Wani Iris Manly - Change That Changes Everything

Change That Changes Everything: How Leaders Help People Adapt Before AI Fears Drive Talent Away

Artificial intelligence is changing the workplace faster than ever, but the biggest challenge isn't the technology.

It's helping people adapt.

In this episode of the People/AI Strategy Forum, Sam Reeve speaks with Wani Iris Manly, Esq. about why employees don't resist change—they fear loss—and how leaders can reduce uncertainty before it turns into disengagement or turnover. 

Drawing from her background as an attorney, executive coach, and international change expert, Wani shares practical strategies for leading AI transformation while maintaining trust, confidence, and employee engagement.

In This Episode:

• Why fear—not technology—drives resistance to AI
 • Helping employees adapt through retooling and continuous learning
 • AI governance and responsible implementation
 • Building trust during periods of rapid change
 • Leadership strategies for reducing uncertainty
 • Creating psychologically safe workplaces
 • Why people remain an organization's greatest competitive advantage
 • A practical framework for leading organizational change

Key Takeaway

Successful AI adoption isn't about replacing people.

It's about helping people confidently adapt to a changing world while ensuring technology strengthens—not replaces—the human experience at work.

Guest:
Wani Iris Manly, Esq.

Learn more:
 https://www.waniirismanly.com

Connect with Wani:
 https://www.linkedin.com/in/waniirismanly

Learn more about CompTeam:
 https://compteam.net/

Watch the full video episode:
 https://www.youtube.com/@PeopleStrategyForumPoweredByCompTeam

If you enjoyed this episode, follow the People/AI Strategy Forum on your preferred podcast platform and join the conversation! 

About the People/AI Strategy Forum
The People/AI Strategy Forum explores how leaders navigate the intersection of people strategy, leadership, and artificial intelligence. Hosted by Sam Reeve, Founder & CEO of CompTeam, the Forum features conversations with executives, practitioners, and experts shaping the future of work.

Learn more about CompTeam and the People/AI Strategy Forum at compteam.net.

Transcript

Sam Reeves 0:02

AI fear does not usually start because people hate technology. It starts when people feel loss. Loss of relevance, loss of status, loss of certainty, of course, control as well. And when leaders don't address that fear early, they don't just lose momentum, they lose trust They lose their employees' engagement, and eventually they lose the employee overall. So it's important that we get ahead of that. Welcome to the People Strategy Forum. My name is Sam Reeves, your host and CEO of CompTeam, and this show is for founders, executives, and senior HR leaders who want practical ways to attract, retain, and motivate great people. So when the workplace is changing faster than ever, complex environment. So today's topic is Change That Changes Everything: How Leaders Help People Adapt Before AI Fears Drive Talent Away. And my guest today is, Juani Iris Manley, and award-winning speaker and internationally recognized change expert, and she's also a former corporate, leader, and, she's definitely knows how to run her own business, and she's got that experience as, as an attorney who helps organizations thrive through, through chaos and change.

Juani Manley 1:23

Her work is built around the powerful idea that people don't resist change, they fear loss, and that's what's inspiring our conversation today. So Juani, welcome. I'm glad you're here. Thank you for having me, and thank you to your audience as well, too. So, Juani, as we start out, I would love just to hear a little bit about your story. before we get into AI and adaptation and, and leadership and how we help, what, what really brought you into this field and your desire to, to help the leaders that you do? Well, I've been involved in a corporate space pretty much all of my life. So I've been a, a lawyer, a corporate business and IP lawyer for 22 years, and I've always in change management from the legal end. and the way how I've got on the other side of it, which is actually like coming up from a legal end, but maybe probably like blended in, too, is basically how I ended up moving to Paris, which was, I ended up moving from Miami to Paris just purely just getting signs. And literally when I got there, I was just a lawyer and I ended up, you know, becoming a speaker and trainer and doing a TEDx and doing all these different things. And when I got to Paris, my journey didn't quite make any sense, but it wasn't until I actually did the TED Talk and I realized, like looking back, the kaleidoscope of my entire life and career has all, been about change. And it's always something that's come very easy to me, that I've always looked forward to, whereas everyone else seems to shy away from it. And I realized for change to actually work, we have to understand it's a core identity shift, It's not about rolling out a specific, protocol, but it's a matter of, like, addressing those core needs and core feelings that actually people fear that keeps on them hanging on to things for their dear life, even though it may be dead or may be obsolete. Yes, and I love, I love how you explain that, the, you look back into the kaleidoscope because that's just, that's just a personification of, of change, right? Yeah how things can be beautiful but also can be confusing at times, and, you know, and it's how we, we respond to it that makes all the difference in the world, right?

