Andreas Welsch's Linkedin Analytics

CEOs are pushing their organizations to be “AI first.” So much so that they order layoffs to invest more in AI. They’re behind—by two years—and are trying to catch up. Even the largest tech players are joining the party. But “AI first” misses a point: the people working in the organization. Yes, organizations could all be leaner, faster, more automated. But that doesn’t happen over night. Digital transformation didn’t happen over night, and 10+ years into these transformations, there’s still a lot of opportunity to do a little more (and sometimes a lot). What is a much more attainable reality instead, is being “AI ready.” Readiness starts with teaching the fundamentals of a technology shift and exploring them hands-on, so teams can ask “How can we improve this task/ process (with AI)?” Readiness means empowerment to use these tools and technologies—not because you’re lazy or less competent, but because we would like you to be efficient and the best version of yourself. Readiness ensures higher levels of literacy and critical thinking at a time when the boundaries between what’s real and what could be are blurring. In my opening keynote at #DataSummit in Boston tomorrow, I’ll share what it takes to get your organization “AI ready.” 👉🏻 Is your organization “AI ready?” Take the test: https://lnkd.in/dwryz48W #ArtificialIntelligence #GenerativeAI #Leadership

It’s gotten quiet lately. “AI isn’t going to replace you—a person using AI will” has become softer and less prevalent. 2025 is all about agents, yet, the groundbreaking things that shift industries or entire business functions are still in the distant future. Companies have been adopting AI, but we must also consider how these technologies can benefit our work. There's potential to take on objectives rather than just tasks, which requires a new skill set: clearly defining and communicating goals. Employees feel uncertain about job security when AI agents are able to take on more and more of their tasks. However, embracing a mindset of learning and adaptation can make navigating these changes smoother. 40-year long careers at one company are already a thing of the past. Even working for established industry leaders does no longer provide automatic job security that it used to a few years or decades ago. Consequently, job security will look even more different in a future driven by AI. The notion of long-term employment with a single company is fading. Instead, a scenario where many may juggle multiple short-term jobs facilitated by AI support might become the norm. AI can help facilitate this shift, allowing individuals to take on more work. This is just a glimpse of the insights covered in my newsletter: https://lnkd.in/d3qssFfa Subscribe now to stay ahead of the curve and receive the next article tomorrow. #ArtificialIntelligence #GenerativeAI #FutureOfWork #IntelligenceBriefing

There are two Agentic AI product camps: Those who say “outcome-based pricing will never work”—and those who make it happen. Pricing is a complex topic; even more so when moving from a "per-user" to a "per-outcome" model. In an Agentic AI commercial model, cost becomes much harder to predict. AI agents... • ...leverage LLMs to process, understand, and generate natural language, resulting in token counts that can vary significantly. • ...rely on natural language to communicate with each other and access data stored in vector stores, adding to the token count for the length of conversations and potential rework. • ...work with or manipulate business objects that vary greatly in type, size, and volume, causing additional costs for storing, processing, and updating. Your Agentic AI pricing model is as important as your product to ensure it scales with your business. Take this course to: 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘂𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝗜 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗜 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘀𝗶𝘀 Recognize common commercial models for AI solutions, including their pros and cons, so you can confidently decide on the best-suited one for your product. 𝗨𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗜 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 Gain a foundational understanding of Agentic AI and the key technology components impacting cost calculation. 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝘅𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗲𝗿-𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀 Determine the business value that your customers achieve relative to your cost to deliver your Agentic AI product. 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲-𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗜 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 Determine pricing and cost differences based on roles, skillsets, and business functions. Don’t miss the next cohort starting on June 09! Get the early bird discount: https://lnkd.in/dzqY_VWW #ArtificialIntelligence #GenerativeAI #AgenticAI #IntelligenceBriefing

There’s so much talk about AI being “superhuman.” But today, we should all celebrate the true superhumans in our lives! Happy Mother’s Day!

𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗔𝗜 𝗯𝘂𝘇𝘇𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀, 𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗔𝗜 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀? In this evening's episode of the "What's the BUZZ?" podcast, Peter Gostev, Head of AI at MoonPig, and I tackle the misconceptions surrounding agentic AI. Here’s what you’ll learn: 𝟭) 𝗨𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗜 Peter explains the distinction between true agentic AI and predefined workflows. Knowing the difference can save your organization from investing in tools that don't deliver the promised outcomes. 𝟮) 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗧𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 The only way to evaluate AI tools is through hands-on experimentation. We discuss how trying tools firsthand can build your intuition on what actually works, rather than relying solely on vendor claims or industry noise. 𝟯) 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹-𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 Get tons insights on successful applications of AI agents in research and coding, as well as the limitations that currently exist. This nuanced perspective can help your organization strategize effectively. If you're a leader looking to better understand AI's potential in your business, this episode is a must-listen. Subscribe to "What’s the BUZZ?" and tune in when the episode drops tonight at 8pm ET to gain clarity on agentic AI and navigate the hype effectively. #ArtificialIntelligence #GenerativeAI #AgenticAI #IntelligenceBriefing

