Leading Change

Companies are investing in AI, launching pilots, and telling employees to experiment. But too often, leaders expect transformational outcomes without actively participating in the transformation itself. In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I unpack why so many AI initiatives are getting stuck in the messy middle and what you can actually do when the leader sponsoring your project doesn't...

What happens if we make the same mistake with AI that we made with digital literacy? We gave an entire generation access to technology, but access didn't always translate into understanding how to use it effectively. Now, as Gen Alpha grows up alongside AI, are we at risk of creating another skills gap? In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I sit down with Josh McDonald, co-founder of Gra...

Recorded live at Third Stage Consulting’s Stratosphere event, Ema sits down with Eric Kimberling to talk about his new book, The Machine, and what leaders need to understand about the future of digital transformation.  They unpack some of the biggest themes and takeaways from the event, including how AI is changing transformation, where organizations continue to get stuck, and why the human side o...

Remember the SaaS apocalypse? Earlier this year, the idea sent software stocks tumbling as people questioned what happens to traditional SaaS companies if AI reduces headcount, eliminates per-seat licensing, and starts doing the work those platforms were built to handle. Now, Salesforce seems to be leaning directly into that threat. In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I unpack Cloudforc...

What happens when we stop questioning AI and start trusting its answers more than our own thinking? New research from the Wharton School explores a phenomenon called “cognitive surrender,” where people begin accepting AI-generated answers as their own thoughts and decisions without critically evaluating whether they are actually correct. In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I break down...

AI companies spent years telling us to adopt AI or risk getting left behind. Now, using AI could get your content labeled, flagged, or even reported. So, has the AI witch hunt begun? In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I break down the growing push toward AI watermarking, LinkedIn’s AI content reporting features, and the broader effort to label content that has been created or even edit...

What happens when an AI model attempts to cheat... and the response reshapes the future of the entire AI industry? In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I break down the recent OpenAI security incident and explains why the biggest story isn't the model itself. It's the growing shift toward open-weight and open-source AI. As companies rethink control, security, and data ownership, a new co...

What happens when technology stops being a tool for trust and starts becoming a tool for surveillance? In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I explore the growing controversy surrounding Flock Safety cameras and why the debate extends far beyond law enforcement. Because this is not just a story about surveillance cameras. It is a conversation about what happens when organizations, governm...

57% of all internet traffic is now generated by bots. That statistic alone changes the way we think about the internet. In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I explore Cloudflare's latest announcement to block AI crawlers and why it may mark the beginning of a fundamental shift in how the internet is funded, searched, and experienced. Because this is not just about AI bots. It is about th...

Google's latest AI announcement isn't just about a new feature.   It raises a much bigger question.   How much of our lives are we willing to let technology observe before consent becomes an afterthought?   In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I explore Google's new ambient audio memory feature, the rise of AI-powered wearables, and what these technologies reveal about the future of priv...

Most organizations are trying to adopt AI using structures, processes, and leadership models that were built for the industrial age. And that may be the biggest obstacle standing in the way of transformation. In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I sit down with Jana, co-author of The Octopus Organization, to explore why traditional organizations struggle with change and what leaders need...

Anthropic has issued another warning about artificial intelligence. But this time, the concern is not job displacement or productivity. It is the possibility that AI could soon begin improving itself. In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I break down Anthropic’s latest report on recursive self-improvement and what it means if AI reaches a point where it can build, test, and improve futur...

For years, some of the biggest names in AI warned us that artificial intelligence would eliminate jobs, disrupt entire industries, and fundamentally reshape the workforce. Now, many of those same leaders are saying something very different. In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I break down the growing narrative shift coming from AI executives and why the people who once warned of mass jo...

College commencement speeches are supposed to inspire graduates about the future. Instead, many students are booing the moment AI gets mentioned. In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I break down the growing backlash against AI messaging at college graduations and why so many executives seem completely disconnected from how young people actually feel about the future of work. Because thi...

If AI is supposed to replace human productivity, why are OpenAI and Anthropic spending billions to build human-led services companies? In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I break down the back-to-back announcements from OpenAI and Anthropic to launch venture-backed consulting and implementation firms designed to help companies adopt AI. And hidden inside these announcements is a quiet a...

Companies are racing to adopt AI. But what happens when they start incentivizing the wrong behavior? In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I break down the rise of “tokenmaxxing” and how AI leaderboards inside major companies are driving massive usage… without delivering real value.   From engineers burning tokens to hit leaderboards to companies blowing through millions in AI spend, we a...

There’s a growing gap in how AI is being experienced inside organizations. And most leaders are missing it. In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I share original research from her audience that reveals a major disconnect between leadership and employees when it comes to AI adoption. Because while leaders are optimistic, employees are overwhelmed. And that gap is creating more problems th...

44% of Gen Z workers say they’ve tried to “sabotage” AI at work. But before we jump to conclusions, we need to ask a better question. Why? In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I break down the latest data on Gen Z’s shifting sentiment toward AI and why this reaction has less to do with resistance to technology and more to do with how it’s being introduced. Because this is not a story abo...

OpenAI just released its policy vision for the “intelligence age” and at first glance, it sounds promising. But when you look closer, the story starts to fall apart. In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I break down OpenAI’s latest policy document and the growing gap between what AI companies say and what they actually do. Because this is not just about policy. It is about trust, account...

When the Claude Code leak first surfaced, many thought it was an April Fool’s joke. It wasn’t. In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I break down what actually happened when Anthropic accidentally leaked over 500,000 lines of Claude’s source code and why the aftermath matters more than the leak itself. Because this is not just a story about human error. It is a glimpse into the future of...

When do we stop blaming the individual and start blaming the system? And maybe more importantly… when do we stop blaming the system and start taking accountability ourselves? Right now, we’re watching this tension play out in real time. From a landmark lawsuit against Meta Platforms and Google to new regulations emerging in Australia, the conversation is shifting toward platform responsibility. Bu...

The conversation around AI is reaching a tipping point, but are we witnessing a real shift in the market or just the consequences of overhyped expectations? In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I dive into recent headlines around private equity firms freezing withdrawals in private credit funds and what that signals for SaaS, AI, and the broader tech economy. From “ghost GDP” fears to AI...

The hype around AI is everywhere, but what happens when speculation meets the stock market? Recent headlines show a “ghost GDP” scenario causing panic in SaaS stocks, fueled by concerns over automation, legacy modernization, and AI adoption. In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I break down the SAS apocalypse, explore how hype drives knee-jerk reactions, and explain why clarity, intentio...

Across industries, studies show women adopt generative AI tools at a rate about 25% lower than men. But does slower adoption mean falling behind or is there a bigger story at play? In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I dive into the Harvard research and explore why women are opting out of AI at higher rates, what role risk aversion plays, and how the future of work may actually favor un...

What happens when AI agents stop waiting for prompts and start taking action on their own? We’re beginning to see that line blur, and the headlines are starting to feel a little sci-fi. In this episode of Leading Change in the Wild, I break down what’s happening with autonomous AI agents like Claudebot and Moltbook, why they’re generating so much hype, and the very real leadership and ethical ques...