Who’s Leading, You or the Algorithms?

In the era of blended work, the future belongs to thoughtful leaders who can harness the power of AI collaboration. As AI transforms workflows, it is also demanding that we rewrite the rules of leadership.

Hybrid/Remote work is on offer in many countries and locations, its veracity expanded exponentially across Australia during COVID-19. It forced change, based primarily on proximity and location. We had to get the work done, and hybrid (or locked down at home) was the way to do it. 

Blended work, on the other hand, is not about location; it is about blending human context and capability with artificial intelligence. Sharing responsibility and knowing when humans should lead and when AI should be at the forefront. In the shift from remote and hybrid to blended work, leaders face a new challenge: It’s not just about where or how we work anymore; it’s about how humans and AI systems collaborate.

Humans have been making decisions for many years, and perhaps not with the greatest results. It may be time to think about the roles and skills we own and hone, not being so centric to all decisions made. Let’s face it, AI is currently more intelligent than the average bear and can make decisions and suggestions at rapid speed. Hallucinations, I hear you cry - yes, both humans and AI have been having them for decades. Hence, memory alone can not be used for recall, it's simply not accurate. 

No, AI can’t build your house and it can’t make a coffee, but how do we thrive with a new blended model? In short, I don’t see blended work as the next version of hybrid/remote, it’s the next version of work itself. As this new model becomes a reality, one thing is clear: blended work requires blended leadership.

Leaders need to consider Ai like they do human resources 

In traditional old school workplaces, the leader’s role was largely about coordination, collaboration and control, ensuring that people, processes and systems were aligned. In a hybrid/remote model, leadership needed to consider complexity around cadence, communication, and team dynamics.

In a blended model, leaders face an entirely new set of circumstances; they’re not just managing people or processes anymore. They’re leading humans; they will need to lead AI in its own right as an entity, and the relationship between the two. 

I am lucky to lead an AI-forward team, so I don’t have to navigate the anxiety or feelings of being replaced by machines. Our team has seamlessly adapted AI as copilots (building, creating and implementing for other companies), helping create efficiently so they have the capacity to do tasks that are inherently human. However, decision making, governance frameworks, tools, and data leaks are all areas that are moving beasts. 

Considering AI as a new form of resource has helped us shape the level of importance associated with ‘it’. Like good HR, it has focus and process pre-hire, onboarding, during and through the learning curve. 

Leading the Blend

Transparent AI Implementation

Leaders who involve their teams early in the AI rollout, from ideation to deployment, build significantly more trust and engagement. Rather than dropping tools into workflows with little context, gather those who work intimately with flows to help design the systems and tools they need. Allow testing and exploration, and build a process that is flexible, ever-changing and validated by what humans have done before it. Building and testing together reduces resistance and improves adoption. 

Top tip - stop saying you know what you're doing. That 4-hour free course did not make you an AI expert, and no one in your team suddenly buys the new narrative. Be transparent that you're on the journey with them, just as much as they are! 

It's about giving the gift of time 

Blended workplaces aren’t about replacing people; they are about combining strengths. The biggest complaint I hear from staff is how they dont have ‘time’.  In customer support teams, AI handles common queries instantly, freeing human staff to deal with nuanced, emotional, or high-stakes interactions where human skills are irreplaceable. The most successful examples of blended work happen where human judgment, creativity, and empathy are augmented by machine speed and pattern recognition, not sidelined by it.

Drop the success metrics

AI can optimise for efficiency, but thoughtful leaders are asking: What should we optimise for? Leaders must ensure their AI systems align with the company’s values, not just its KPIs. This means reassessing metrics to include quality, fairness, and employee satisfaction alongside speed and volume. Outstanding leadership reframes what "success" looks like in a human-AI partnership. If you don’t know what they are yet, test freely and work out if undiscovered gems rise to the surface. Often being so focused on a specific metric, you neglect to see the real value. 

Championing cross-skill development

AI is shifting job roles across industries instead of fearing displacement, thoughtful leaders are encouraging upskilling across functions. That doesn’t mean everyone becomes a data scientist it means understanding how to work alongside AI. The goal is not technical mastery but confidence and literacy. The best teams won’t just use AI they will know how to leverage it.

• Analysts learn prompt engineering
• Marketers understand AI-driven segmentation
• Designers explore generative design workflows

What if we don’t adapt?

I am sure there will still be ‘cottage industries’ that exist in five years, ten might be a stretch. I am not here to tell you the reason why things will fail; I am more interested in the things we can do.  Top talent will be seeking out workplaces that embrace forward-thinking and adaptive AI practices that are backed by intent, governance and ethics. 

I am keen to see how these tools can help us bridge the generation and culture gaps. We have often neglected an older workforce to our detriment. They have war stories and advice that can guide us. How can this shape our use of tools that are propelling us faster than we can keep up?  It’s not AI that replaces people. It’s leaders who fail to evolve that let their teams fall behind.

Blended work is quietly delivering breakthrough results

Blended work is more than a buzzword, it’s the new reality of modern business. And it offers a powerful opportunity...

• A global SaaS provider reduced employee burnout by using AI to triage low-priority tasks and improve work-life balance. [Source]
• A fintech company increased onboarding speed by using AI-generated training materials and roleplay simulations for new hires. [Source]
• We embedded RIVE-powered AI into its creative process, cutting iteration time in half while increasing client satisfaction.

K