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<v Speaker 1>Helping leaders motivate their people to a higher level of

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<v Speaker 1>performance through strong human relations, team building, and goal achieving.

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<v Speaker 1>This is the seven Minute Leadership Podcast with your host

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<v Speaker 1>Paul Fellovledo. Hello everyone, and welcome to the seven Minute

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<v Speaker 1>Leadership Podcast. It's episode three fifty nine. So let's go

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<v Speaker 1>straight into one of the most provocative questions being asked

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<v Speaker 1>in boardrooms, tech forums, and leadership retreats around the world.

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<v Speaker 1>Can a company run itself with zero human intervention? The

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<v Speaker 1>short answer is not yet. But the longer answer, the

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<v Speaker 1>one that leaders need to start preparing for, is not yet,

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<v Speaker 1>but probably soon. The concept of a self replicating organization

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<v Speaker 1>isn't just science fiction anymore. Thanks to AI, machine learning,

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<v Speaker 1>robotic process automation, and predictive analytics, we're seeing companies automate hiring, production, delivery,

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<v Speaker 1>and customer service at scale, and with each passing year,

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<v Speaker 1>the human footprint gets smaller while the system gets smarter.

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<v Speaker 1>But here's the big leadership question. Should we let go

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<v Speaker 1>of the wheel? So let's break this down into three parts.

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<v Speaker 1>Part one, the tech is already here. We've already handed

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<v Speaker 1>over huge parts of operations to technology. Self checkout lanes

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<v Speaker 1>at stores, automated recruiting systems, AI writing job descriptions and

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<v Speaker 1>performance reviews, bots handling first level tech support, and drones

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<v Speaker 1>delivering packages. And here's the wild part. These systems don't sleep,

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<v Speaker 1>don't get sick, and don't complain about the breakroom coffee.

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<v Speaker 1>But this only works if leaders set clear parameters, build

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<v Speaker 1>strong ethical frameworks, and teach the system what matters. If

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<v Speaker 1>you don't train the AI with integrity, it will not

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<v Speaker 1>lead with integrity. Something Gelman always tells me when it

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<v Speaker 1>comes to AI is garbage in, garbage out. Part two,

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<v Speaker 1>what gets lost without humans. This is the part leaders

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<v Speaker 1>can't afford to ignore because automation can run a process,

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<v Speaker 1>but it cannot replace judgment, empathy, or innovation. You might

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<v Speaker 1>automate a call center, but you can't automate a heartfelt

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<v Speaker 1>apology after a bad customer experience. You might build an

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<v Speaker 1>algorithm to forecast sales, but it won't see a cultural

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<v Speaker 1>shift coming until it's too late. You might even develop

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<v Speaker 1>an AI manager, but it won't know when someone is

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<v Speaker 1>on the verge of burnout unless you code it to care.

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<v Speaker 1>So no, we're not building leadership into these systems. We're

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<v Speaker 1>building processes and leadership is still required to ask the

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<v Speaker 1>hard questions, fix the unexpected, and to find what right

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<v Speaker 1>looks like when the data disagrees. Part three. Your role

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<v Speaker 1>as a leader is evolving fast, and this one is

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<v Speaker 1>extremely important to understand. If your role is just approve

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<v Speaker 1>timesheets or managed spreadsheets, you better believe the bots are

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<v Speaker 1>coming for your chair. But if you're the one creating vision,

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<v Speaker 1>defining culture, and driving purpose, you're not going anywhere. Self

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<v Speaker 1>replicating organizations may one day do the work, but they

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<v Speaker 1>still need a human at the helm to say this

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<v Speaker 1>is the direction, this is what we stand for, this

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<v Speaker 1>is what we will never allow, no matter what the

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<v Speaker 1>numbers say. We may build systems that can run without us,

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<v Speaker 1>but they should never run without our values. So the

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<v Speaker 1>future is already here. The goal isn't to fear self

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<v Speaker 1>replicating organizations. The goal is to lead them anyway, not

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<v Speaker 1>to micromanage every process, but to oversee the mission and

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<v Speaker 1>keep it aligned with your vision, core values, principles, and

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<v Speaker 1>your brand promise. So when the day comes that your

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<v Speaker 1>business can function without you, make sure it's still acting

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<v Speaker 1>like you. That's the true test of leadership, not how

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<v Speaker 1>well you run it, but how well it runs when

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<v Speaker 1>you're not around. This has been the seven minute Leadership podcast,

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<v Speaker 1>and I thank you for listening. For more Paul fell

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<v Speaker 1>of Alito Podcasts, visit paulfellowalito dot com