Sam Reeves 3:23

100%, yes. So you said that, people don't resist change, they fear loss. can you tell us a little bit more about that? what do leaders typically get wrong here? What I, what I mean by that is that, you know, in- inevitably when there is some kind of change that is actually happening, it means you're letting go of something, you're changing something.

Juani Manley 3:44

There is some reiteration, or you're doing something completely different, right? And from a neurological standpoint, our minds just tend to fear the unknown and to fear any kind of uncertainty. And what leaders are getting wrong is actually ignoring that human aspect of it. Number one, I always tell leaders, first of all, everyone needs to just calm down a bit, right? We need to, number one, divorce ourselves from universal mantra, this change is hard, that it's bad, the boogeyman, like we're all fearing. it's literally up there with with the fear of death. And for everyone to realize nothing that's... With every change, with every evolution, it always inevitably means there's something bigger or better is actually coming. But the problem is we're not addressing those human needs that typically tend to come, which is the fear, the anxiety. You know, with the AI, it's like, "Am I gonna have a job?" I mean, even as an attorney, everyone's saying AI's coming for my job And I'm just like, It's completely opened up a whole different field of who owns what, you know? And so it's like there's just so much more opportunities there, but we have to deal with the human aspect and not just be continue on as business as usual. Because another thing is actually we've never seen before is change it's at the rapid speed in which this actually is occurring. We've been doing it since 2020. And so there is a lot of fatigue that is actually going on on top of the actual fear, and we just cannot ignore those feelings.

Sam Reeves 4:58

Right. And, you know, that, that's the thing is, as you mentioned, and when AI first came on the work scale, people were concerned about their jobs, losing their jobs. Some still are. But as you, as you mentioned, companies and, and, and individuals are finding that it's really about retooling. It's really about these new opportunities that are, are coming my way. But one of the things that, that you also mentioned is rapid pace of change. Yeah. You know, this is... You know, this, uh, change used to happen on a, on a yearly basis, then it went to quarterly, then it went to monthly, now weekly, now, on a daily and soon it's gonna be even faster than that. And, a lot of, humans are just thinking, how do I, make sense of this? How do I, embrace this knowing that this is the speed of the future? Yeah, I love what you said. It's like it's all about retooling, and that's really how I actually see it, right?

Juani Manley 5:53

And so I think the issue with the AI thing, why there's this, sense of overwhelm because there is the, because of the speed, number one, and then there's just so much out there, right? And I actually call, shiny object syndrome. Okay, one minute it's Claude, one minute it's Perplexity, one minute it's this, one minute it's that, and it's like, okay, what do I need right now? rather than tackling, the entire thing, it's like, okay, let's just, kind of take it bit by bit. What is much more relevant? What is much more, apropos? And look at that and master that rather than trying to master, everything and become, all AI, you know, because we really can't, you know? And so I think what we're actually finding, even some companies are actually kind of scaling back and saying, "Hey, we actually need some of these people that we've actually let go of," and to realize, okay, let, let's work in tangent with this, you know, at a speed that actually is comfortable for everybody because there is a point in time when you're doing so much change and so much reiteration, you kind of, lose, like, your grounding. You lose your footing with it, you know? Yeah. And so it really comes down to compartmentalizing it. You know what I mean? It's like, okay, let's just take one aspect of, a lot of things I'm seeing with companies, you have to have AI governance, right? even if you're not actually implementing specifically, some transition over, your people are putting things in the ChatGPT, so okay, what that does bring up, that's risk management. You know, if that is, your intellectual property, your confidentiality information or trade secrets, being leaked into, these large, LLM models, it's like, you know what?

Sam Reeves 7:10

Let's just look at, okay, from a risk perspective, what, let's look, okay, what's gonna not, tank our company in a sense. Yeah. If that makes sense. Yeah, so there's definitely the, guardrails, as you mentioned- Right that we need to put around the process.

