The End of the Billable Hour: AI, Value, and the New Economics of Expertise

Summary In the first episode of 2026 for the UpLevel View podcast, Stephanie Corey and Ken Callander sit down with Rita Gunther McGrath, Columbia Business School professor and Wall Street Journal columnist, to talk about how AI is forcing professional services to price outcomes instead of hours. From law firms to in-house legal teams, the rules of value are being rewritten. The question is: who's ready to lead the change? Listen to the UpLevel View and improve your legal leadership vision today!   Episode Highlights 00:00:18 - Introducing Rita Gunther McGrath. 00:02:23 - Definition of strategic inflection points. 00:03:21 - Legal industry disruption with AI. 00:06:47 - Shift from billable hours to value. 00:12:26 - The economic model and compensation structure challenges. 00:23:39 - Historical change movements as a model for legal transformation. 00:32:30 - Training and learning in the AI age. 00:39:36 - The concept of permissionless organizations. 00:40:15 - "Two percent less stupid" book title.   Episode resources: http://UpLevelOps.com Brainwave Newsletter by UpLevel Ops: http://UpLevelOps.com/Brainwave Thought Sparks Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/thought-sparks/id1546758719 Thought Sparks Newsletter on Substack: https://thoughtsparks.substack.com Learn more about Professor McGrath at: http://RitaMcGrath.com   Keywords UpLevel View   Stephanie Corey   Ken Callander   Rita Gunther McGrath   strategy   innovation   Columbia Business School   Wall Street Journal   Thinkers 50   The End of Competitive Advantage   Seeing Around Corners   AI   inflection points   disruption   value-based pricing   legal industry   billable hours   professional services   general counsel   law firms   legal operations   Uber   Airbnb   marijuana legalization   economic model   law firm culture   consulting firms   transformation   change management   in-house teams   apprenticeships   legal training   skill development   future partners   media industry   Hollywood   entertainment industry   strategy   scarcity   permissionless organizations   two percent less stupid