In this episode of the Greenbook Podcast, host Karen Lynch sits down with Joanna Byerley, founder of Talent Pools AI, to unpack how AI is reshaping hiring, leadership, and careers in the insights and ResTech space. Joanna explains the shift from traditional executive search to talent intelligence—a more strategic, data-informed way to map markets, pipeline talent, and benchmark salaries before a single role is posted.

She and Karen explore the emerging reality of jobless growth, the erosion of entry-level roles, and what that means for the future leadership pipeline. They also discuss how to build AI-native roles, what separates the 5% of successful AI initiatives from the rest, and why human judgment remains the irreplaceable core skill for insight and strategy teams navigating ambiguity.

Key Discussion Points:

• From search to talent intelligence: How market mapping, talent pipelining, and salary benchmarking create smarter, less transactional hiring strategies for insights and ResTech leaders.
• Jobless growth & entry-level erosion: Why AI-enabled productivity is decoupling revenue growth from headcount and what that means for early-career researchers.
• Careers as lattices, not ladders: How AI and role convergence (product, consulting, insights, tech) are reshaping career paths and the skills that matter most.
• What successful AI leaders do differently: Governance, focus on a few high-impact use cases, realistic 2–4 year horizons, and a culture that tolerates disciplined experimentation.
• The one thing AI can’t replace: Human judgment—the ability to weigh context, nuance, ethics, and risk in turning AI outputs into business decisions.

Resources & Links:

• Talent Pools AI – Executive Search & Talent Intelligence
• Joanna’s article: Platforms, Proof & Power – The New Rules of Insights & Executive Hiring
• Insights Career Network (ICN)

You can reach out to Joanna Byerley on LinkedIn.

Many thanks to Joanna Byerley for being our guest. Thanks also to our production team and our editor at Big Bad Audio.