Juani Manley 7:23

instead of being overwhelmed by AI as a whole, maybe we need to think about where we have an impact, where our niche is in that bigger world, and then also put the, the right guardrails around what we're doing on a day-to-day basis so that we stay safe and, and our employers stay safe, our customers stay safe, and so forth. But the one thing that- And the vendors as well, too. Yeah. And, and the vendors we work with as well, too. Sorry, the attorney hat never comes off, you know? Yes. That's right. It's always about risk management, you know, and protection and intellectual property for me. Like, there is, it's such an ingrained thing.

Sam Reeves 7:58

Yes. And, and then just, to go into that just a little bit, what are the, the big concerns that you have around, AI and its legality, the, the legal framework? what, what, if we look beyond just the human a little bit Yeah, so thing is uh, first of all, it's all brand new, right?

Juani Manley 8:14

Yeah. It's brand new for everybody. You know, like even for the legal field as well too. So number one, okay, let's look at what, let's get some governance on around this, right? And letting people know, okay, yeah, you can increase your productivity by inserting, putting things into, one of these language models. But it's okay, are you putting in, common sense work for many people, which is are you putting in, proprietary information? Are you putting in confidential information? Are you putting in customers' names? You know, even if you're kind of like, you know, doing scenarios, is it enough to where that if these things were to get leaked... 'Cause I've actually gone to ChatGPT, and I've just seen complete law firms just happened to search and just from a deep reach and just seeing a complete brief that's being put into there. And so it's just really kind of like, okay, using, fictitious names and things like that, and just making sure, you know, you're redacting everything to increase the output of whatever you're doing, you know, with AI from a, let's say from a productivity standpoint. Right. Yeah, so for sure. Those are, those are common, things that we need to think about when we're using AI responsibly, for sure. Now let's- Yeah. And bringing in trainers and consultants that actually can help you with that, so, and attorneys as well too, like your legal departments, yeah. For sure. Yeah.

Sam Reeves 9:17

Yeah, definitely. And harness your professionals, right? Yes. So bring in the person that knows better that can create those guardrails. And so, leaders on the call, I mean, that's a, of course, a, a big thing that we need to constantly remind ourselves is that when we're dealing with this, level of uncertainty, this level of newness, it's difficult to go in and, and say that, "Oh, I can be the expert." I mean, we really need to, to rely on those that are, that have the expertise, that bring in, bring in a specialist. a lot of leaders think that, "Oh, I can just prompt AI and get the answer." Well, yes, you can, but is it the right answer for your organization? And does, does it put the right context in place to protect you as a, as a leader?

Juani Manley 10:00

Yeah, 100%. I think a lot of it too is like we're losing our competencies, to the machine. It's like, we're no longer being- we're not thinking for ourselves. We're actually just putting prompts in there. But again, it's exactly what you said as well too in terms of it's not smarter than you. So I think we have to remember that. Yeah. and I think that's part of the, the overwhelm, the fear of that's, that's come up as well too is like we feel like we're losing, our autonomy. If we want to remind people it's a machine, it's a robot. It's like- Yes you know, you've got 18 years of experience here. It cannot implement and input your 18 years of experience and judgment and intuition and actual case studies into what it's giving back to you. Right. Yes. And, and I think that's what lot of, people leaders in general and when they, when they think of, when they see the, artificial intelligence and these new models that are coming out that are so impressive, the one thing that we fail to understand is that, you know, right up, right up here on top of our, uh, our shoulders is one of the strongest computers that, is ever invented, you know? That the closest thing to a quantum computer is right there. And, We can take, multiple scenarios and, and outputs and, and think about the consequences. And so the, the human in, in the loop, so to speak, as far as AI is, is so important. And so I think that as a leader, one thing that we should be asking ourselves whenever we get output from an AI system is, "What is my role here in ensuring that this is the appropriate, way forward for the organization, you know, for our people?"

Sam Reeves 11:27

Yes. So let's get back to little bit more on the human side of things. As, AI enters into an organization, there's a lot of loss that, that people start to feel in a certain way. I mean, you, you just mentioned one of them that, we've, uh, experienced over the past few years, is this going to take my job, or is this gonna take what away what I really love to do? So what is it the first thing that people start to feel? is it, is it belonging? Is it control, status, confidence? What are the... what are the things that show up next in line after the fear of the job? Yeah. It's the, it's the lack of confidence, you know, because everyone's selling you, it's so much faster, it's got...

