Using AI at Work: AI in the Workplace & Generative AI for Business Leaders

Can AI for leadership help you give your people more attention? In this episode Chris sits down with Jon Harmeling, a Chick-fil-A Operator, Army veteran, and former West Point instructor, to explore how leaders can turn AI productivity gains into better employee coaching and development. Drawing on his restaurant experience and his book, Frontline AI Leadership, Jon shares a practical framework: Machines do. Managers decide. Leaders develop. Chris and Jon discuss using AI to track employee go...

What if your sales team could practice its toughest conversations before speaking to real customers? In this episode, Chris sits down with Paul Burani, Co-Founder and CRO of Atlas Primer, to explore how AI sales roleplay brings realistic practice and personalized feedback into sales training. They discuss how short, regular sessions help teams develop human skills, prepare for objections, and approach high-stakes conversations with greater confidence. Paul explains how to tailor simulations t...

What if your AI tools aren't underperforming because of the technology, but because they don't know your business? In this episode Chris sits down with Rob Collie, CEO of P3 Adaptive, former Microsoft Power BI developer, and author of Fair Game: Customizing AI to Your Business Is Easier Than You Think, to explore why buying ChatGPT or Claude subscriptions isn't enough to achieve meaningful enterprise AI adoption. Rob explains the "knowledge cliff" that prevents generic AI tools from deliverin...

How do you scale enterprise AI without exposing the sensitive data your business cannot afford to lose? In this episode Chris sits down with Steven Walchek, Founder and CEO of Liminal, to explore enterprise AI security, AI governance, data privacy, and how leaders can safely accelerate generative AI adoption. Steven explains how enterprises can protect sensitive information before it reaches an LLM, why governance needs to enable AI adoption rather than block it, and how AI agents and tools l...

Why do companies invest in AI without changing how work gets done? In this episode Chris sits down with Justin Watt, co-founder and CEO of Switchboard, to examine why AI adoption often stalls after teams get access to tools. They explore the move from individual AI use to AI workflow automation that supports work across departments. Justin explains why successful business process automation depends on clear handoffs, usable data, and the right permissions. He shares how simplifying a complica...

AI transformation does not start with a massive AI project. In this episode Chris sits down with Denis Romanovskiy, Chief AI Officer at SOFTSWISS, to explore what enterprise AI adoption looks like when someone is actually responsible for turning the technology into business results. Denis explains why the Chief AI Officer role sits at the intersection of technology, operations, change management, security, and employee enablement. They discuss how companies can identify internal AI leaders, w...

Most AI pilots do not fail because the technology is weak. They fail because the organization was never prepared to turn the experiment into a real operating workflow. In this episode Chris sits down with Ronnie Kwesi Coleman, CEO of Puntt AI and a three-time founder focused on the future of work. They unpack the mistakes that keep enterprise AI stuck in AI pilot purgatory, why expert judgment matters more than simply giving AI more data, how AI agents should learn alongside experienced emplo...

AI can make your team faster while quietly making them worse at thinking. In this episode Chris sits down with Rana Gujral, cognitive AI leader, CEO of Behavioral Signals, and author of The AI Instinct, to explore what happens when AI moves from a productivity tool into the cognitive infrastructure businesses use to make decisions. Rana explains why leaders need to distinguish between employees who are genuinely deciding and those who are simply approving AI output, how reversibility can dete...

AI may automate more execution, but that makes judgment, coordination, and management more important. In this episode Chris sits down with Erkang “Ken” Zheng, founder and CEO of Ariso, to explore why the next major opportunity for AI at work is not simply producing more content, but helping people manage work more effectively. Ken explains why every knowledge worker increasingly needs management skills, including tracking, prioritization, communication, accountability, and reflection. He also...

What if the biggest bottleneck in finance isn't the software, but the way work gets done? In this episode Chris sits down with John Glasgow, Founder and CEO of Campfire, an AI-native ERP platform built for finance and accounting teams. John explains why simply adding AI to legacy systems falls short, how agentic workflows are changing accounting operations, and why finance leaders should think of AI as a teammate rather than a tool. He shares real examples of AI handling reconciliations, trea...

