AI is no longer on the horizon. It’s here, embedded in workflows, growth strategies, and boardroom discussions. Businesses across every sector are doubling down on AI investment, driving transformation at a pace many find dizzying. For today’s leaders, AI is not optional. But embracing it raises a critical question: How do we lead with AI without compromising our people, purpose, and principles?
Business leaders already face enormous pressures—to reduce waste, protect margins, accelerate innovation, and respond to rising labor costs. The stakes are high: serve customers better, outperform competitors, and preserve culture, all while staying mission-driven. Now, enter AI. Is it a problem to solve or a solution to embrace? The answer: Yes.
AI is showing up everywhere, from inboxes and staff meetings to competitors’ product releases. It’s hailed as revolutionary, yet fraught with risks. It’s reshaping industries and redefining roles. While some see it as a shiny new toy or necessary evil, the real question is: How can AI serve our mission instead of sabotaging it?
A recent Wall Street Journal article revealed how white-collar roles in legal, HR, and marketing are rapidly being restructured as AI steps in. Too often, companies rush to deploy generative AI without a strategic “why,” leading to anxious teams, fractured trust, and reactionary cuts. Amid this chaos, leaders must rise above trend-chasing and lead with clarity.
Let’s set the record straight: AI isn’t the enemy. But it isn’t a magic bullet either.
On its own, AI can create confusion, compromise, or even harm. But paired with strong, values-rooted leadership and human ingenuity, it becomes a potent catalyst for innovation and impact. The future belongs to those who combine the best of machine capability with distinctly human judgment.
That’s why I like to frame the opportunity this way: AI × HI = ROI (Artificial Intelligence multiplied by Human Ingenuity equals Return on Investment).
This is more than clever math. It’s a mindset shift that every leader must make to steward their mission through this era of acceleration. The debate is no longer whether to use AI, but how and why.
As Johnny C. Taylor Jr. wisely said, “AI may provide the tools, but HI offers the necessary ingenuity and judgment to use them effectively.” In other words, tools don’t build strategy; people do. And in a world where automation is surging, human discernment becomes the ultimate differentiator.
Today’s marketplace is defined by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA). Our response must be what futurists call VUCA Prime: vision, understanding, clarity, and agility. Leading through AI adoption demands all four.
One of the greatest dangers we face is confusing tools with strategy. AI is powerful, but without a clear purpose, even the best tools can cause more harm than good. Before we adopt any platform or automate any workflow, we must first ask: What’s our mission? How can this tool enhance, not erode, our purpose? What’s the real “why” behind this decision?
To navigate this well, I encourage leaders to assess AI opportunities through four clarity lenses: efficiency (can we do the same with less?), effectiveness (can we do more of the right things?), excellence (can we do it better than before?), and evolution (can we reimagine what “it” even is?).
If we ignore AI, we risk irrelevance. If we misuse it, we risk compromise.
Here’s another equation worth pondering: AI – HI = TTAI (Truly, Terribly Authentic Ignorance)
In information science, there’s a model called DIKW (Data, Information, Knowledge, and Wisdom). Today, AI can rapidly process data and information, but only humans can translate that into knowledge and wisdom. HI acts like the transmission that channels AI’s raw horsepower into real impact.
And the stakes get even higher: Status Quo – AI = DDD (Disadvantaged, Declining, and Dangerous)
Whether from fear, confusion, or comfort, failing to adapt puts your organization at risk. Even elite teams falter without a plan for AI.
This is a call to courageous, strategic stewardship.
Every technological leap in history—printing presses, roadways, electricity, the internet—has demanded ethical discernment and bold leadership. AI is no different. As we integrate it into our work, we must ask: Are we reinforcing our mission and values? What ethical guardrails must be in place? How can we empower our people while enhancing performance?
As one wise observer put it, “The pace of change has never been this fast, and it will never be this slow again.”
So, let’s do the math together: AI × HI = ROI.
Let’s multiply what only humans can offer with what machines can now do. Let’s innovate with integrity. Let’s lead with vision and serve with purpose.
When we do, AI won’t replace us; it will amplify us. HI can amplify the ROI of AI. The question every leader must ask is: How can AI amplify the ROI of people in the way we serve people and markets?
We are called to create to the glory of God. In every age, it is the pioneers, those with conviction, strategy, and courage, who turn disruption into opportunity. So at this strategic inflection point, we have three paths: react in desperation, cling to the status quo, or craft the future.
Choose wisely.
