How AI Is Reshaping the Concept of Leadership in 2025

For the last two years, the conversation about AI's impact has been dominated by the visible, the tactical, and the immediate. We are focused on new tools, evolving job descriptions, and the race to upskill our teams to use them. This is the "Surface Wave." It is real, it is important, and it is consuming all of our attention. But the real story, the one that will determine the winners and losers of the next decade, is happening beneath the surface. The "Undercurrent" is the deeper, strategic, and often invisible re-architecting of the organization itself. It's the shift in power structures, the creation of new data ecosystems, and the fundamental change in how decisions are made. This integration of human and machine intelligence is creating a new organizational physics, and most leaders are still using an old map. Think about it: A company builds a strategic intelligence unit designed to be "AI-native". The "Surface Wave" is giving the human analysts a suite of powerful AI tools for market research and data synthesis. But the "Undercurrent" emerges when the AI is integrated not as a tool, but as a de facto member of the team. Suddenly, the org chart is no longer a simple 2D hierarchy. You have a hybrid entity where the AI directly feeds insights to every team member, bypassing the traditional top-down flow of information from a human manager. The AI might even be given a "voice" in strategic meetings, presenting conclusions that directly contradict the team leader's intuition. The challenge is no longer about adopting a tool. It becomes a profound question of organizational design and leadership. What is the role of a human leader when the AI can provide more comprehensive data-driven direction? How do you manage a "team" that is a fluid network of human and machine cognition? And how do you measure performance when the most valuable output is a collaborative insight that is impossible to attribute to any single human or algorithm? This is the real transformation, and it requires leaders to move from being managers of people to being conductors of a complex, hybrid intelligence. I strongly feel that leaders who cannot distinguish between the two waves will be pulled under. But will organizations invest in the foresight this requires? #FutureOfWork #AIStrategy #TwoWaveTransformation

Is leadership being redefined in the age of agentic AI? The short answer: No, it is not. The core principles of effective leadership—delegation, empathy, vision, adaptability, communication, trust-building, and people-centric approaches—remain unchanged, even with the emergence of agentic AI. Leadership continues to be fundamentally about guiding teams, understanding human motivations, making strategic decisions, and fostering collaboration and innovation. However, these core principles will manifest differently in the age of AI: - Delegation: Leaders will increasingly delegate routine, analytical, and operational tasks to AI, allowing human teams to focus on creativity, innovation, and strategic problem-solving. - Empathy and Emotional Intelligence: Leaders will need heightened emotional intelligence to manage human-AI interactions sensitively, ensuring teams feel valued rather than replaced. - Vision and Inspiration: Leaders will articulate visions that integrate AI capabilities with human strengths, fostering inspiration through meaningful collaboration between people and machines. - Adaptability: With AI rapidly altering the landscape, adaptability will mean leaders continuously learning and adjusting strategies to leverage AI effectively while maintaining human-centric values. - Effective Communication: Leaders will need to clearly communicate AI's power and limitations, ensuring transparency and clarity to prevent misunderstandings or mistrust about technology's purpose. - Trust-building and Team Dynamics: Leaders will actively foster trust in AI by demonstrating its reliability and setting clear ethical boundaries, maintaining psychological safety and open dialogue among teams. In short, the age of agentic AI doesn't redefine leadership—it reinforces and reshapes how traditional leadership qualities are effectively expressed in a rapidly evolving technological context.

Last month, during a strategy meeting with our client in Denver, their VP of Operations shared something that caught my attention. They'd restructured their entire project management layer, reducing 12 middle management roles to 4, with AI handling most of the coordination work that used to require human oversight. "It's more efficient," he said, "but we're still figuring out the human side of things." This conversation reflects a broader trend I'm seeing across Western enterprises. Gartner predicts that through 2026, 20% of organizations will use AI to flatten their organizational structure, eliminating more than half of current middle management positions. Meanwhile, US employers are advertising 42% fewer middle management positions at the end of 2024 than they did in the spring of 2022. I'm observing how organizations are rethinking traditional hierarchy. AI is now handling what middle managers used to own: status reports, performance dashboards, project coordination, and even basic decision making all done faster, cheaper, and without burnout. The technology is impressive. Microsoft now uses AI for up to 30% of its code development while simultaneously cutting over 40% of their recent engineering layoffs targeting software engineers. Microsoft's latest Copilot upgrade now gives AI the ability to use any software like a human would, not just via APIs, effectively automating many supervisory tasks. However, according to the World Economic Forum's 2025 Future of Jobs report, 41% of employers worldwide intend to reduce their workforce in the next five years due to AI automation, which raises important questions about organizational culture and employee development. The challenge isn't just technological it's human. Companies are discovering that while AI excels at coordination and reporting, the mentoring, relationship building, and cultural aspects of management require a different approach. To my fellow CTOs: we're not just redesigning org charts, we're reshaping how people work together. To emerging professionals: focus on skills that complement AI rather than compete with it. The future organization will be leaner, but success will still depend on human judgment and leadership.

