Bots & Bosses (english)

Bots & Bosses (english)

By Dominic von ProeckBusinessEntrepreneurshipTechnologyEducationHow To
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Bots & Bosses (english) episodes

  • AI productivity: Why impatience is costing you ROI
    The AI productivity boost is measurable: US productivity +2.7% (Stanford, Brynjolfsson). But many companies see no ROI—not because AI doesn’t work, but because they (1) are in the middle of a transformation and (2) measure the wrong things.
    In this episode, you’ll learn:
    - Why the AI productivity boost is becoming visible in the US (and not here yet)
    - What the productivity J-curve is and why impatience costs you ROI
    - Which metrics really matter (rework rate, overtime, employee turnover instead of licenses)
    - Five concrete steps to get out of the J-curve valley
    More about Leaders of AI: [www.leadersofai.com](www.leadersofai.com)
    Newsletter: [www.leadersofai.com/newsletter](http://www.leadersofai.com/newsletter)
    Sources:
    - [FAZ Pro Digitalwirtschaft, Feb 2025: „Der KI‑Produktivitätsschub ist da – schneller als erwartet"](https://www.faz.net/pro/digitalwirtschaft/kuenstliche-intelligenz/erik-brynjolfsson-der-ki-produktivitaetsschub-ist-da-accg-200547512.html)
    - [Workday, Inc. / Hanover Research, Nov 2025: „Jenseits von Produktivität: Was KI wirklich wert ist"](https://de-de.newsroom.workday.com/2026-01-15-Neue-Workday-Studie-Unternehmen-lassen-KI-Gewinne-liegen)
    7 min
  • Digital Sovereignty: Architecture Instead of Ideology
    “Get out of Big Tech” is a nice impulse, but not a strategy. In this episode, Tobi explains why digital sovereignty is an architecture decision—and how Leaders of AI puts it into practice.
    **In this episode:**
    - Why “Europe only” is just as risky as “put everything in the US cloud”
    - The three tension fields: data protection, competitiveness, convenience
    - What must stay with you—and what is allowed to be replaceable
    - How Leaders of AI rebuilt its own stack in summer 2025
    - Three concrete steps you can implement this week
    **Sources:**
    - Bitkom: Definition of Digital Sovereignty.
    **Further links:**
    - AI Integration Expert (120 hours, university certificate, Fresenius University of Applied Sciences):
    - Leaders of AI Newsletter:
    - More about Leaders of AI:
    7 min
  • AI should lighten the workload. So why doesn't it feel that way?
    AI makes output cheap — and still increases the workload if your system can’t handle the new speed. This episode is about “workload creep”: how AI quietly creates more work, and what you can do right away with three simple team rules to stop it.
    - Why AI often doesn’t reduce work, but instead boosts task expansion, ambient work, and multitasking
    - The core mistake: “create faster” gets confused with “less work” — without clear stop points, work simply grows back
    - Three AI practice rules for real relief: Intentional Pause, Sequencing, Human Grounding
    - A guardrail for leaders: AI doesn’t save work, AI saves friction — and for that you need new rules, ownership, and stop signals
    More info at: .
    And here’s our newsletter:
    **Sources**
    - [Harvard Business Review (2026): _AI Doesn’t Reduce Work—It Intensifies It_](https://hbr.org/2026/02/ai-doesnt-reduce-work-it-intensifies-it)
    - [Upwork Investors: “Upwork Study Finds Employee Workloads Rising…”](https://investors.upwork.com/news-releases/news-release-details/upwork-study-finds-employee-workloads-rising-despite-increased-c)
    - [Microsoft WorkLab: “Breaking down the infinite workday”](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/worklab/work-trend-index/breaking-down-infinite-workday)
    7 min
  • Head of AI: The Trend Job for Leaders in 2026
    LinkedIn names Head of AI as the number one trending job in Germany. In this episode, we analyze the data, show the strategic implications for your career path, and share our observations from working with more than 2,100 leaders during AI transformation. Plus: three concrete steps to help you make the jump into an AI leadership role—no matter whether you come from marketing, operations, or product development.
    **Key takeaways:**
    - Head of AI and AI developer are the fastest-growing jobs in Germany (LinkedIn 2026)
    - Average work experience for Head of AI: only 4.8 years
    - AI-exposed jobs grow twice as fast as others (Vanguard)
    - The real challenge is not technology, but leadership
    **Your three steps to become Head of AI:**
    1. Build AI skills
    2. Use your industry expertise
    3. Become visible
    **Your first step:** Try Helga, our free AI recruiter. In 2 minutes, she creates a complete personnel file for your first AI assistant. → [Try Helga for free](https://www.leadersofai.com/helga-signup)
    **Sources:**
    - [LinkedIn: Jobs on the Rise 2026 – Germany’s 25 fastest-growing jobs](https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/jobs-im-trend-2026-deutschlands-25-wachstärkste-berufe)
    - [Vanguard: Economic and Market Outlook 2026 (PDF)](https://corporate.vanguard.com/content/dam/corp/research/pdf/Vanguard-economic-and-market-outlook-2026.pdf)
    - [Walczok & Bipp (2026): Do Large Language Models Evoke Affective Automation-Related Job Insecurity? Springer](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10869-026-09876-5)
    - [Harvard Kennedy School: Measuring Human Leadership Skills with AI Agents](https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=67197)
    **More from Leaders of AI:**
    - Newsletter: [leadersofai.com/newsletter](https://www.leadersofai.com/newsletter)
    - Website: [leadersofai.com](https://www.leadersofai.com/)
    - Our programs at a glance: [leadersofai.com/programme](https://www.leadersofai.com/programme)
    6 min
  • Five leadership mistakes that slow down AI transformation
    Sixty-eight percent of companies fail to move their AI experiments into production. The problem? It's not the technology – it's leadership.
    In this episode, we discuss the five most common leadership mistakes:
    1. **The ROI trap** – Measured too early, too narrowly
    2. **Delegation instead of leading** – Leadership doesn't use AI themselves
    3. **One-size-fits-all training** – Training everyone the same doesn't work
    4. **Experts in silos** – Task forces without critical mass
    5. **IT bottleneck** – Gatekeepers instead of enablers
    More information at: [leadersofai.com](https://leadersofai.com)
    Subscribe to our newsletter: [leadersofai.com/newsletter](https://www.leadersofai.com/newsletter)
    **Sources:** Deloitte (2024): State of Generative AI in the Enterprise, Q4 2024. [Link](https://www.deloitte.com/content/dam/assets-zone3/us/en/docs/services/consulting/2024/us-state-of-gen-ai-q4.pdf)
    5 min
  • Why Humanity Becomes a Competitive Advantage in AI Transformation
    82% of employees have never had any AI training. At the same time, leadership teams expect 30% more productivity. Microsoft analyzed 37 million Copilot requests, and the result is surprising: people don’t use AI for efficiency, but to communicate in a more human way.
    In this episode, you’ll learn:
    - Why we changed our claim to “Tomorrow is human”
    - What the Microsoft study reveals about how AI is really used
    - Why trust is the real bottleneck in AI adoption
    - The three pillars for successful AI leadership: mindset, skills, community
    - Three concrete steps you can implement this week
    You can find more about Leaders of AI at [leadersofai.com ](http://www.leadersofai.com)
    For weekly updates straight to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter: [www.leadersofai.com/newsletter](http://www.leadersofai.com/newsletter)
    Sources:
    Microsoft: [Microsoft Copilot Usage Report 2025](https://news.microsoft.com/source/emea/2025/12/puenktlich-zum-jahresende-der-copilot-usage-report-2025)
    Deloitte: [Human Capital Trends Report 2025](https://www.deloitte.com/nl/en/services/consulting/research/human-capital-trends-report-2025.html)
    Harvard: [The Cybernetic Teammate](https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=67197)
    Insights from Global Surveys on [Trust in AI](https://learn.g2.com/trust-in-ai)
    7 min
  • Prompting is dead. And that's a good thing.
    In this episode, we discuss why prompting is dead and can never work as a pervasive enterprise strategy. You'll also learn how to become productive with AI instead and ensure consistently high quality using prompt assistants.
    [Here's the free download of our prompt assistant Helga](https://www.leadersofai.com/helga-signup) (or as we call her: "AI Recruiter"). Learn more about Leaders of AI at [leadersofai.com](https://www.leadersofai.com/) and in our [newsletter](https://www.leadersofai.com/newsletter).
    5 min
  • 6 Predictions for AI in 2026

