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We may be the last generation of CEOs to lead fully human workforces. That isnt a futuristic prediction; its a reality already taking shape inside businesses today. AI agents, once imagined as distant possibilities, are stepping confidently into our organizations. These systems are capable of autonomously handling tasks across departments, making decisions, and learning over time. By 2028, 33% of enterprise software applications will include agentic AI, up from less than 1% in 2024, enabling 15% of day-to-day work decisions to be made autonomously, according to Gartner. And given the current pace of adoption, even that may prove to be a conservative estimate. This shift isn’t just technologicalit’s operational and cultural Its not about replacing humans; its about augmenting them. Were entering a new operating model, one where human users and AI agents work together in tandem to drive outcomes with speed, intelligence, and scale. In this model, AI agents become active participants in the workforce, not passive tools. Already, forward-thinking organizations are hiring digital talent. They are assigning agents to workflows, integrating them into teams, and relying on them to create value alongside their human counterparts. The implications for leadership are profound. AI agents are not simply software add-ons; they are redefining how we design our business processes and collaborate on our daily work. Theyre collaborators in the broadest sense, and like any collaborator, they benefit from thoughtful integration and clear frameworks. Rethinking leadership in this new environment From what weve observed, organizations may benefit from shifting how they think about their workforce. Digital talent, like human talent, performs best when it has structure, support, and clear purpose. Some companies are already considering how to onboard digital agents, define their roles, measure their performance, and create environments where human and artificial intelligence complement one another. One notable strength of digital talent is its scalability. Once aligned, AI agents can be rapidly deployed across geographies and business functions. They operate continuously, adjust to real-time data, and remain consistent in execution. When deployed intentionally, this can open new doors to agility and resilience. Another shift weve seen is in how human capacity is being reallocated. As repetitive, manual tasks are passed to AI agents, employees are freed to focus on higher-value work: strategy, creativity, complex problem-solving. This unlocks not just efficiencybut also engagement. In a world where innovation is a differentiator, enabling people to do what only people can do becomes a strategic advantage. Designing teams for collaboration As we reimagine our workforces, its helpful to revisit how organizations can structure teamsnot just by department or title, but also by responsibility and collaboration model. Some leadership teams are now exploring how to define where human insight leads and where AI provides leverage. Questions about decision-making rights, accountability, and success metrics are being reframed to reflect the blended nature of todays teams. Naturally, with new capabilities come new responsibilities. Ethics, transparency, and governance cannot be treated as afterthoughts, but rather embedded from the beginning. Many organizations are exploring how to train digital agents responsibly, define behavioral expectations, and ensure these systems reflect their values. Setting the tone here, through clear policies and thoughtful design, can help build the kind of trust we aim to foster in any team. A common mistake There is, however, one common mistake I see many organizations making. They are applying AI agents to outdated processes, hoping to speed them up. But efficiency is not the same as transformation. If you automate a broken process, you only get broken resultsfaster. The real opportunity is not in acceleration. Its in reinvention. This moment calls for a process-first mindset. Its advisable to step back and ask ourselves the fundamental question: If we were designing this workflow today, knowing we had AI agents on our team from day one, how would we build it? That kind of thinking leads to a very different kind of organization. Sales, customer service, and operations In sales, AI agents can now qualify leads in real time, orchestrate outreach based on behavioral signals, and surface personalized insights for sales reps at the exact right moment. This creates a rhythm where reps focus less on handoffs and more on outcomes. In customer service, were seeing companies move beyond bots and into intelligent agent networks that proactively resolve issues, understand sentiment, and escalate complex problems with full context. The experience is faster, more empathetic, and more efficient. In operations, AI agents are making proactive decisions by managing supply chain variables, predicting demand shifts, and optimizing resources in ways that used to require layers of manual coordination. These arent hypothetical scenarios. Theyre real, and theyre redefining how companies deliver value. This is where the most exciting breakthroughs will happen. Not because we used AI to do what we already do faster, but because we gave ourselves permission to reimagine how the work could be done better. It starts with a mindset As CEOs, we are not just responsible for growth. We are responsible for building organizations that are intelligent by design. That means being intentional about how we integrate digital talent. It means leading the shift from legacy processes to modern, fluid systems that reflect how people and machines work best together. It also means embracing the cultural shift. The best outcomes will come from teams that are curious, experimental, and empowered. Leaders should encourage their teams to question assumptions, rethink workflows, and explore new possibilities. The organizations that do this well will be the ones that stay ahead. The blended workforce is already here. AI agents are changing how work gets done. They are reshaping roles, challenging hierarchies, and inviting us to reconsider what leadership looks like. This transformation doesnt start with technology; it starts with mindset. It starts with a CEO who understands that the future of the workforce is collaborative, intelligent, and profoundly human in its ambition. The future wont be fully human, but it will be more human-centered. It will be defined by those willing to lead with purpose, with courage, and with a commitment to building something better for both people and machines.
