specific audiences. Sutton said she can train someone “in less than two hours” to pair ChatGPT with Canva to create a high‑level professional video.
On the visual side, Sutton said early AI images were crude, with distorted faces and misspellings, but now can produce professional‑quality designs, headshots, “superhero” avatars and themed graphics in minutes. To illustrate, she told Rotarians she snapped photos of Thursday’s luncheon on her phone, uploaded them to ChatGPT and asked it to “combine image and create one image” of a 10‑year‑old attending a Greenville Rotary Club meeting, generating a composite graphic during the meal.
Sutton also walked through voice features, explaining that she often uses ChatGPT’s audio function — set to respond in an English accent — to help her frame questions during live panels or serve as a co‑host during LinkedIn broadcasts. “It’s always great to have your next partner sitting there with you,” she said of letting the AI system carry part of a 30‑ to 45‑minute online event.
Beyond productivity, Sutton spent part of her talk on policy and compliance, noting that federal agencies have begun issuing AI compliance guides and encouraging basic AI training for government employees. She said organizations need clear policies explaining when employees can use AI, why they are using it and what kinds of tasks it should and should not perform, rather than simply telling staff, “We got AI ChatGPT, you guys can download it now on your computers.”
Sutton, whose companies work across multiple states including Mississippi and who has long experience in language access and interpreter training, also cautioned against treating AI translation as a complete solution. While ChatGPT and other tools have improved and can now render many languages with what she described as more than 85 percent accuracy, she said specialized fields such as medical care still require human, high‑proficiency interpreters and formal language assessments to meet Title VI and other federal standards.
She encouraged local employers, schools and agencies to see AI as an extension of their teams rather than a threat, while keeping safeguards in place to prevent misuse. “Everyone is different,” she said of how organizations should write their AI policies, “but the basics are the same,” likening them to attendance rules that apply consistently across job titles.
Before wrapping up, Sutton challenged Rotarians to create free accounts on both ChatGPT and Canva, experiment with drafting posts, building animated spreadsheets and designing images, and to connect with her on LinkedIn for further tips. “You can’t go wrong,” she said. “The more that you let ChatGPT into your creativity, it’s going to start basically mimicking exactly what you want it to do.”
