Chapter 1, The Space Between — Author Read | Pivoting to Technology Adoption: Mind the Gap

It was never the technology. In this solo author read, host Donna P. Mitchell reads Chapter 1 of her book Pivoting to Technology Adoption: Mind the Gap — the case for why 70% of technology transformations fail, and what the 30% do differently. Deployment is an event. Adoption is a process. The distance between them is where organizations lose millions and billions of dollars every year. Drawing on 49 years across five industries — from the Bell System to US Airways to Johnson & Johnson — Donna names the gap between what leadership thinks is happening and what actually happens on the floor. TOPICS COVERED - Why most digital transformations fail — and why it was never the technology - The difference between deployment and adoption - Allen Martinez’s "shadow ledger" and why 84% of AI failures trace to leadership - The $31M IVR lesson: design for real behavior, not assumed behavior - Why AI is restructuring every industry at once in 2026 - The human cost of the adoption gap — careers, livelihoods, and trust CHAPTERS (parentheses for Spotify clickability) (00:00) Welcome and series introduction (00:34) Dedication: it was never the technology (00:45) Chapter 1 — The Space Between (01:18) Why transformations fail: the research (02:16) AI restructuring every industry at once (03:18) The gap defined: boardroom to break room (06:24) Deployment vs. adoption (07:31) The shadow ledger — Allen Martinez, EP103 (09:09) The IVR lesson: listening over assuming (11:31) Why the gap is preventable (11:45) Closing — Mind the Gap   SUBSCRIBE: New episodes every Tuesday. GET THE BOOK: Pivoting to Technology Adoption: Mind the Gap amazon.com/dp/B0GP3CWH2H NEWSLETTER: The Transformation Brief™ transformationbrief.beehiiv.com/subscribe SPEAKING & ADVISORY: pivotingportal.com/speaker ABOUT DONNA P. MITCHELL: Founder of The Transformation Authority™ and CEO of Mitchell Universal Network, LLC. Forbes Business Council Member. Senior Executive Healthcare Think Tank Member. 49 years of Fortune 500 experience across 5 industries, enabling 150,000+ professionals. SOURCES CITED All statistics in this episode are cited and fully endnoted in Pivoting to Technology Adoption: Mind the Gap (Amazon ASIN B0GP3CWH2H). [1] McKinsey & Company, "The new possible," 2021 — fewer than 30% of digital transformations succeed. [2] Boston Consulting Group, "Digital Transformation Study," 2020 — of 825 companies, 35% achieved target value. [3] MIT Sloan Management Review, 2024 — 95% of generative AI pilots fail to deliver measurable business impact. [4] S&P Global Market Intelligence, 2025 — 42% of companies abandoned most AI initiatives, up from 17% in 2024. [5][6] Allen Martinez, EP103 "The Shadow Ledger," Pivoting to Technology Adoption, 2026 — founder of Noble Digital, creator of the BXAI-OS framework; 84% of AI strategy failures trace to leadership and governance, not technical limitations.   New episodes every Tuesday. Official Member of Forbes Business Council