Before You Build the AI Tool, Ask Whether the Problem Should Exist
There is a hierarchy to process improvement that most organisations skip. Eliminate, simplify, automate — and only then reach for AI.
Writing
Thoughts on AI, transformation, leadership, and the craft of getting things done.
From Gatekeepers to Guardrails: Governing AI-Generated Code Without Blocking Innovation
Platform-embedded AI is already generating code inside your business. A guardrail model that documents, checks, and escalates governs without blocking.
Your AI Governance Committee Has a Blind Spot. It's Called 'Everyone Else.'
AI governance built without practitioner input produces policies nobody follows. Start from what teams already do and wrap strategic oversight around it.
The Mentoring Gap: When Your Manager's Thinking Partner is an AI
If managers are getting their intellectual sparring needs met by AI, what happens to the development relationship with their direct reports?
Your Data Will Never Be Ready. Start Anyway.
Waiting for perfect data before starting AI guarantees you never move. Target specific datasets for specific use cases and learn what good enough means.
Change Management is Dead; Long Live Change Enablement
Why the 18-month waterfall change programme can't keep pace with 18-day AI update cycles. And what to build instead. How many times has the AI...
How to Hire for AI Transformation Success
AI transformation fails when organisations hire one person to fill three roles. Define whether you need strategic leadership, technical building, or both.
When "AI-Assisted" Becomes Meaningless
The line between AI-assisted and AI-generated work is dissolving. Stop measuring methodology and start enforcing accountability - someone must own the output.
Why Your AI Policy Needs Examples (Not Just Principles)
Principle-based AI policies fail because interpretation is inevitable. Concrete examples create shared understanding, expose edge cases, and enable enforcement.
Why Your Board Shouldn't Rush to Cement an AI Strategy (And What to Do Instead)
With 79% of board directors lacking AI knowledge and most pilots failing, boards should build foundational literacy before committing to formal strategies.