Using AI at Work: AI in the Workplace & Generative AI for Business Leaders 74: Using AI at Work to Rethink Roles, Risk, and Readiness with Zac Engler
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Oct 20, 2025 Zac Engler, Chief AI Officer and author of "Turning On Machines," dives into the practicalities of AI adoption in the workplace. He shares his Crawl → Walk → Run framework, emphasizing the importance of foundational training for employees. Zac highlights the urgency of embracing AI to avoid falling behind and discusses common fears surrounding automation. He also introduces a trifurcation model of work roles and the concept of a "machine shepherd" to navigate human-AI collaboration. Plus, he teases insights from his new book, exploring the complex relationship between humans and intelligent systems.
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Pick Infrastructure Or Operations First
- Decide whether your AI strategy is for infrastructure (custom systems) or operations (LLM rollout) before planning timelines.
- Prioritize pilots where your biggest cost centers or revenue drivers will gain the most from AI.
Process Map Now; Automate During Walk
- Map processes and employee workflows to find repeatable tasks to automate during the Walk stage, typically a 3–4 month project.
- Move with urgency because agent deployments compound advantages as models improve over time.
Pilot Fast With Trusted Teams And Big Providers
- Start imperfectly: pick a trusted small team to pilot AI and iterate instead of waiting for a perfect plan.
- Use secure platforms from big providers (OpenAI, Anthropic, Microsoft, Google) for safer early adoption.
