Fit For the Future

Do you feel like you're only person championing AI in your organisation? It can feel like an uphill battle, especially when you face restrictive policies and scepticism. The key is to respect existing boundaries but still find ways to use - and demonstrate - AI to create value through small, safe projects. Lead by example to inspire curiosity, build trust, and create a ripple effect.https://swiy.co/go-flying-the-ai-flagDo you sometimes feel like you’re the only person in your team - and maybe even your organisation - flying the flag for AI? It’s not easy, especially if others are not interested, actively pushing back, or even banning it.This is one of the most common responses when I ask people about the biggest challenges they have with AI right now. They say things like:“I love using it and there is lots we could do with it. But our organisation is just slow to catch on to new technologies.”“Fear, lack of trust and lack of education make AI an uncomfortable space…. It’s like you are doing something wrong!”“I feel like I’m fighting this battle alone. My team is not really interested in trying to use it.”Do you feel the same way? Are you excited and eager to use AI more, but you’re constantly being blocked or banned?The solution is to smart small.First, of course, everything you do must be within your organisation’s AI policy. Don’t go outside those rules - that would be risky, unsafe, and potentially a career-limiting move!But within those rules, there’s often still a lot you could do.Ideally, everybody is moving fast to becoming an AI-driven organisation. But that kind of change takes time - a lot of time. But even if you’re not there yet, look for things you can do right now.For example:Use AI yourself for admin tasks like email, meetings, draft reports, and data analysis.Identify other AI champions in your team who can help and support each other.Engage your teams in running small-scale AI projects that create value just for the team.Start small, set a good example for others, and demonstrate AI’s value in low-risk, highly visible ways. Over time, these small wins help to spread the message through your organisation.I’ll be discussing this in my next online presentation coming up very soon - about AI in 2025 and beyond. It’s free, public, and open to everybody. Register now, and and share the link with your team and others in your organisation - especially those who are wary of AI now!Register for the virtual masterclass:https://swiy.co/go-flying-the-ai-flag

At what level are you using AI, and what’s your plan for using it next year and beyond?Whenever I deliver my Leveraging AI keynote presentation at a conference, I always include an extra “hands-on” AI masterclass afterwards - run over Zoom within three months of the conference. The keynote gives them the big picture, and the masterclass shows them how to get immediate value from AI - whatever their role and familiarity with AI.I always start these masterclasses by asking participants to rate - on a scale of 1 to 10 - how much they are using AI. Typically, the average is in the 4-6 range, with a few below or above those middle numbers.When we dig a bit deeper, I find the main reason they don’t have a higher score is something like:“I just don’t know how else to use it.”That’s a reasonable response, especially for something as new as AI.If you’re wondering the same thing, here’s a useful framework. Think of people in your team using AI at four levels: personal, professional, projects, and platform.Level 1: PersonalAre you using AI in your personal life? Tools like ChatGPT can be incredibly useful, even for tasks unrelated to work. I suggest you encourage everybody on your team to exploring AI at home to help in their personal life.Level 2: ProfessionalNext, use AI to enhance your professional role. This isn’t about your core job, but rather the surrounding tasks like managing emails, running meetings, or interacting with people. These tasks are essential but often time-consuming and stressful. AI can reduce the burden and make you more efficient and effective in your professional life.Level 3: ProjectsAt this level, AI becomes a tool for your team. These are short-term projects - no more than three to four months - that deliver real value to the team without needing full organisational buy-in. For example, you could use AI to streamline a process or tackle a specific challenge. Of course, you do them within your organisation’s AI policy, but you can still do them independently.Level 4: PlatformThis is the highest level, where AI becomes integral to your organisation’s operations. Think of banks using AI to assess loan applications, insurers using it to calculate premiums, or HR departments designing personalised learning journeys for employees, or IT teams using AI to enhance cybersecurity. Initiatives at this level typically need a strategic decision at the organisational level, and it’s where you get the biggest overall benefits.Broadly, those are the four levels: personal, professional, projects, and platform.If you’re a senior leader responsible for a department, division, or the whole organisation, you might start thinking about AI at the platform level. But if you’re not, don’t wait until the organisation does something. Look at the other three levels. Encourage people to use it in their personal life first, then in their professional roles, and then create projects as a team.If you want to know more, I’m running a free public online presentation soon about AI in 2025. This will help you use AI strategically and practically to solve business problems and achieve goals, including organisational and people goals. If you’re interested, register here and invite others in your team and network as well.Register for the virtual masterclass:https://swiy.co/go-scaling-ai

