AI May Be the Tool. Trust Is the Transformation/ Why successful AI adoption is really a leadership and culture challenge

AI is changing how we work—but successful AI adoption may have less to do with the technology than we think.

In this solo episode of Culture Secrets, Chellie Phillips explores why AI is ultimately a leadership and culture challenge. She shares how she uses AI as an everyday tool to research, organize ideas, improve processes and work more efficiently—while drawing a firm line at outsourcing judgment, relationships and human connection.

Research suggests employees may actually be more ready for AI than the organizations they work for. So when leaders see resistance, the better question may be: Have we created the trust, clarity, training and psychological safety people need to adapt successfully?

Chellie explores:

• Why AI is an amplifier—and what happens when we use it inside broken processes
• The human leadership skills becoming even more important in an AI-enabled workplace
• Why employee “resistance” may actually signal an organizational readiness problem
• Four questions leaders should ask as they introduce AI
• What AI can enhance—but can never replace

The organizations that thrive with AI won't simply have the best technology. They'll combine technology with strong leadership, healthy culture and people who know how to think, question, learn and trust one another.

AI may be the tool. Trust is the transformation.

Learn more about Chellie Phillips, her books, speaking and leadership programs at chelliephillips.com.

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Transcript

Unknown: 0:14

Welcome to the Culture Secrets podcast with Chellie Phillips, author, speaker, corporate trainer, and culture expert. Today, Chellie is going solo, sharing practical insights, real-world lessons, and a little common sense about leadership, communication, workplace culture, and how we show up for the people around us. So, grab your coffee, settle in, and get ready for a conversation deign to help you lead better, communicate stronger, and create a culture where people want to stay, grow, and succeed. Here's Chellie.

Chellie Phillips: 0:45

I use AI almost every day. Does that surprise you? As someone who is building my culture and leadership business while still working a full-time job, I look for every advantage I can to maximize the time I have. And in my full-time leadership role, I'm leading a team, watching public perception, and keeping up with governmental and regulatory change in a fast-moving industry. AI has become a valuable resource there tool. So, how am I using it? I ask it to find current, valid research on trending topics or emerging technology. I use it to edit, copy, and suggest ways that will make complex topics more understandable or relatable to different audiences. I use it to help organize ideas, build timelines, map processes, think through strategic initiatives, summarize information, and connect ideas. I'm not interested in using AI to remove people from the process, I'm interested in using it to remove friction from the process. But here's one job I refuse to hand over to AI, and that's thinking

for me. Here's how I see it: 1:51

AI is an amplifier. AI can make a good process more efficient, but it can also help you execute a bad process faster. It can organize information, but someone still has to decide what matters. It can generate options, but someone has to exercise judgment. It can summarize a brainstorming session, but it cannot manufacture the trust that allows someone in that room to say, "I think we're looking at this completely wrong. That's leadership. The someone in that equation and the human skills they bring to the table may matter more now than ever before, and that's why some of the research coming out about human AI performance has really caught my attention, because the differentiator doesn't appear to be who has access to the fanciest technology. It's what the human brings to the partnership. A July 2 pilot study from Vivian Ming found that people who did not that people didn't automatically make better decisions simply because they had access to AI. The individuals who achieved the strongest human AI performance demonstrated qualities such as perspective taking, intellectual humility, and curiosity. Many others either deferred to the model or used it merely to confirm what they already believed. The results are preliminary, but provide a compelling leadership discussion point: AI doesn't eliminate the need for judgment. AI doesn't eliminate the need for judgment. It exposes the quality of the judgment we bring to it. I'd argue it shows something even stronger. Maybe the AI skills leader need leaders need most aren't AI skills at all? The skills needed include curiosity, critical thinking, humility, listening, empathy, judgment. Those were leadership competencies long before ChatGPT, Claude, or any of the other platforms even arrived on the scene, and I think they're becoming even more valuable today because of it. I find AI resistance interesting, especially in the corporate world. I say don't blame people for a system problem. When I hear leaders talk about their employees being AI resistant, I get curious because it's easy to label resistance as an employee problem. Maybe someone isn't tech savvy enough, they're uncomfortable with change, or they simply don't want to learn something new. But I think we need to ask a harder question: Has the organization actually prepared people for the change, AI really isn't that different from any other major workplace change. The question then becomes: Have we, as leaders, built the kind of culture where people can successfully use it? AI adoption requires many of the exact same things that any other successful change. Range effort requires trust, communication, curiosity, clarity, psychological safety, leadership consistency, and permission to learn. Take a look at some McKinsey findings from earlier this year. Their research found 70% of respondents felt personally prepared to adopt and use AI, but only 27% of leaders believed their organizations were ready for the broader change. Even more telling to me, organizational readiness accounted for 48% of the difference in reported value versus 25% for personal readiness, organizations can say their employees are resistant to AI, but what if workflows haven't changed? What if decision paths aren't clear? What if employees don't know what's acceptable? What if managers can't answer questions? What if no one has explained how outputs should be verified. Do the incentives still reward old behaviors? And do you think employees secretly wonder whether becoming proficient with the technology will eventually cost them their jobs? Is that resistance, or is it uncertainty created by the organization? That McKinsey finding made me think about something differently. Sometimes employees aren't resisting the future; they're waiting for the organization to catch up with them. So, what does responsible AI leadership sound like? I am so glad you ask. I think there are four questions every leader should be asking as AI becomes part of the workplace. Let's start with how much certainty should leaders offer when the future is genuinely uncertain. No fault certainty for sure. Say what you know, what you don't know, and when people can expect to hear more. AI is changing quick. There are new versions and models almost monthly. New opportunities keep popping up, and new issues are going to arise too. So, how can managers support AI when they're learning too? By being willing to say,"I'm learning this alongside you. Leadership doesn't require knowing every answer. In fact, saying I don't know yet, but let's figure it out together, may do more to build trust than pretending you've mastered something you hadn't. What signals tell employees the organization will help them adapt rather than leave them behind? Training, time to experiment, clear expectations, honest conversations about changing roles, investment in people. I mean, aren't these really the same things we should be doing on all fronts, not just about AI? What does responsible AI communication sound like? Clear enough that employees know the guardrails, but open enough that curiosity isn't punished. Now, before we close this conversation, I want to focus on what AI cannot replace. AI can capture the ideas from a team brainstorming session. It cannot replace the brainstorming session. AI can identify people's strengths from assessments and information. It cannot replace you knowing your people. AI can create a team building exercise. It cannot create trust that gets built while people experience something together. AI can suggest language for a difficult conversation. It cannot care about the person sitting across from you. AI will never replace the human side of leadership. That distinction matters because the goal isn't to use AI to avoid the human work of leadership. The best use of AI may be creating more room for us to do the work only humans can do. The leaders and workplaces that win with AI won't necessarily be the ones with the best technology. They'll be the ones that combine the technology with strong leadership, healthy cultures, and people who know how to think, question, learn, and trust each other. Because AI may be the tool, but trust is the Transformation.

Unknown: 9:25

Thanks for listening to the Culture Secrets podcast with Chellie Phillips. If today's episode gave you something to think about, keep the conversation going. Connect with Chellie on LinkedIn for more insights on leadership, communication, workplace culture, and building a professional brand that gets noticed for the right reasons, and if you'd like a little more culture and a little more common sense delivered straight to your inbox, sign up for Chellie's biweekly newsletter, Culture, Coffee, and Common Sense. You'll find the links to connect and subscribe right in the show notes. So we've made it easy. Until next time, remember. The culture you create starts with the signals you send.