Juani Manley 12:05

it can work, it can do this. And so there's a loss of confidence where people are disputing, or they're actually, like, second-guessing themselves. Number one, they're they're giving so much of their power away. And then there's also just this loss of status, right? Because, this whole thing of I can just go to AI and get something done in five seconds, why, why would I come to you and, you take, two weeks to actually give it back to me. And so there's this fear of being made redundant, not relevant, the fear of not being seen as an expert anymore. the fear of, what am I gonna do with myself? Like, the belonging thing is a really big piece of this one, too. Where do I belong into into this new evolution we're actually going to? And so, a mindset piece, you know? Because like I said from the very beginning, everyone's typically attitude towards change is like it's a bad thing. Everyone's actually fearing it. And I think the languaging around AI needs to be, okay, we're just actually are retooling. To me, I see it's no different from like, you know, our parents' generation where they didn't grow up in a computer age, right? they had to learn how to use, the iPads and do everything by phone, you know? Like, my mother still pays everything by check, and I'm like, "No, Mom, you cannot." I tell her, in order for you to actually to be made relevant, to be sustainable to where we're going, you have to adapt, you know? And so, so it's like, yeah, there is a place for you to belong, but it is gonna require you some change. Like, at some point we are gonna have to let go of our old ways, in terms of how we did things to adapt to the new system, but we can definitely belong in it. I don't think there's And even for people that I've seen that have been laid off, and I always ask them, like, "Were you completely actually happy where you were anyway?" You know what I mean? were you actually showing up for your, for your job 110%? No, you weren't. So now because it's been, it's been removed from you, now you are in a space of regret, and it's like, okay, why not go back and to learn the tools to make yourself even more valuable to the company? Because the person right now who's the most valuable in the company is the person who who will retool, who can actually say, "Okay, my position can be actually made a lot better with the tool, with me actually leading it rather than Right And doing it from that perspective.

Sam Reeves 14:00

Yeah, and I think that you just, you just mentioned something really critical there. I mean, that you're leading the effort, not having the, the tool lead you. Yeah. And so how can leaders, when you advise your leaders, what do you recommend as the best way to stay ahead of the curve in understanding how to, use these technologies effectively and keep up with it?

Juani Manley 14:22

One of the things I always tell people is, number one, stay informed. You know, I tend to, when I'm in a, you know, I'm pretty, pretty much based in Paris, but I'm in the US, I tend to listen to Bloomberg Radio, right? There's always talk about AI. There's always, I tend to keep myself well abreast. You can also you can set Google alerts to where, you can... And I do this for, many different things, you know? And so, okay, I would just follow, one aspect. So for me, for example, as an attorney or, as intellectual property lawyer, so for me, I have it set up for, change management, for technology change, for intellectual property. And so that way I'm getting, every morning, you can actually set up, your Claude co-working, to, or your Manus to actually, to say, you know what, to scan, the top news stories and to give you, okay, what is what's relevant, and just to keep abreast of that, you know what I mean? Not to overwhelm yourself because you do have to be informed. This is not a time to be like an ostrich, to put your head in the sand, right? And then, make it to where it's actually relevant to you. And so if you need to take action, to build your skill set, if your company is not, offering, I would absolutely go to. I mean, I went to something recently where I met a gentleman and his wife, that was their business, where they were going out to companies and were actually teaching people how to use, Claude or how to use basic, ChatGPT. So number one, you really have to stay relevant in terms of you know, retooling and getting with the knowledge and as well too, specifically to your role. You know, in terms of, okay, what does, what can you do that the AI cannot? So for example, whether it's soft skills, whether it's, your ability to, judgment, case studies. And so, yeah, I would just say staying involved rather than just be in a state of fear and just, having this, doomsday scenario because really I, I keep coming back to the mindset piece because it's everything, because it's so everywhere, and no matter where you go, everyone's like it's this doom. I'm like, "No, it's not." It really is. I'm one of the people who told me, I would, as an attorney, I wouldn't have a work. I'm like, are you kidding me? It's created more work for lawyers because the contracts it drafts are crap. You know what I mean? It's like, it's n- it doesn't have the experience of someone who's been practicing 22 years or who's been in a courtroom, who's done breach of contract cases or international litigation. It cannot bring that, so bring that to the prompt, to whatever you're actually putting out there. And so like I said, you're leading it, not it leading you. Right. So I know that you, you mentioned, uh, and what you're, you do with organizations is you help them thrive through change.

Sam Reeves 16:39

Yeah. So when it comes to artificial intelligence and adapting that appropriately with, people and so forth, what are some signals that you see in organizations to show that they're actually thriving in the world of AI? One, it's the, the organization getting ahead of it rather than, kind of playing a catch up.

