Axios C-Suite: The 6 dimensions of AI leadership
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Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
We're all AI CEOs now.
Why it matters: AI isn't a choice for us. It's an urgent enabler of revenue, growth, cost and confusion that many aren't remotely ready for.
- I've heard from two companies knee-deep in AI tutoring of CEOs that told me at best 15% of CEOs are AI-savvy. Worse, most board chairs know even less about the technology.
This isn't easy. All of us are leading AI-enabled companies that demand SIX new layers of AI leadership and expertise.
- We need to understand it, use and explain it, govern it, implement and measure it, restructure our teams and companies to exploit it, and then make sure our companies and products show up inside of it.
‼️ Very important: I'm going to outline the six layers today and then use my Axios C-Suite newsletter going forward (ask to join here) to help us master each layer by synthesizing what's working inside AI-savvy companies.
- Understand it. We've got to master what AI is, how it works, what it unlocks, what's unfolding with technological advances, what's likely to come, and what our competitors are doing better than us. The CEO cannot outsource this. It will soon be a vital part of EVERY decision you make. Here's a list of trustworthy tutors to follow.
- Use and explain it. You can't understand its capabilities without using it and prototyping with it. You only see the magic when you work persistently on various problems and ideas and fine-tune it to understand your brain and company. I hired a personal AI savant to work with me outside our formal structure. This will help you guide and teach your staff. This must come from you, at least broadly. Your staff is desperate for leadership and reassurance that you will unleash it smartly and safely.
- Govern it. YOU decide who owns AI, what's off-limits, and how the board and staff sees it even as it rapidly evolves. The specifics will fall to your CTO or CIO. But your board and company need to understand broadly the evolving thinking on AI and agent use at every level of the company. Most boards are flying blind on this one. 71% of directors named AI as the top skill their boards need to strengthen, and 82% said information on AI's link to risk and business performance was fair, poor or unavailable.
- Implement and track it. This is hard as hell right now because the technology evolves so quickly and hits internal snags so persistently. Think of this as a living, always-evolving, never-ending project. Oh, and it changes WEEKLY. Your team needs to know with precision what can and should be automated now or soon, and then how humans and agents will collaborate to do it and monitor it. This is tedious, painful work.
- Restructure for it. You think implementation is hard? Just wait for the restructuring it demands. We will all be human/agent-hybrid companies operating at a super-velocity never before seen. I'm three years into this and tinkering with structure CONSTANTLY. It's my new obsession. You will find you need to flatten your org fast to decrease idea-to-implementation speed. And rethink CIO, CTO, CPO to find one person with responsibility for understanding your proprietary data and information, your tech and security stack — as well as AI enablement companywide.
- Show up inside of it. Most CEOs are clueless on this one. All of us need to restructure our content, marketing and messaging to surface smartly inside LLMs and agents. The CEO of Profound, the leading company monitoring this new dynamic, recently provided C-Suite readers tips on fixing this fast.
The big picture: This is A LOT, especially on top of our non-AI responsibilities. There are a lot of consultancies — Accenture, Teneo, Thoughtworks, FSG — helping CEOs with some pieces of this.
- Truth is, we all need a holistic solution.
📈 If you're a CEO or on a CEO's team: Ask to join Jim's Axios C-Suite newsletter so you can go deeper in the weeks ahead on these six dimensions of AI leadership.
