AI At Work, Humans In Charge | S5 E45

Send us Fan MailA packed Lisbon room. A candid conversation with Sérgio Ferreira, Partner at EY and Jo Smets, President, CCLBL & CEO, BluePanda. And a straight shot of strategy on how AI shifts from cost-cutting to true growth. We take you inside real examples—finance, HR, retail, and contact centers—where automation speeds the work while people make the judgment. The result is faster decisions, 24/7 service, and new operating models that put digital assistants in every pocket and at every counter.We dig into the trust problem head-on. When “good enough” AI content floods the feed, the edge moves to teams that show their process and protect their voice. You’ll hear why we frame AI as augmented intelligence, not artificial intelligence: use machines to gather, draft, and summarize, then apply human editing, taste, and accountability. That mindset becomes essential as we move through three phases: assistants that co-create, agentic AI that works autonomously, and a near future where leaders manage mixed teams of people and digital employees.Customer behavior is changing just as fast. People seek direct answers, not links, which upends SEO and demands distinct expertise, structure, and signals to surface in AI results. We share how to adapt content strategy, build AI literacy and fluency across teams, and maintain strong consulting value by compressing research time while doubling down on human creativity. We also tackle sustainability pressures with pragmatic optimism—acknowledging energy and water costs while highlighting how AI accelerates breakthroughs in materials, medicine, and clean energy.If this conversation helps you reframe your roadmap, follow and share the show with a friend who leads marketing or product. Leave a quick review to support the work, and grab The Future CMO on Amazon for deeper playbooks. Most of all, don’t wait for the future to lead you—lead the future.This episode was recorded at the EY headquarters in Lisbon on October 29, 2025. Read the blog article, and show notes here: https://webdrie.net/ai-at-work-humans-in-charge/.......................................................................... 📘 Read The Future CMO: Amazon 👥 Join the Future CMO Community 🌿 Explore Sintra Synergies Retreat 💼 Connect on LinkedIn..........................................................................