Imagine giving every customer and employee the personal touch, even at scale. By analysing behaviours and preferences, AI lets you tailor experiences for customer journeys, learning paths, or timely interventions to re-engage people.https://swiy.co/go-the-human-touch-amplifiedFor example, all four baristas at my local cafe know exactly what coffee I want because I’m a regular, and they don’t need to ask every time. With a few dozen regular customers or even a few hundred, they can remember the regaulrs and treat them personally.But when you’re trying to scale that – with thousands, hundreds of thousands, or even millions of customers – that’s not possible for humans to do just by themselves.That’s where AI comes in. AI lets you personalise at scale.For example, I regularly shop at Woolworths, and every week Woolies emails me my weekly specials. These are literally MY weekly specials because the email is crafted for me, based on my buying habits.It’s very different from the old days when everybody got the same Woolies catalogue in the post because it wasn’t possible to personalise it for every single customer. But now it is, and AI enables it.I recently delivered a keynote presentation to a large member association in Australia, who wanted me to talk about the future of member engagement. I shared some technology, trends, and innovations this association could use to improve, enhance, and deepen their engagement with their members.We shared a number of ideas, but those that resonated the most were about personalisation. Here are three examples I shared:1. Individual membershipsInstead of having a few groups of memberships – like student member, affiliate member, and full member – what if every member could completely personalise the services they wanted? The association would then only offer those services to that member, and it would be different for everybody. It’s like knowing every member’s coffee order and only giving them that every time.2. Learning journeysThe association provides individual learning journeys for every member (and the same applies to you and your employees). After a member completes a learning module, AI reviews and assesses it, and suggests the next module for them - with the appropriate content, format, and time frame for that particular member.3. Member engagementAI could also monitor and assess member engagement with the association’s services. If it sees engagement waning, it first reaches out to the member with additional services (again, tailored to that member’s likely preferences). And if that fails, it alerts member engagement staff to intervene.These three examples demonstrate personalisation at scale. It was the way the corner store worked in a small town, and the way a local coffee shop works now. We lost it as population expanded and companies grew. We’re getting it back now with AI.Personalisation at scale is just one of the ways you can use AI to enhance experience. It applies to both your external customer experience (and part of your customer value proposition, or CVP) and your employee engagement (part of your employee value proposition, or EVP).I’ll talk about this in my next public and free online presentation, which is all about AI in 2025 and beyond. This is a free public online presentation, so please register, and invite others as well.https://swiy.co/go-the-human-touch-amplified

As a leader, you're no stranger to disruption! But what if disruption didn’t just happen to you? What if you could actually create it? Constructive disruption is about being proactive, not reactive - making change happen before the world forces it on you. Discover the three essential habits for embracing this mindset, so you’ll be better equipped to navigate uncertainty and turn disruption into opportunity.https://swiy.co/go-constructive-disruptionWould you like more disruption in your life? That might seem like a silly question, and you might be thinking you want less disruption, not more! But it depends on how you think about disruption.I was in Adelaide last week, speaking to an association of leaders from large organisations around Australia. Their event theme was "constructive disruption", which I love because it turns the common idea of disruption on its head.We often think of disruption as something that happens to us. But I often say disruption and innovation are the same thing: They are both about change, and the difference is that disruption happens when change happens to you, and innovation is when you create that change yourself. So, constructive disruption is about being proactive and creating disruption - or change - before the world forces you to change.We have to expect more disruption, more change, more uncertainty, and more more chaos in the future. But we also have more opportunity - if we are willing to embrace constructive disruption.There are three key things you can do - and these should become habits in your leadership journey.Think ahead.Reach outLean in.1. Think AheadWe need to think more about the future. The more senior you are, the more of your salary is being paid for you to think about the future. But that’s not easy because we often get bogged down in operational, day-to-day things. Those are important, but if that takes up all your time, who’s thinking about the future? Thinking ahead is about understanding what’s coming so you can make better decisions now.2. Reach OutIn times of change and uncertainty, people re-evaluate their goals and desires, and often re-assess the "suppliers" who currently help them achieve those goals. Make sure everything you do is aligned with solving customer problems or helping them achieve their goals. If you’re not doing that, then you’re vulnerable to a competitor who will come along and do it better.3. Lean InYou have a talented, diverse team with different skills and perspectives. Tap into their experience and expertise, which may extend beyond their job description. Lean in to your team, so you can access a wealth of insights that can help drive constructive disruption.Those are the three keys to constructive disruption.If you’re not doing them already, you can’t just snap your fingers and start disrupting from today. But you can start! And then make them habits in your leadership, in your team, and in your organisation.AI, of course, is a big part of the future, and can help you with constructive disruption. I’m running a free public online presentation soon to help you understand how AI will affect you in 2025 and beyond. So, please register and invite other leaders in your team and network to join us.Register for the virtual masterclass:https://swiy.co/go-constructive-disruption

