Nicole West is joined by John O'Brien, founder of The AI Operators, for a conversation about what it actually takes to move from experimenting with AI to operationalizing it inside a business. John works with small and mid sized businesses across the Portsmouth and Seacoast New Hampshire area, helping them figure out where AI fits, what it can safely be trusted with, and where the real risks are.

The conversation covers the difference between using AI as a chat tool versus delegating real work to autonomous agents, why vague instructions to an agent can lead to expensive surprises, and why the biggest risk with advanced AI setups isn't the technology itself but how loosely it gets supervised. John also shares where AI consistently falls short, including his own ongoing struggle to get it to write an email that actually sounds like him, and why authenticity is the hardest thing for AI to fake.

Key takeaways from this episode:

The difference between chatting with AI and delegating real operational work to an AI agent
Why unclear instructions and unsupervised autonomy create financial and security risk
How to think about the "blast radius" of what an AI agent can access before giving it access
Why AI is often worst at the tasks people try it on first, like writing in their own voice
Practical first steps for a business owner who wants to move from curiosity to real use

Guest: John O'Brien, Founder of The AI Operators (aio-us.com).

If this conversation gave you a clearer way to think about bringing AI into your own business, share it with another leader working through the same questions.

We hope you enjoyed this episode!
- Nicole West and the New Perspective Podcast team

Connect with me here: 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicole-west-npc/
Website: https://npcnh.com

#OperationsLeadership #BusinessOperations #OperationalStrategy #BusinessTransformation #OperationalExcellence #OrganizationalChange
#BusinessGrowth #Leadership
New Perspective is a podcast about what it really takes to make organizations work. Hosted by Nicole West, Founder of New Perspective Consulting, each episode goes behind the polished success stories to explore the challenges leaders actually face while growing businesses, leading teams, implementing change, and trying to make things work better.
Nicole sits down with founders, operators, executives, and other leaders to unpack the moments when something wasn't working as expected: the initiative that stalled, the process that no longer fit, the team that needed a different approach, or the growing business that suddenly became harder to manage.
The conversations aren't about having all the answers. They're about asking better questions: What was really getting in the way? What changed? What did you learn?
And what might another leader do differently because of it?
If you're responsible for leading through growth, change, or complexity - and you've ever thought, there has to be a better way to do this - New Perspective is for you.

Welcome to the first episode of the New Perspective Podcast, hosted by Nicole West! 

Nicole West sits down with Dr. Jessica Schloemp, VP of Operations at Financial Independence Group, to unpack what actually separates a leader from a manager. Jessica leads a team of thirty four and has built her approach around what she calls the platinum rule: treat people how they want to be treated, not how you want to be treated. The conversation moves through her doctoral research in strategic leadership, the mindset shift she made after becoming a mother of two, and why she believes corporate promotion decisions often skip the one question that matters most, whether someone actually wants to lead people.

Jessica also shares how she rebuilt trust on a team that had gone without direct leadership for over a year, why she pushes back against blanket return to office mandates, and how flexibility has overtaken salary as the biggest driver of retention on her team. She talks candidly about firing someone for the first time in five years, helping employees update their resumes to leave for better opportunities, and why she believes authenticity at work isn't optional for leaders who want real buy in.

Key takeaways from this episode:

The difference between managing performance and leading people, and why one without the other eventually fails
Why the platinum rule (treat people how they want to be treated) outperforms the golden rule in practice
How asking better questions gets people to their own answers instead of just following instructions
Why flexibility has become a stronger retention tool than salary for many teams
How self awareness, not tenure, should determine who gets promoted into leadership

Guest: Dr. Jessica Schloemp, VP of Operations, Financial Independence Group. Author of The Leader Within Her. Founder of Revive and Rise Consulting.

If this conversation changed how you think about leading your own team, share it with someone navigating the same thing.

Thanks for listening to the New Perspective Podcast. If this conversation gave you a new way to think about a challenge in your own organization, subscribe and share the episode with another leader who might benefit from a different perspective.

Nicole West and the New Perspective Podcast team
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicole-west-npc/
Website: https://npcnh.com

#OperationsLeadership #BusinessOperations #OperationalStrategy #BusinessTransformation #OperationalExcellence #OrganizationalChange
#BusinessGrowth #Leadership
New Perspective is a podcast about what it really takes to make organizations work. Hosted by Nicole West, Founder of New Perspective Consulting, each episode goes behind the polished success stories to explore the challenges leaders actually face while growing businesses, leading teams, implementing change, and trying to make things work better.
Nicole sits down with founders, operators, executives, and other leaders to unpack the moments when something wasn't working as expected: the initiative that stalled, the process that no longer fit, the team that needed a different approach, or the growing business that suddenly became harder to manage.
The conversations aren't about having all the answers. They're about asking better questions: What was really getting in the way? What changed? What did you learn?
And what might another leader do differently because of it?
If you're responsible for leading through growth, change, or complexity - and you've ever thought, there has to be a better way to do this - New Perspective is for you.