Hiring is getting faster, noisier, and harder to evaluate. In this episode Chris talks with James Terry, Head of US Revenue at Indeed Flex, about how AI is reshaping recruiting from application screening to workforce planning. James explains why rising application volume is pushing employers toward AI interviews, how human review still fits into the process, and where AI can help recruiters evaluate candidate skills at a scale traditional hiring workflows cannot handle. They also explor...

Most AI projects do not fail because the model is weak. In this episode Chris talks with Eddie Irvin, founder of Nashville AI Advisory, about the practical work leaders need to do before AI can deliver value. Eddie explains why process clarity, prioritization, and communication between business owners and technical builders are often more important than choosing the newest tool. Chris and Eddie break down how to identify a strong first AI project, why CEOs should stay involved in defining bus...

AI adoption can create value, but it can also create a new organizational bottleneck. In this episode Chris sits down with Dr. Markus Schmidberger, Founder and CTO of JuntoAI, to challenge the assumption that every company needs a Chief AI Officer. They explore the growing AI business gap, why adoption is fundamentally a cultural enablement issue, and how governance, HR, and distributed ownership should work together. Markus shares an in-residence model for discovering use cases, moving the s...

Buying AI licenses is easy; changing how work gets done is the real leadership challenge. In this episode Chris sits down with Darren Ward, a Chief Strategic Innovation Officer leading internal AI adoption at a mid-market operating company. Darren shares how he moved from operational leadership into a dedicated AI role and why successful transformation requires executive ownership, practical use cases, and a clear connection to business priorities. They discuss why pull-based adoption outperf...

Summary The biggest shift in AI may be moving from asking questions to assigning work. In this episode Chris sits down with Bryan McAnulty, founder and product director of Heights Platform and LatchLoop, to explore why leaders should approach AI as a worker assigned to tasks and projects rather than a chatbot producing one-time answers. Bryan explains how long-running agents can conduct research, analyze information, automate recurring work, and support teams without constant human supervisio...

AI adoption stalls when leaders delegate the thinking. In this episode Chris sits down with Geoff Woods, bestselling author of The AI-Driven Leader and founder of AI Leadership, to explore why AI strategy must begin with the CEO and executive team. Geoff explains the difference between using AI for minor tasks and using it as a strategic thought partner for the decisions that shape enterprise value. They break down the CRIT framework, practical prompts for solving major business problems, a f...

The labor market is moving faster than most leaders can see. In this episode Chris sits down with Cary Sparrow, founder and CEO of WageScape, to discuss how real time labor market intelligence is reshaping hiring, compensation, workforce planning, and the competition for talent. Cary explains why traditional labor market data often moves too slowly for executive decisions, how pay transparency is changing the talent market, and why AI literacy is becoming a practical requirement across roles....

AI in education is no longer a future debate, it is a leadership decision happening now. In this episode Chris talks with Jason Hill, Deputy Superintendent and CBO at Redlands Unified School District, about what AI adoption looks like inside a large K-12 school district with major operational, safety, instructional, and community considerations. Jason explains how Redlands approached staff AI access, parent concerns, student safety, AI use policies, and the importance of teaching AI literacy...

AI adoption often succeeds or fails in the ordinary work leaders overlook. In this episode Chris sits down with Artem Koren, Co-founder and Chief Product Officer of Sembly AI, to discuss how organizations can turn everyday conversations into structured intelligence, clearer decisions, and measurable execution. Artem’s work focuses on agentic systems, professional workflows, and making AI useful, safe, and practical for teams. Chris and Artem explore how AI-powered workflows can replace ...

The internet is filling up with content that looks real but may not be. In this episode Chris sits down with Max Spero, co-founder and CEO of Pangram Labs, an AI text detection company helping organizations distinguish human authored content from AI generated content. They explore how AI generated content is reshaping social media, recruiting, education, search, and business communication, and why trust is becoming a strategic business issue. Chris and Max discuss the rise of AI slop, the ris...