Juani Manley 16:57

What I mean by that is that they are looking at it from, okay, from a governance perspective, right? number one is we've gotta always keep, keep our company, intact, right? And number two, it's also it's actually working with the lead- because everything starts from top. You know, like- Mm-hmm you know, the company actually, like, functions based on, what the leaders are, and so it's really investing in their, in their leadership with bringing, outside consultants, outside experts. it's having, these type of continuing education, courses and things like that, and actual training. And it's also to maintain a, a a balance of the human working with the AI, rather than complete- letting everybody go and actually, letting AI run everything because we're also companies that are doing that. They're finding out like, "Oh, okay, we need some of these people back." And so it's more, of a measured adaptation rather than conquer everything and just make AI company. And then it's also just working specific to your frameworks, the framework that I work with that we talked with, with change of like, like, number one, like dealing with the mindset. The H is in this change dealing with the human aspect, right? The A is for, like, adaptations, we are gonna have to adapt, you know. Whether it's are we gonna have to adapt our skill level? Are we gonna have to let certain parts of our business actually goes, right? We have to, look at the opportunities that actually before us rather than looking at, okay, what doors are being closed or what we're actually losing. It's like, okay, what is this actually presenting for us? Okay, if we're not spending so much time or we're saving X amount of money on this, okay, then where can we direct our attention, our dollars to be spent to create more profit for the company, right? And we also have to realize, okay, we have to have a growth mindset. Like, we're not gonna get it right, it's not gonna be a linear path in terms of, where everything right, and there is no such thing as... I always say there's no such thing as failure. There's always feedback. There's always data. And, no successful company isn't looking at the data. And so it's like everything that, that goes wrong or supposedly what is it really telling you? Like, what do you do to actually change back? Like I said, people getting rid of a lot of people realize, okay, that was actually a mistake. Yeah. You know? And then, the rest of it is, it's evolution. It's a constant evolution because I think part of the problem from a human perspective is that we don't wanna change. We think, okay, I'm here. we all went to school, got our degrees, and it's like, no, life is a constant state of learning.

Sam Reeves 19:04

Same thing with business as well, too. It's like you don't just stop once you just master this. But again, it's also space to where it's actually managing for you. Rather than you're feeling in a state of overwhelm. Yeah, I think that you- you've- you've definitely captured it. I mean, it's- it's clear that, a lot of leaders moved too quickly- Yes when- when, and let people go instead of... and so that they have funds to invest in AI instead of saying, "Is this technology really proven? Do we know how to apply it at this time? Should we take a more measured approach?" and I think that's, difficult for a lot of leaders to- to struggle with because they're- they're- they're being told, "Hey, you need to make... You gotta move quickly. You have to, you have to be decisive and, you need to- you know, make these bold moves to stay a- ahead of- the strategy of your competition." But what we often fail to understand is that we are a world of humans. Yes. Humans where we need to, bring people along with those changes, along with- the new technologies that are, that are introduced. We need to address the emotions. Yes. So how can... What are your- your thoughts? I mean, what- what is the best way that leaders should be thinking about the emotional impact in- in the face of rapid change in technology? Yeah. You know, it's, you were talking I was just thinking about the title of, this podcast.

Juani Manley 20:27

It's called People Strategy. Number one is understand people are the strategy, you know? And so the investment needs to actually be into people. And so one I would say is to understand, you're actually, or there's, there's neuroscience involved, right? So number one, on a typical of whether it's AI or not, the brain actually prefers what, what's familiar. And so, rather than actually, into any kind of uncertainty. And so, okay. And and let's just, maybe slow down a bit, right? In terms of, talk to people. Like, how are you actually feeling? Because I can tell you for me, in the corporation I was working with, we weren't allowed to be... it wasn't like a therapy session, but it was just more of, you come to work to work and to produce, not to talk about your feelings. But really, to have people to be able to express what they're actually going on. And, and a lot of it is, people just wanna get it out, you know? And to be able to, to create a space to where, okay, someone can say, "You know, I am not comfortable with this," or, "Can you show me this?" Because I find, in a lot of companies where people, there's underlying, energy or vibe to where, you have to always be the expert. Like, it's not okay to say, you don't know. And so, you have to look, look at the typical emotions that are actually coming up, okay? One is, anxiety. It's a lot of anxiety. it is a lot of fear. it is a lot of, of pressure, you know, to perform. we actually have to kind of go back to, like, being out in nature. And so, you know, allowing people to go outside and be in the sun. we've discount the simple things in life that keeps us very grounded because as we adapt and go or go into the technology a lot more, we're gonna have to, be a lot more grounded. And so, do these things like, the breaks and, um, encouraging people to... just taking a, a breath, but, when you take breaths, it just kinda releases all the, the anxiety people are actually feeling, right? going back to doing, much more, connection events where people are actually coming together. Because I can tell you even from COVID, I mean, everybody wants to be around people. People wanna, we're, we've been coming to this, Zoom culture, right? Whereas, people really are seeking the connection. And so that is also what one of the big losses people are actually dealing with is, the disconnect that people are feeling from the technology. It's like, to do much more people-centered events, even if it is around, okay, adoption of the tools. Yes. And, one thing I think that, highlights what you mentioned is and, and when we think about, true masters, and, and bring in martial arts perspective.

