How to Navigate Technological Advancements in Leadership

I'm knee deep this week putting the finishing touches on my new Udemy course on "AI for People Managers: Lead with confidence in an AI-enabled workplace". After working with hundreds of managers cautiously navigating AI integration, here's what I've learned: the future belongs to leaders who can thoughtfully blend AI capabilities with genuine human wisdom, connection, and compassion. Your people don't need you to be the AI expert in the room; they need you to be authentic, caring, and completely committed to their success. No technology can replicate that. And no technology SHOULD. The managers who are absolutely thriving aren't necessarily the most tech-savvy ones. They're the leaders who understand how to use AI strategically to amplify their existing strengths while keeping clear boundaries around what must stay authentically human: building trust, navigating emotions, making tough ethical calls, having meaningful conversations, and inspiring people to bring their best work. Here's the most important takeaway: as AI handles more routine tasks, your human leadership skills become MORE valuable, not less. The economic value of emotional intelligence, empathy, and relationship building skyrockets when machines take over the mundane stuff. Here are 7 principles for leading humans in an AI-enabled world: 1. Use AI to create more space for real human connection, not to avoid it 2. Don't let AI handle sensitive emotions, ethical decisions, or trust-building moments 3. Be transparent about your AI experiments while emphasizing that human judgment (that's you, my friend) drives your decisions 4. Help your people develop uniquely human skills that complement rather than compete with technology. (Let me know how I can help. This is my jam.) 5. Own your strategic decisions completely. Don't hide behind AI recommendations when things get tough 6. Build psychological safety so people feel supported through technological change, not threatened by it 7. Remember your core job hasn't changed. You're still in charge of helping people do their best work and grow in their careers AI is just a powerful new tool to help you do that job better, and to help your people do theirs better. Make sure it's the REAL you showing up as the leader you are. #AI #coaching #managers

⚙️ AI is transforming the way we work. But leadership? That still starts with people. We’re in the midst of an AI revolution. Tech is moving fast. Automation is accelerating. And leaders are being pushed to integrate these tools—fast. But here’s what’s also happening: Teams are unsure where they fit. Burnout is creeping in Human connection is thinning. Leaders today face a unique dual mandate. Embrace AI, upskill teams, and stay competitive. And lead with empathy, care, and adaptability. Here are 8 steps I use with my executive clients to lead through this kind of change with clarity and confidence: 1. Acknowledge the Disruption: Start by naming the shift. Teams need to know you see the change and are leading through it, not avoiding it. 2. Lead with Empathy: Check in with your team to see how they are coping. Emotional clarity builds trust and resilience. 3. Upskill, Don’t Just Automate: Invest in reskilling. AI isn’t here to replace people—it’s here to enhance them. 4. Model AI Literacy: Be the first to learn and try new tools. Your curiosity sets the tone. 5. Encourage Dialogue: Let teams ask questions, explore new tools, and even fail. Innovation needs room to breathe. 6. Communicate Transparently: Share what you know—and what you’re still figuring out. Clarity over certainty builds credibility. 7. Balance Performance with Well-Being: Don’t just measure output. Pay attention to energy, burnout signals, and team cohesion. 8. Stay Anchored to Purpose: Remind people why the work matters. AI can improve outcomes, but it’s human meaning that drives real engagement. 💡 The tools may be new, but the best leadership is still rooted in trust, communication, and clarity of purpose. If you’re navigating this kind of landscape, I support leaders and teams to adapt with purpose and performance in mind. 📩 To learn more, email me at mc@mccoachingnyc.com. #AIleadership #executivecoaching #changemanagement #futureofwork #wellbeing #digitaltransformation #peoplefirst

Last month, I watched an AI agent debug a production issue, write a fix, create tests, and deploy the solution in twelve minutes. Two years ago, this would have taken days of engineering effort. This isn't about AI replacing developers. It's about what I call "The Great Inversion of Coding"—the shift from humans writing code that machines execute to humans defining intent that machines implement. After leading technology at The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Conde Nast, and Reddit, I've seen how transformative moments reshape entire industries. We're living through one now. The CTO role is evolving from chief builder to chief orchestrator. Instead of managing coders, you're curating capabilities—orchestrating AI agents alongside human judgment and creativity. Traditional technical debt meant code that was hard to change. Now you're managing model drift and AI-generated code that no humans fully understand. The CPO transformation is even more dramatic. When AI can generate features faster than users can adopt them, sustainable differentiation comes from holistic experiences that blend functionality with emotion and purpose. The constraint shifts from building to choosing. Five things technology leaders must do now: 1. Build AI literacy throughout your organization, not just in engineering 2. Redesign hiring for learning agility over current skills 3. Experiment with radical organizational models today 4. Develop clear AI ethics frameworks before you need them 5. Cultivate strategic patience with tactical urgency The leaders who thrive won't resist change or blindly embrace it, but thoughtfully navigate this transformation. We're not choosing between humans or AI—we're orchestrating their collaboration to create something neither could achieve alone. I've written a complete playbook for technology leadership in the AI age, including frameworks for human-AI work delegation and architectural principles for AI-first organizations: https://lnkd.in/eyNyNPA5 What changes are you seeing in your organization? How are you preparing your teams for this shift?