AI is not just the latest tech trend; it's a fundamental shift in the way we work. As a leader, follow this three-step strategy for engaging with AI, integrating it into your workflows, and bringing your team on the journey.https://swiy.co/go-unlocking-ai-in-2025Do you know how you will be using AI in 2025?Last week, I delivered the closing keynote presentation for the Local Government Professionals Association of Western Australia. I was talking about leveraging AI, which of course is a popular topic right now.The presentation went well, and was well-received, but I want to highlight something that happened a few weeks earlier, as I was preparing for it.As usual, I had a briefing call with the client and other people in the program committee to discuss what they want from me and to ensure my presentation aligns with their theme.In the briefing call, I shared an example of some AI software I wanted to demonstrate at the conference. For this example, I used an example from one of the local government councils whose CEO was in the briefing call. Let’s call her Steph (because that’s her name).The people in the briefing call liked my little demo and were happy for me to present it. But the reason I’m sharing this is because Steph took this a bit further.A week later, she emailed me, saying she had- tried the software herself,- shared it with her Marketing and Comms team, and- they are now planning on using itI love that!What Steph did, even though I didn’t say this to her, were exactly the three things I recommend for exploring everything new - and especially with AI.Learn.Share.Act.In brief:1. When you first become aware of it, learn what it can do, what problems it can solve for you, and how it can add value.2. Then share it with other relevant people in your team - partly because they have a stake in it and partly because they will bring different perspectives to it.3. Finally, plan how you will act on it to integrate it into your workflows.If you’re interested in more about this, join my next free online masterclass, "AI 2025", where I’ll help you put your plan in place for learning about AI, sharing AI with your team, and then integrating it in the work you do.Register for the virtual masterclass:https://swiy.co/go-unlocking-ai-in-2025

You don’t need a futurist to tell you about all the external change happening in our world. And I’m sure you know that because of all this external change, you, your team, and your organisation also have to be open to change, embrace change, and even lead the change.But change isn’t easy, and different people respond differently.🙅 Some are resistant to change.🚫 Some actively reject it.😬 Some reluctantly take a few steps, then fall away.It’s worse if your team is already overworked and overwhelmed. Even with the best of intentions, people get excited about a change initiative at first, but then fall back into their old ways.So how do you start the change - and keep the change?We address this in my leadership programs. Broadly, there are two parts to the program.First, I show you how to look into the future and scan wider, so you understand more about what’s over the horizon and around the corner. That lets you make better-informed decisions about what to do now.Second - and more importantly - I show you how to take those ideas back to your teams and foster a culture that encourages them to change.And many leaders struggle with that second part.The biggest mistake they make is to make change a big deal. When people hear about a new change initiative, they often get a sinking feeling of:😒 “Here we go again”🙄 “Just another thing that won’t make any difference”📋 “Here’s something extra I need to add to my big to-do list”😟 “I’m frightened by this change”So, instead of making change such a big deal, start small. In fact, I often say (tongue in cheek!),“If you want to be more successful, lower your standards”Now, don’t get me wrong - I’m not suggesting we should have low standards!But if you make the change initiative such a big deal, you’re setting yourself up to fail. If it succeeds, great! Or if your team culture loves change, wonderful! But most workplaces aren’t at that stage yet.So, to build this culture of change, start small.Here’s an example: Reverse mentoring.Ask somebody more junior in your team to be your mentor (instead of the other way around). That’s “reverse mentoring”. You invite somebody to meet you for a coffee every week for, say, three months, and your job is to just listen and learn.That’s already easy to do: You don’t need an organisation-wide mentoring program, you don’t need to announce it to everybody, and you don’t need anybody else’s permission.But you can start even smaller, to make it even safer. When you invite the person, don’t talk about a three-month “mentoring program”; just ask them for a quick coffee meeting because you value their input. That way, you’re making a bigger commitment - unless you both want to, at the end of the meeting.The key is to set the bar so low at first that it’s impossible to “fail“. You just keep trying things, keep what works, and ignore the rest.For more ideas like this, download my worksheet about everyday innovation. These are all small things you can do to help build a culture of change agents. Choose one, try it, and if it works well, keep doing it. If it doesn’t, quietly stop doing it and try something else.Download the worksheet:https://swiy.co/go-small-steps-big-change