    72% of companies use AI – but only 23% make it out of the pilot phase. To be on the winning side in 2026, here are our six predictions:

    1. Governance becomes a C-level priority – No more siloed solutions and five parallel travel expense agents
    2. Sovereignty becomes an architecture question – Where do you need data control, where is the US cloud enough?
    3. Shadow AI forces you to lead – Your people are already using AI. Are you leading – or just watching?
    4. AI becomes invisible – From chatbot to infrastructure working in the background
    5. The job market transforms positively – More jobs, higher salaries, but reskilling is the bottleneck
    6. Humanity becomes a superpower – Empathy as competitive advantage

    New host alert: Starting this episode, Tobi – our new AI podcast host – takes over.

    🔗 More about Leaders of AI: leadersofai.com

    📩 Newsletter: Click here

    7 min
  • Trailer - Bots & Bosses

    10 humans. 50+ AI colleagues. A company that feels like science fiction – but it's just our everyday reality.

    In "Bots & Bosses" we share what we learn at Leaders of AI every single day: Which AI assistants shine, which ones mess up spectacularly, and why Jürgen – our AI team lead – still got promoted.

    Twice a week. Five minutes. Zero bullshit.

    This podcast is 100% AI-generated. No microphone was used in its creation. We deliberately left in all the mistakes the AI makes – because we want to show you where the real limits are. That said, we think the result is pretty damn impressive!

    Learn more about our work at: https://leadersofai.com

    2 min
  • AI's Big Bubble: Risks and Revolutions
    In this episode, we discuss whether artificial intelligence is a bubble and why that might not matter. AI could be the most significant bubble we've ever needed. We shed light on the current skepticism surrounding the overvaluation of AI technology and how this compares to important historical innovations.
    - The role of exaggeration and greed in technological innovations, similar to the internet bubble of the 1990s.
    - Potentials and risks of generative AI in various industries – from medicine to education to transportation.
    - Why it is important to continue pursuing the enormous potential of AI despite possible setbacks and skepticism.
    - Examples of how balancing risks and opportunities favors fundamental technological advancements.
    More information can be found at: https://leadersofai.com
    4 min

About Bots & Bosses (english)

From the publisher's feed

10 humans. 50+ AI colleagues. A company that feels like science fiction – but it's just our Tuesday. In "Bots & Bosses" we share what we learn at Leaders of AI every single day: Which AI assistants shine, which ones mess up spectacularly, and why Jürgen – our AI team lead – still got promoted.