The way customers discover brands is changing faster than most companies realize. In this episode Chris sits down with Cole Casperson, Chief Data Officer and Partner at CrankTank, to explore how AI is transforming search, e-commerce, and customer discovery. Cole explains why traditional keyword-based SEO is giving way to AI retrieval systems that understand meaning, how large language models decide which brands get recommended, and why visibility in AI-generated answers is becoming a critical...

Most business owners know AI matters, but few know where to start. In this episode Chris sits down with Corey Ganim, entrepreneur, AI consultant, and creator of AI assessment frameworks for small businesses. Corey shares how he helps non-technical business owners identify automation opportunities, reduce manual work, and implement practical AI solutions that generate measurable time savings. From AI skills and projects to voice agents and workflow automation, he explains how leaders can get r...

Voice AI is advancing faster than most organizations realize. In this episode Chris talks with Shawn Zhang, CTO and co-founder of Sanas, the enterprise voice AI company focused on improving global communication through AI. Shawn shares how voice AI is evolving beyond call automation into a foundational layer for communication, context capture, and more natural human interaction with AI systems. The conversation explores enterprise use cases, latency, customer service, sales applications, and ...

Most companies are using AI, but very few are redesigning work around it. In this episode Chris sits down with Karl Simon, co-founder and CTO of Subatomic, an AI workflow orchestration company, to explore why task based AI adoption is limiting business impact. They discuss the shift from isolated AI use cases toward unified workflows powered by clean data, AI coworkers, and cross functional orchestration. The conversation also explores how organizations may flatten hierarchies as AI takes ove...

Most manufacturers are chasing the wrong AI problem. In this episode Chris talks with Bryan DeBois, Director of Industrial AI at RoviSys, about why industrial AI for manufacturing requires a different approach than generative AI. Bryan explains the limits of generative AI on the plant floor, why deterministic systems matter in high risk environments, and how analytical AI, predictive AI, computer vision, and autonomous AI are already being used to improve quality, safety, throughput, and asse...

Most AI strategies fail because the organization never changes. In this episode Chris sits down with Melissa Reeve, creator of the Hyperadaptive Model and author of an upcoming book on AI-native organizations, to explore why legacy structures block AI progress and what leaders must redesign to unlock real value. They discuss how companies can move from siloed, handoff-heavy operating models to adaptive systems built for continuous learning, faster decisions, and human-centered execution. Lead...

Most companies want innovation, but few can tolerate unpredictable tech costs. In this episode Chris talks with Matt Strippelhoff, Partner, CEO / CRO of Red Hawk Technologies, about how mid-market companies can approach software development with greater financial control and operational confidence. They explore why traditional project models often create risk, and how recurring service models can better align technology execution with business goals. Matt shares lessons from leading web, mobi...

Most leaders are asking the wrong AI question. In this episode Chris sits down with Evan J Schwartz, technology leader, adjunct professor, and Chief Innovation Officer, to discuss why AI should be used for growth, not simply cost cutting. Evan shares his vision for the future organization: flatter companies, human stewards managing AI agents, and teams focused on strategy, relationships, and judgment while automation handles repetitive execution. They also explore AI in education, workforce d...

Most companies think they are “doing AI” but are still stuck in single-player mode. In this episode Chris talks with Marc Boscher, Founder and CEO of Unito, a workflow integration platform, about why AI adoption breaks down at the organizational level. Marc explains that the real barrier is not model capability, but fragmented systems, missing context, and lack of trust. He introduces the shift from prompt engineering to context engineering, and why connecting systems and data is the key to u...

Most leaders think AI agents are too technical to build, but the real barrier is not skill, it is clarity. In this episode Chris talks with Etan Polinger, AI Solutions Architect and Head of AI Solutions, about how non-technical professionals can design, build, and deploy AI agents that drive real business outcomes. Etan breaks down what an agent actually is, how to think about automation versus agentic workflows, and why fundamentals matter more than tools in a rapidly changing AI landscape. ...