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝘆 𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗔𝗜 𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀? It’s a question more people are asking—and the answers often go to extremes. Mass job loss. Frictionless productivity. But the real story is more human. And full of potential. This shift isn’t just about what AI 𝘤𝘢𝘯 do. It’s about how we adapt, lead, and grow with it.   𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗶𝘁 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝘂𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 AI removes one task but leaves the next. Roles keep getting reshaped. Add five generations in the workforce, and comfort levels with AI are all over the map. Some senior leaders are fluent in prompts. Some early-career talent is still hesitant. The key: measure confidence, not assumptions—and meet people where they are.   𝗙𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗿𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 Use the next 12 months as a testbed. Let feedback—not fear—lead the way. 🔹 𝗣𝗶𝗹𝗼𝘁 𝗽𝗼𝗱𝘀 – Pair domain experts with AI leads on real work. Build fluency fast. 🔹 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘀 – Short, targeted upskilling when workflows shift. 🔹 𝗠𝗼𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗱𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗯𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱 – Track how people move into bigger roles. Make growth visible. 🔹 𝗢𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱 – Reserve AI budget for new ideas, not just savings. 🔹 𝗛𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗱 – Keep people in charge of key calls. Reinforce trust.   𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲: Simplify work. Free up time. Reinvest in people. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗻: Use those gains to launch what wasn’t possible before. 𝗟𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗺: Let people and machines grow together. That’s where real transformation lives.   𝗕𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗜-𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀 𝗶𝗳 𝘄𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘆 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲-𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁. That’s the future I’m building toward. #AILeadership #FutureOfWork #HumanCenteredAI #WorkforceTransformation #AIandPeople #LeadershipInTech #DigitalStrategy

Change isn’t a one-time event anymore. It’s a continuous operating rhythm—and the rules, tools, and expectations are evolving fast. Here are 5 trends reshaping transformation in 2025—and how to stay ahead of them: 📈 Trend 1: The New Pace of Change ↳ Transformation is now an operating rhythm—not a project. ↳ Organizations now undergo 5–6 major changes per year, up from 1–2 pre-2020 (SHRM). ✅ How to Lead in Constant Change ↳ Build a culture of iteration—normalize quick feedback loops and ongoing adjustments. ↳ Use dynamic playbooks over rigid plans. 📈 Trend 2: Leading Across Distance ↳ Hybrid work has become a core part of how organizations scale and compete. ↳ Poor context flow across tools and functions creates misalignment, delays, and resistance. ✅ How to Lead Over Distance ↳ Use asynchronous tools like Loom and Trello to create visibility. ↳ Over-communicate context—don’t just share decisions; share the thinking behind them. 📈 Trend 3: Inclusion Accelerates Adoption ↳ Change that doesn’t include everyone doesn’t stick. ↳ Inclusive change efforts move faster—because more people are invested in the outcome. ✅ How to Drive Inclusive Transformation ↳ Co-create with ERGs and frontline voices—they bring insight that top-down plans often miss. ↳ Design for lived experience—scenario-test change with real users and real teams. 📈 Trend 4: Tech as a Co-Pilot ↳ Automation and analytics are reshaping how change is designed, delivered, and optimized in real time. ↳ AI can flag hotspots and resistance early—giving leaders a head start through sentiment analysis, engagement tracking, and predictive models. ✅ How to Integrate Tech into Leadership ↳ Use tech to anticipate resistance, guide decisions, and adapt in real time. ↳ Link KPIs to user adoption behaviors—not just rollout completion. 📈 Trend 5: Human-Centered Leadership ↳ People don’t resist change—they resist poor leadership during change. ↳ In high-change environments, presence, EQ, and storytelling matter more than strategy. ✅ How to Lead People-First ↳ Use fail-forward storytelling—real lessons normalize experimentation. ↳ Coach mid-level leaders into change catalysts—equip them with change tools they can apply in their teams. The way you lead through change will matter more than what you change. How is change impacting your workplace in 2025? ♻️ Reshare to equip your network with tools to drive meaningful, people-centered change. ➕ Follow Morgan Davis, PMP, PROSCI, MBA for actionable insights on leading organizational change.

We’re all going to learn a new dual-track leadership style to manage human and digital workers: inspiring human excellence while directing digital efficiency. Inspiring human excellence remains unchanged - the centuries-old playbook of vision, compassion, and more that motivates followership. Where employee engagement scores will remain our north star as we create environments where human creativity and ingenuity flourish. But directing digital efficiency with AI agents, automation tools, and sophisticated digital workers? A playbook we all need to learn quickly. While some human leadership elements overlap - clear vision, precise goals, specific feedback - does "inspiring followership" even apply to digital workers? It's more like optimizing a manufacturing process around task accuracy and output efficiency. Think managing an AI that processes 10,000 customer queries per hour versus inspiring a human team to deliver exceptional service. The hardest part won’t be to master these two distinct modes - it’ll be to weave them together seamlessly. Balancing inspiration and connection with humans while offering extreme clarity to digital workers. And knowing when to entrust work to a human versus a digital colleague. Collaboration between humans and digital workers might actually prove easier than human-to-human - no complex emotions to navigate when humans delegate to AI. But here's where it’ll get tougher: - What happens when digital workers become capable enough to delegate work back to humans? - How do we ensure our human teams feel empowered, not replaced, by their digital colleagues? - How do we design workflows where both strengths are amplified? Leadership in this new type of hybrid world is about to profoundly change. I'm 80% excited, 20% terrified. Which pretty much sums up my entire take on our AI-Forward future. #AIForward #DigitalWorkers