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E-Commerce
The nonprofit world is caught in a perfect storm, and many organizations are fundamentally misreading the moment. For decades, nonprofits ran on a static and reliable playbook: Chase government grants, court institutional donors, send the obligatory newsletter, and host the annual gala with open bars and cover bands. It was a comfortable model that did not require active audience engagement. Organizations could simply rely on the steady flow of federal funding and foundation checks. Then lightning struck. Twice. The Trump administration’s DOGE team landed like a wrecking ball on the nonprofit sector, freezing grants and ultimately turning the once-reliable federal funding spigot into a game of Russian roulette. This policy had near instantaneous effects: At least 14,000 nonprofit jobs were lost two months after inauguration day. Yet the DOGE disruption only amplified a shift that was already underway. As nonprofits were suddenly losing institutional funding, audience behavior underwent its own revolution: People started donating through their phones at unprecedented rates, began engaging with video content at increasing rates, and developed expectations for digital engagement that most nonprofits weren’t remotely prepared to meet. Combined, these rapid transitions pose an extinction-level event for nonprofits clinging to outdated models. But there’s a counterintuitive opportunity buried in this crisis: The same forces threatening nonprofit existence might actually be liberating them from decades of institutional dependency. The key is knowing how to pivot. Here are three core strategies. Lean into digital experiences The 205% surge in mobile donations is a critical signal that audiences want to engage differently. When 51% of your supporters are visiting your website through their phones and your digital presence feels like it was designed for a desktop in 2010, you’re actively driving away support. It is important to note that the byproduct of this strategy is not simply a mobile-optimized website that delivers static information. Wildlife Insights from WWF demonstrates this strategy well. This platform allows anyone to upload wildlife photos directly from mobile devices, then uses AI to automatically identify species and aggregate data from around the world. By making conservation accessible through smartphones, they’ve created a community where citizen scientists can contribute meaningful data from anywhere, transforming how wildlife monitoring happens at scale. In other words, much more than a brochure. Use data to drive engagement The most forward-thinking nonprofits are converting audience insights into growth drivers for online engagement. It is no longer good enough to get traffic to a site. A modern, successful organization follows a different strategy that converts attention into behavior. This process is unleashing a new wave of innovative feature development that is changing the perception of what nonprofits do with and for their audience. Digital innovation does not require next-generation technology, just an intelligent distribution plan. The Marshall Project Inside delivers criminal justice news to over 223,000 incarcerated individuals through a video series specifically designed for the 60% of prisoners with low literacy levels. By using audience data to shape content format, they became the only major news outlet making this level of investment to reach this underserved community. Create subscription revenue streams The final conversion in this process transforms audience engagement into monthly subscription revenue. This matters in the new era when government funding can evaporate with the stroke of a pen. Organizations building these structures are creating immunity against political whiplash. The pioneer of this strategy is Charity: Water, which launched The Spring, an online community of recurring donors, radical transparency, and undeniable impact. This strategy alone has raised over $320 million. This transformation isn’t just about survival, it’s about discovering what nonprofits become when they’re built on audience relationships instead of institutional approval. The organizations making this pivot now won’t just outlast the current political chaos; they’ll emerge stronger, more sustainable, and more connected to their missions than ever before.
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E-Commerce
American college students have been scrambling to land summer internships this year. The process has been notoriously difficult, as more and more companies lean into AIand lay off employees. Many entry-level opportunities have vanished. But a paid, full-time internship in your chosen industry is not the only worthwhile experience you can have this summer. The National Association of Colleges and Employers says that those who participate in experiential learninga category including internships, externships, research projects, practicums, and micro-internshipsboth garner more job options and land a higher starting salary. Experiential learning extends beyond traditional paid internships, yet still benefits those who take the initiative. In their early careers, experiential learners typically experience faster career progression, higher career satisfaction, more satisfaction with their university experience, and an average of $15,000 more in salary. Create your own plan Uncertainty about the economy has increased caution at corporations, as hiring managers slow down timelines and are more conservative with hiring. Cindy Meis, director of the undergraduate career services at the Tippie School of Business, University of Iowa, says that even if students are doing everything right, they still might not be getting results from their search. Students who feel thwarted by the traditional internship route can still create their own plan. According to Meis, you can make almost anything a meaningful experienceyou simply have to figure out how to formalize it. Think through how [your experience] can translate into numerical, tangible, transferable skills, Meis says. So whatever it is you decide to do, I want it to be meaningful, planned, and deliberate. Heres how to plan out the rest of the summerand create a meaningful experience for yourselfwithout a traditional summer internship. Networking You don’t need a formal internship to expand your contacts. Create a networking goal for the summer, whether thats a coffee chat every week with an alumni of your school who works in an interesting field, or a networking event once a month. Utilize LinkedIn or your schools alumni networking platform to locate individuals you want to speak to. Typically, your schools alumni will be receptive to offering help, support, or advice, so its often okay to send a cold email or LinkedIn message to someone you would like to speak to Before your meeting, ask yourself: What do I want to know about this career in this industry? What do I want to know about this persons professional path? You can also reach out for feedback on your résumé, or even to job-shadow someone for a day (the formalizedkey word hereversion of this is called an externship). Optimizing your summer job Many college students discount the jobs they hold over the summer as meaningful experience. If youre a camp counselor, you can focus on the work you did to develop programming, handle unhappy parents, and deal with incidents. If youre a barista, focus on the teamwork with your coworkers, your customer service skills, and your ability to memorize and execute hundreds of coffee orders a day. According to Meis, you should think about every single thing you did in your job, and what things can apply to your target industry. Often, students forget about most of the things they did on a daily basis that might demonstrate important skills. These experiences are every bit as meaningful as anything you’ll gain from an internship. I think sometimes half my job is being a cheerleader, Meis says. I want to know every little detail. Upskilling LinkedIn Learning is a great resource to develop other job skills that will benefit you in the future, Meis says. Students can even get certificates proving to future employers that they have the job’s most relevant skills. LinkedIn Learning has a multitude of courses available to those with a premium membership, which is available as a free trial for 30 days. It offers everything from Grammar Foundations and Using Generative AI Ethically at Work to Javascript: Classes. Connecting with your college career advisor If youre a rising sophomore, junior, or senior, you can always contact the career advisor at your institution for a conversation. Career advisors are typically available in the summer, and you can always use them as a resource for help creating a plan. Its never too early or too late to chat, says Meis. Im going to meet you where youre at, and it might be too late to get the traditional internship that you wanted, Meis says. But its not too late to have a plan or to pivot or to make an adjustment because something didnt work out.
Category:
E-Commerce
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