Most leaders assume AI in customer service means replacing people, but the data tells a more complicated story. In this episode Chris talks with Nathan Strum, CEO of Abby Connect, about what actually works when deploying voice AI in real business environments. Drawing on two decades of customer service experience, Nathan explains why AI excels at structured workflows like scheduling, but still struggles with unpredictable edge cases where human judgment matters most. He also shares why many c...

Most companies aren’t struggling to buy AI, they’re struggling to use it well. In this episode Chris sits down with Jim Spignardo, Director of Cloud Strategy and AI Enablement at ProArch, to break down what’s really happening inside organizations adopting AI today. Jim shares why many companies are stuck after purchasing licenses, how to move from experimentation to structured adoption, and what separates companies seeing real ROI from those chasing hype. He outlines a practical playbook that...

What happens when the AI tool helping you scale your business also gains permanent rights to your voice? In this episode Chris talks with Jesse Jameson, digital marketing veteran and founder of HeyNow Interactive, about the opportunities and emerging risks inside the generative AI ecosystem. Jesse shares his experience participating in a voice licensing program with ElevenLabs, where his AI voice quickly became one of the most widely used on the platform. What began as a simple experiment in ...

The real challenge with AI is not the technology, it is knowing when leaders should trust the machine and when they should not. In this episode Chris sits down with Vasant Dhar, professor at NYU Stern and the NYU Center for Data Science, longtime AI practitioner, and author of Thinking with Machines: The Brave New World of AI. With more than four decades working in artificial intelligence across finance, healthcare, and research, Dhar shares a practical framework for deciding when leaders sho...

Most leaders aren’t struggling with AI tools, they’re struggling with how to lead the transformation those tools require. In this episode, Chris interviews Justin Trombold, President of Antesyn Advisors who works with leadership teams navigating the uncertainty of generative AI strategy across industries from healthcare to enterprise services. During the conversation, he explains why most organizations go wrong by treating generative AI as an IT deployment rather than a transformation initiat...

Before you spend another dollar on ads, what if you could test your message against a digital version of your exact market? In today’s episode, Justin Brooke, founder of AdSkills and Agent Skills AI, joins Chris Daigle to break down how synthetic audiences and virtual focus groups are transforming modern marketing. After getting his start interning for Russell Brunson and famously turning $60 into six figures with Google Ads, Justin has spent two decades mastering message-to-market match.&nbs...

Most companies are experimenting with AI. The leaders who win are rebuilding around it. In this episode, Chris Daigle sits down with Jason Eubanks, Co-Founder and CEO of Aurasell AI, to explore why incremental AI experiments aren’t enough—and why go-to-market teams must shift to an AI-native operating model. Jason explains why simply plugging AI into legacy systems won’t change your productivity model, and why companies that fully embrace intelligent automation now will create an advantage co...

Chris Daigle sits down with Hernan Lardiez, COO of RagMetrics, to break down AI evaluations (evals) and why monitoring matters when you put GenAI into production especially in regulated or high-risk environments. Hernan explains what “good evals” actually look like without getting lost in technical weeds: building test datasets, measuring accuracy and consistency, and then continuously re-testing so you can catch drift before it becomes a business problem. They compare the “spreadsheet + sp...

Chris Daigle sits down with Bill Gallagher, leadership expert and longtime advisor to executives, to explore what it really means to use AI at work during periods of rapid organizational change. Bill shares why technology alone never drives transformation and how trust, clarity, and human leadership remain the deciding factors when AI enters the workplace. The conversation focuses on how leaders can introduce AI without creating fear, resistance, or confusion, how to avoid treating AI as a s...

Chris Daigle sits down with Kate Bravery, Global Head of Talent Advisory at Mercer, to explore how AI at work is reshaping people strategy, leadership, and workforce decision making. Kate shares how organizations are using AI to support talent planning, skills intelligence, and workforce design while navigating trust, governance, and ethical responsibility. The conversation focuses on how business leaders can adopt AI in the workplace without losing the human element. Kate explains why AI sho...