Sam Reeves 22:36

You know, when you think about those masters of the, of their art and how they move- You know, they start out by going slow, right? Yeah. So they, they start out with the, the movement. How do I, how do I move efficiently and effectively? And with the mastering of that movement and muscle memory, they're, they're able to be the fastest in their field by, harnessing that piece. So I think that's, goes into what you really show on on your website. in your website, I noticed that it says, "Get out of survival mode." You know? Yes. And so, many people first reaction of, of fight or flight instead of really thinking about, how do I, how do I react appropriately and so forth?

Juani Manley 23:18

So how do you help leaders get out of that survival mode? Right. One of it's, it's recognizing... So typically, you know, there's has to be definition, a different definition of looking at what survival mode actually means. Because typically when people think about survival mode, it thinks about people that's in a state of lack in terms of not having enough, physical have your physical needs met. And what it really begins with is, your energy level. Do you not have enough energy? By definition, if you wake up in the morning, anxious to wake up in the morning, if you're saying like, "Okay, I don't have enough time," by definition you are in some type of survival mode, right? And so I would say in- in- invest in these corporate wellness programs. You know, I would say that those should not be the things that companies actually, cut out out of, out of their budgets, but to actually to invest more into it, you know, in terms of, like, these, uh, leadership retreats where there is some type of, somatic work that's being done in addition to talking about the strategies. I was thinking about the Tai Chi and things like that. But survival mode really is like, okay, one, you wanna be thriving in it, so you have to define, okay, looking at, what are the things exhibits you're in survival mode. Are you behind? are you having, a high retention? are you not fully staffed? are your people, overworked? Like, you literally are in survival mode. You have to get to a place where you're at a neutral first, you know, instead of being, in a deficit. Get to, a place of neutrality, and then you can start from thriving from there.

Sam Reeves 24:41

Mm-hmm. Yes. And so that's how leaderships thrive. But you also speak about the entrepreneurial mindset for employees. So how can leaders help employees feel more agency instead of feeling like this change is something that's being done to them? You know, just, people just wanna feel like they matter. Mm-hmm.

Juani Manley 25:00

You know what I mean? I, tell this story because, for example, when I was working for the first law firm that I worked at, my former boss his assistant or his secretary had worked for him for, 20-something years. Now, we were, a mid-sized law firm and she could have gone to, a Holland Knight, these big law firms, but she just stuck with him. he was paying her, far lower, lower pay. And I asked her, like, "Marissa," "why do you stay with Mitchell?" And she said to me, "Juani," she says, "He was my first divorces." She says, "He was with me when I went through cancer. He was with me through, every personal, hell I was going through, he was always with me there." And she was like, "What he was able to show me was that I was part of his family." And I think that, And I get it from a corporate perspective, it's very difficult because a corporation's But you have to, like, invest in your people. And so, Really giving people the incentives is, okay, you're part ownership of this company. And I don't mean it like in lip talk, you know? Because what I love about the millennial generation is you just can't do lip service anymore. You know, you gotta- Yeah like back up these grand, grandiose statements. Okay, really show me, you know what I mean? And so the millennials have made corporations be a lot more responsible, they're actually saying, let it be the same thing for your employees. Like, invest in them, you know? Like the training. give them autonomy to say, okay, you're not just much more of a task employee, why don't you be a decision-maker. invite those people that actually exhibit those, qualities, to, you know, to take ownership rather than say, "Okay, I have this leader over here.

