Navigating the AI Revolution: A Three-Body Framework for Organizational Transformation

As artificial intelligence begins to reshape institutions, leaders face a critical challenge: How should they proactively redesign roles and team structures in an "AI-native" way that is more "evolution" than "revolution"?

In working with clients to tackle this question, I've developed a framework that frames the challenge as a "three-body problem" — a complex system comprised of three interdependent factors, regularly considered (and reconsidered):

1. Strategic Direction: Towards what should you lead? (And why?) [final cause]
2. AI Capabilities: What new paths, processes, and possibilities does AI unlock specific to your internal / external context? [material cause]
3. Organizational Structure: How should roles and teams be reconfigured in light of (1) & (2)? [formal cause]

Let's explore how leaders can bring these "bodies" into focus and take practical steps to get ahead of the curve(s).

Body 1: Strategic Direction

Before making a public commitment plugging AI into anything and everything, it's good to get clear—and make a public declaration accordingly—on your organization's fundamental purpose.

Ask yourself:

• Whom do we serve?
• What problem do we solve for him or her, and why does he or she choose us in particular?
• How could we serve clients/customers 10x better?

Your north star, composed of durable answers to the three questions above, exists independently of "AI" (and, best case, the answers are already somewhat self-evident); it is a source of confidence throughout the transformation process and the transcendent object upon which you'll tether your team's efforts, resilient regardless of what you encounter.

Body 2: Capabilities

The scope of what can be computed is expanding, rapidly.

An LLM-powered application like ChatGPT is perhaps best thought of as an "Excel for words"—and soon, for "images, audio, and more exotic data."

To understand what this means for your organization, cut through hype, eschew "storytelling," and instead prioritize the creation of compelling facts by:

1. Providing employees access to general-purpose AI tools (e.g., OpenAI's ChatGPT Enterprise; Anthropic's analogous capabilities, available via cloud platforms like AWS Bedrock; SOTA transcription tools like superwhisper; AI meeting notetakers like Fireflies.ai; asynchronous communication tools like Loom x Slack),
2. Explicitly encouraging tinkering (and handsomely rewarding individuals who share the fruits of their experiments publicly), and
3. Creating new "digital watering holes" (e.g. Slack channels, office hours), Schelling points for public discourse, where new latent know-how can be passively captured.

A small percentage of your team will dive in (expect 1–3% of all employees to pick up the tools and sprint —?These "AI pioneers" (or secret cyborgs granted amnesty) will uncover new possibilities aligned with your mission, well worth the cost of the other 97% of the monthly licenses.

Their experiments will generate invaluable, reality-grounded data (which, when you look closely at it, exist in sharp contrast to the glut of pre-experimental speculation eating up so much attention at the moment) that illustrate what AI—and generative AI, specifically in 2024—can actually do in/for your business and customers.

Body 3: Reformation

As capabilities (and, at least as importantly, the surprising ways in which the technology doesn't work) become clear, you'll have no choice but to rethink how work is structured.

Encode this knowledge by:

1. Mapping current information and value flows between your business and its various customers, partners, and competitors (and then internally between the constituent individuals and functional teams),
2. Identifying roles heavy on reading/writing tasks (these are likely to change significantly),
3. Observing how AI pioneers are "unbundling" and "re-bundling" tasks into new jobs; take note of the emerging "shape" of these AI-native roles, and
4. Formalizing new AI-native job archetypes.

Be prepared for significant changes. Some roles may become obsolete, while others expand.

New positions may emerge. Even C-suite titles deserve scrutiny.

Putting It All Together: The Transformation Process

1. Clarify strategic direction.
2. Provide AI tools and encourage experimentation ("user-led innovation").
3. Set ambitious goals aligned with your mission; apply nigh-ascetic constraints.
4. Create enough space via (3) between where you are and where you should go that you can offer open invitations for people to prudently "hire AI" for certain tasks and then step into new roles.
5. Identify necessary structural changes through careful analysis of proprietary data.
6. When the time's right, execute one-way door changes (e.g., re-orgs) decisively, having already carefully mitigated risks that might disrupt the flow of woking capital.

A Word of Caution

This "3 body" approach tends to reveal pre-existing fit issues and creates space for people to find their new niche.

Some may need to retool within the organization, while others may not fit the new paradigm.

In re the "fit" issue, the truth is that some organizations have over-hired (pre-AI) or accumulated roles that served an important purpose in the context of scaling 20th-century bureaucracies, but—in light of the IT revolution in general—are no longer as critical.

A true AI-native transformation may necessitate significant downsizing for some organizations; it may also lead to massive "upsizing" for others.

If it becomes clear that you're in the former situation, it's better to make changes swiftly and cleanly, rather than creating prolonged uncertainty, which can lead to flight by top talent.

Before any major restructuring, ensure you have a clear picture of how value flows through your organization to mitigate catastrophic risks; you don't want to accidentally pull the wrong Jenga block.

The Road Ahead

Armed with this three-body framework, leaders can navigate the process of AI transformation more effectively, balancing strategic vision, particular technological possibilities, and (per salient data from McKinsey & Company, perhaps unprecedented) levels of change management.

Remember, the goal isn't just to integrate AI into your existing processes—it's to use these new capabilities in service of your mission, creating more substantially more value for those you serve.

Organizations that master this balancing act will be well-positioned to thrive in the 21st-century.

Are you ready to lead through this transformation?

Let's connect and discuss how to apply this framework to your specific challenges.