“We are the last generation of leaders who will only lead people. The next generation will lead people and agents.” That sentence stopped me in my tracks at IBM Think 2025. It’s bold. It's provocative. And it's true! For decades, leadership meant inspiring, managing, and guiding teams of people. Now, we’re entering a new era—one where AI agents become an integral part of every team, process, and decision. At #Think2025, I saw the future unfold live: 🌀 PepsiCo is orchestrating 1,500+ agents across sales, HR, and operations. 🌀 Slack automated over 650,000 customer service interactions. 🌀 And IBM? They’ve built a platform where anyone—developer or not—can build and personalize their own AI agents in minutes. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/eYHBhKVh And here’s the real shift: Leadership is no longer just human-centric. It’s hybrid. You’ll lead people—with empathy, vision, and inspiration. And you’ll lead agents—with precision, strategy, and code. This isn’t science fiction. This is now. In the coming months, this ability could be a key factor in distinguishing good leaders from great ones. How to build this? Start here: 3 Skills future-ready leaders need to build ➡️ Trust-Building in Hybrid Teams: Develop strategies to build trust between humans and AI—including transparency, clear handoffs, and progressive autonomy ➡️ Workflow Thinking: Learn to design human+agent workflows, not just manage tasks. Think orchestration and delegation ➡️ Change Leadership: Guide people through fear and uncertainty toward curiosity and capability. The mindset shift is half the battle 👉 So here’s my question to fellow leaders: Have you started preparing to lead both people and AI agents? #IBMpartner #AI #Leadership #Transformation #AgenticAI #Innovation #Changemanagement

"𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗜 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄 𝘂𝗽, 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝗻 𝗔𝗜 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿," 𝘀𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝗻𝗼 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿. Yet here we are in 2025, and if you're leading teams, that's exactly what you've become - whether you signed up for it or not. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵? Most executives are still treating AI agents like fancy tools instead of what they really are: semi-autonomous team members with their own quirks, capabilities, and limitations. While everyone's focused on implementing AI, they're missing the real challenge: leading hybrid teams where human intuition meets machine precision. 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀: 1. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗔𝗜 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽 - but they'll execute flawlessly (most of the time) on the wrong strategy if you can't guide them right. 2. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗴𝗮𝗽 𝗶𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 - it's knowing what to do when AI conflicts with your gut instinct. 3. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻'𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗔𝗜 - but those who know when not to use it. The leaders thriving in 2025 aren't the ones who best understand artificial intelligence. They're the ones who blend human wisdom with machine intelligence in ways that amplify both. What if the next evolution in leadership isn't about mastering technology, but about mastering the art of knowing when to trust human judgment over algorithmic certainty? Found this useful, sign up for my newsletter and/or follow me for more AI insights about the somewhat crazy future of work.

AI is no longer just a tool—it’s the foundation of modern leadership. The most successful leaders today are not those who work the hardest, but those who work the smartest by integrating AI into their decision-making, operations, and strategy. AI is revolutionizing how businesses scale, innovate, and stay ahead in a rapidly evolving world. The question is no longer whether AI will reshape your industry—it’s whether you are adapting fast enough to lead in this new era. ● Empower decision-making with AI-driven insights AI processes vast amounts of data in real-time, providing leaders with the clarity and confidence to make high-stakes decisions faster and more accurately. Businesses that harness AI insights can pivot quickly, reduce risks, and gain a competitive edge. ● Redefine leadership by automating operational bottlenecks AI is streamlining business functions from finance to marketing, reducing inefficiencies, and allowing leaders to focus on big-picture strategies rather than getting lost in daily tasks. With AI-driven automation, businesses can scale faster without adding unnecessary complexity. ● Accelerate business growth with AI-enhanced strategies AI identifies trends, uncovers new market opportunities, and enhances product development by analyzing data at a speed no human can match. Companies that integrate AI into their strategies can iterate faster, test new ideas with confidence, and unlock new revenue streams. ● Strengthen risk management with AI-powered forecasting AI helps businesses anticipate market shifts, detect potential threats, and prepare for future challenges before they arise. Leaders who embrace AI-driven risk management can make proactive decisions rather than reacting to crises as they unfold. ● Elevate customer experience through hyper-personalization AI enables businesses to analyze customer behavior at scale, delivering personalized recommendations, targeted messaging, and seamless interactions. Companies that leverage AI to create tailored experiences will build stronger brand loyalty and higher customer retention. ● Future-proof your leadership in an AI-driven economy AI is not replacing leaders—it’s redefining what leadership means. Forward-thinking executives are embracing AI to enhance their decision-making, streamline operations, and drive innovation. The future belongs to those who adapt, automate, and lead with AI at their side. #AILeadership #FutureOfWork #Automation #CyborgCEO #AITransformation #LeadershipEvolution #AIforGrowth