In this solo episode of Using AI at Work, Chris Daigle breaks from the interview format to share the AI tool stack he recommends to executives, leaders, and knowledge workers who want real value without chasing every new release. Chris introduces the concept of “thinking in AI” and explains how leaders move from using AI for isolated tasks to developing an instinctive, organization-wide mindset where AI supports daily work, decisions, and workflows. He also addresses common fears around AI re...

Chris Daigle sits down with Panos Siozos, CEO and co-founder of LearnWorlds, to explore how AI at work is changing the way we learn, teach, and build real expertise. Panos explains why access to information is no longer the challenge and why critical thinking, judgment, and structured learning matter more than ever in an AI-driven world. The conversation breaks down the difference between knowledge and understanding, the risk of cognitive laziness when relying too heavily on AI, and why lear...

Chris Daigle sits down with Tim Cakir, founder of AI Operator, to talk about why most companies feel overwhelmed by AI and how leaders can move past tool overload to real productivity at work. Tim shares his experience training teams across industries and explains why AI adoption fails when organizations chase tools instead of outcomes. The conversation focuses on building human centered AI habits, reducing fear around AI, and helping teams work with AI as a collaborator rather than seeing it...

Chris Daigle sits down with Mohamed Yousuf, founder of Smart Workforce AI, to explore how AI in the workplace can dramatically improve workforce scheduling, planning, and operational efficiency across industries. Drawing on more than a decade of experience in airlines, healthcare, hospitality, and large scale operations, Mohamed explains how AI powered forecasting and scheduling can reduce overtime, prevent burnout, and help companies put the right people in the right place at the right time....

Chris Daigle sits down with Patrick Leung to explore how AI is being applied inside modern marketing and revenue teams to drive efficiency, consistency, and scale. Patrick shares real examples of how teams are using AI in the workplace to support go to market execution, internal knowledge sharing, and decision making without overwhelming non technical leaders. The conversation covers practical AI adoption for business leaders, how to avoid overcomplicating workflows, and where AI productivity...

Chris Daigle sits down with Zak Ali, General Manager at Finder, to unpack how search is evolving as people move from traditional search engines to large language models like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini. Zak explains why SEO is not dead, how LLMs decide which brands to surface, and why trust signals like authority, recency, and editorial rigor matter more than ever. He shares how Finder adapted its content strategy to show up consistently inside AI answers, what types of long tail queries perf...

Chris Daigle sits down with Geoff Gibbins, strategy and AI transformation expert and author of "Critical Intelligence," to explore how companies can redesign their workflows and help their teams develop stronger thinking skills in the age of AI. Geoff shares what he has learned from working with major enterprises on AI transformation, including why so many AI pilots fail, how to avoid automating broken processes, and how to create human AI systems that actually deliver value. They discuss why...

Chris Daigle sits down with Michael Stelzner, founder of Social Media Examiner and host of the Social Media Marketing Podcast, to explore how AI is transforming content creation, audience building, and the future of media businesses. Michael shares how he and his team use AI to brainstorm, repurpose, and accelerate production—without losing the human connection that drives trust and creativity. They discuss the balance between automation and authenticity, how AI fits into editorial workflows,...

Chris Daigle sits down with Etan Polinger, founder of Raize Digital, to discuss how AI is transforming marketing, customer journeys, and brand strategy. Etan shares how he helps companies implement AI tools that simplify operations, enhance personalization, and generate consistent creative output without replacing human insight. They explore how to design AI systems that support marketing teams instead of overwhelming them, how to measure ROI from AI experiments, and how small businesses can ...

Chris Daigle sits down with Peter Cappelli, Professor of Management at the Wharton School, to explore how AI is changing how companies hire, train, and manage people. Peter breaks down the myths around job displacement, explains why most organizations misunderstand what AI can and cannot automate, and shares how leaders can adapt workforce strategies for the AI era. They discuss the balance between efficiency and humanity in AI adoption, why prediction and decision-making should stay in human...