Are you engaging your team in open and honest conversations about AI? There's no doubt AI is here to stay, and people have different opinions about it - from fear to excitement, and everywhere in between. Create a space for open conversations with your team about the the benefits, their concerns, and anything else. In this way, you're building a culture that's ready for change.https://swiy.co/go-more-ai-conversationsI was in beautiful Brisbane last week to deliver the closing keynote presentation for an allied healthcare group, Healthia.I was talking about the mix between people and technology, with my core message around “people first, technology second”. It was a pretty easy sell to Healthia because they’ve always made that part of their philosophy and mission. In fact, they’ve already started using AI in their organisation, rolling out tools that practitioners can use with their patients to improve clinical outcomes and make their work more efficient.It’s great to see a forward-thinking organisation on the front foot about AI.This is a larg group, so of course, people are at different levels of comfort with AI. Some are engaging actively with it, others are just starting to use it, and others haven’t started yet. This is true for any organisation and might be true for yours as well.What I admire about Healthia and other organisations who are serious about AI adoption is they are starting to have conversations about AI. And I wonder: Is this true for you and your team?Are you having open, transparent, and honest conversations about AI?I know other organisations with big plans to launch AI projects, so they are holding back from AI conversations with their team. They are waiting to get everything right in terms of policy, governance, software and infrastructure first.This can work, and it is important to get things right with any AI projects. But that doesn’t mean you can’t start conversation about AI! The risk is that, in the meantime, your team are already hearing about AI, using it at home, and maybe even using it secretly at work. You lose control of the conversation, which makes it much more difficult when you eventually roll out your AI projects.Unfortunately, most of the public perception of AI - driven by the media - is negative. So, some of your people might think AI will take their jobs, or worry about having to learn new technology, or think they will fall behind.On the other hand, if you start having conversations about AI now, you help to create an environment where they see AI as a tool rather than a threat.So, what are you doing to have conversations with your people about AI?For help with these conversations, download my worksheet of questions and discussion points for open conversations with your team.Download the worksheet:https://swiy.co/go-more-ai-conversations

As a leader, you must focus on the right priorities as we move towards 2025. There are many internal issues - like flexible work, diversity, and AI - but the most important focus should be external - on your customers.https://swiy.co/go-future-focusAre you focusing on the right things when you’re thinking about your work and workplace in the year ahead?I was reflecting on three conversations I had with clients and audience members last week - one in the insurance sector, one in mining and resources, and the third in a large state government department. In all of those conversations, people asked me essentially the same question:What’s the most important thing we should be thinking about when planning for 2025?If you’ve been following me, you know I have many answers to that, including flexible work, more diversity to tackle complex problems, and of course AI. These ARE important, of course, but they are also all issues you’re facing internally.The one thing that trumps them all is to focus on your customer. Think external first! Whether you call them customers, clients, members, patients, or constituents, it doesn’t matter.Always keep asking: What problems are we solving for them now and in the future?This has two components:1. Be sure your customers, and their problems and goals, right now.2. Understand the needs of your future customers.As a leader, you have this two-fold responsibility: to keep your team focussed on what your customers need right now, and also understand what’s coming up over the horizon and around the corner.You might think you do really understand your customers because of your experience, long-term connections, and strong loyalty. But it’s also easy to get so caught up in internal things that you forget about your customers. Maybe you were solving their problems in the past, but if they have drifted or you have drifted, you might not be as closely aligned anymore.This is one of the four pillars of the future of work: What I call “Assess”. This is about assessing future trends, knowing what they mean for your customers, and adapting your work to match.I’m running a free public online presentation about the future of work very soon. It’s open to everybody, particularly leaders who want to understand how to be fit for the future, especially in 2025 and beyond. I’ll share some ideas around each of these four pillars, and also give you practical things you can do right now in each area. It’s open to everybody, so please register and invite others to join as well.Register for the virtual masterclass:https://swiy.co/go-future-focus