Sam Reeves 26:22

You have to follow him or her." Mm-hmm. Yes, and, and I, I think you're right. I mean, as far as, when we think about the new generation of leaders that are coming up, they, they want those steps. Yeah. They want that, that clear action plan. So to that effect, I mean, if, for those leaders listening in today, if they want a 90-day plan on how they can help, adapt their organization to be more AI native and to drive that, that fear away before it takes away their talent, what would be your, the sequence events of events that you would recommend?

Juani Manley 26:55

Well, for us, what we do, we would come in and do an assessment. that's just 'cause you can't really fix a problem you don't quite know what it is, number one or number two. what is severity of it, right? So looking at, okay, interviewing your people, doing these assessments like with your leadership, you know? Not just okay, filling out a form, but actually having round tables and actually like talking to people. But first creating a space to where, you know, people can actually freely speak about that there a retaliation, even maybe against the law, but they, those things actually kind of happen. And then from there creating specific, programs, you know, and initiatives actually around the data that you actually receive, with the qualified consultant. I mean, my company we for companies as well too. And so, you know, and it's a minimum like of a 90-day, of these coaching, intimate, you know, retreats and events to where it's just not a speaker come in doing a commercial speech or a keynote, but let me come like do a workshop with you Let me have these office hours, okay? let me review like what's actually happening, and things like this. There's so many different, um, different programs and protocols that can actually be But it really, really starts with the assessment, what really is people going to the point to where and actual people can actually freely speak about this is how I'm really feeling, so they can give you honest answers.

Sam Reeves 28:00

Because if your people are not f- if they're not feeling safe to give honest answers, the data incorrect anyway. Right. Very wise. Okay, one, one last question, Juani. Sure. So, w- what is one leadership habit that you would give our listeners today that to practice this month if they want to, uh, lead, the, with change with more confidence, more humanity?

Juani Manley 28:24

What would you recommend to them? I would say, you know, leadership is by example. So I would say, okay, pick... We all know the things that we wanna change, Sam, but it's like we're just not actually doing it. Okay, I can tell you for me it's waking up early in the morning. So pick that one trait that is actually visible to, the team you're actually are leading, and make a commitment. Be very intentional about, you know what? I am going to work on that. You know what I mean? And I'm also gonna have some accountability so somebody actually else knows that I actually am working on this. So you know what? If I'm actually gonna fail, I can fail publicly, uh, publicly at it. I can have some accountability out of it. It's like, you know what? Because it's all by, it's all by example. And as we... I'm sure you well know very well that people in great companies, they a- they create the leadership, you know? They go on these job boards and cr- and they complain about the leaders. So it's okay, what is one trait? Can... It's, you know, could it be empathy? You know, could it be your tone of voice of how you actually talk to your people? Could it be that, you know, you are expecting your people to work 80 hours, but you're only coming in for 40 hours a, a week, you know? So what is it that you actually can, the change you can actually exhibit in front of your people you're leading, that they can actually say, "You know what?"

Sam Reeves 29:29

'Cause once they see you doing it, they're gonna follow suit. Good, Good, good advice. All right, so for our listeners out there, Juane brought us back to something every leader needs to hear. Uh, people don't usually resist change itself. They resist the loss that they believe that it may bring. So if leaders fail to address that loss clearly, AI is not gonna be the thing that drives their talent away, it's gonna be the fear that AI brings. We need to remove that fear. Juane also reminds us that thriving through change does not happen because leaders have all the answers. it's clear. I mean, with the fast pace of change, we don't have all the answers, right? But it's a... it's, it's making sure that we communicate that effectively, and we are, uh, there with our people in navigating that change. So Juane, thank you so much for bringing a, a very clear and powerful message to our leaders today. Really appreciate that. Thank you for having me. It's my absolute pleasure, and any time I'd be more than happy to come back and, help you again or, and help your people. Thank you. And Juane, where can our leaders find you if they wanna continue the conversation? I'm on LinkedIn, so, that's where I hang out, and also my website as well too. But just, yeah, come connect with me on LinkedIn. Perfect. All right. For our leaders out there, if this conversation helped, please subscribe, rate, and share this with somebody that really needs this message of how to navigate, in the, the world of AI. Once again, thank you for joining us, and we'll see you next week on The People Strategy Forum. All right. Take care, everyone. Thank you. Take care. Bye-bye.