Today at 10:00am ET / 16:00 CET, we're sharing everything you need to know to navigate the "Agentic AI" buzzword jungle. Ian Barkin and I will discuss during this exclusive LinkedIn Learning Office Hours: What are AI Agents? How are AI Agents different from Chatbots, RPA, or other forms of automation? How can SMBs find the best place to start with AI Agents? How can AI Agents uniquely help smaller teams? How do SMB owners, operators, and executives adapt to succeed in an Agentic era? What practical steps build team trust in AI Agents? How can SMBs leverage Agents for growth? Are human agents no longer relevant in an Agentic future? If you're building, leading, or leading teams within a small-/medium-sized business, this session will provide an actionable foundation for understanding the different tools and technologies, and simple examples for when to use what. Bring your questions & make it interactive: https://lnkd.in/dBYqkJGG #ArtificialIntelligence #AgenticAI #Leadership

Der KI-Hype hat ein neues “Buzzword”: Agentische KI. Etliche Softwareanbieter liefern sich bereits ein Rennen um die besten und meisten KI-Agenten. Dennoch ist der Begriff an sich nicht einheitlich definiert, was bei Entscheidern zu Verwirrung führt. Was sind also KI-Agenten und worin liegen ihre Chancen und Risiken für Unternehmen und Führungskräfte? Ich habe mit LinkedIn Learning zusammengearbeitet, um für euch Licht ins Dunkel zu bringen. Der erste Kurs ist schon live: https://lnkd.in/dapM6Qyw und der zweite folgt in Kürze. Sind KI-Agenten doch mehr als nur Hype? #ArtificialIntelligence #GenerativeAI #AgenticAI

6 Steps to Success as a New AI Leader (Kathleen Walch) 𝗔𝗜 𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆. Kathleen Walch, Director of AI Enablement & Community at the Project Management Institute will discuss the growing pressure on business leaders to drive AI initiatives. 𝗖𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗨𝗭𝗭: • What are the most common missteps new AI leaders make when launching programs? • Why knowing the tech isn’t enough and what leadership capabilities actually drive success • What still surprises even experienced AI project leads, and why that matters • How Agentic AI is redefining leadership responsibilities This episode is packed with practical insights for executives and transformation leaders looking to build real momentum around their AI efforts. #ArtificialIntelligence #Leadership #PMI

As many countries celebrate Labor Day on May 1, it's reason enough to look at what the next few weeks have in store. Drop me a DM to catch up in person along the U.S. East Coast! Thu, May 08 — LinkedIn Learning Office Hours → Find out what leaders need to know about AI Agents Thu, May 08 — Philly Tech Week in Philadelphia, PA → Panel discussion about driving AI adoption Thu, May 15 — Data Summit in Boston, MA → Day #2 opening keynote Thu, May 15 — RECAP conference at West Chester University → I'm sending my avatar to present while I'm in the air Mon-Wed, May 19-21 — Association for Talent Development in Washington D.C. → Let's talk about upskilling your leaders and teams on AI at the Bots & People booth Wed, Jun 04 — Machine Learning Week in Phoenix, AZ → Get actionable tips to get your business AI-ready Tue, Jun 10 — Private CIO Retreat in Philadelphia, PA → How IT organizations can balance risks and rewards of AI-enabled software Stop by, say hello, and get your signed copy of the AI Leadership Handbook! #ArtificialIntelligence #GenerativeAI #Leadership

𝗝𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝘂𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆: 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗜? Agentic AI is everywhere in the tech headlines—but what does it really mean for business leaders and their teams? In this live Office Hours session, LinkedIn Learning instructors 𝗔𝗻𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝗪𝗲𝗹𝘀𝗰𝗵 and Charlene Li break down the hype and explain what decision-makers need to know about this rapidly evolving space. In this session, we will explore: • Whether AI agents are genuinely transformative—or just automation 2.0 • How major enterprise vendors are productizing agentic capabilities • What a practical, low-risk starting point looks like for companies and teams • What to make of bold leadership memos like the one from Shopify’s CEO—and whether that’s a signal of what’s to come • Why concerns about job loss often miss the bigger picture: skills need to evolve, not disappear With the right mindset and tools, leaders can empower their teams to adapt, experiment, and stay competitive. Join this session to learn how Agentic AI fits into today’s workplace, live today at noon ET / 18:00 CET: https://lnkd.in/dT3pFCrc What’s your top-of-mind question about Agentic AI? #ArtificialIntelligence #GenerativeAI #AgenticAI

“What does it take for an organization to adopt AI in 2025?” was the guiding question for this panel that DataPhilly hosted at Philly Tech Week. AI leaders from Life Sciences, Private Equity, and Consulting shared their views and learnings on Thursday evening: - Start: Understand your business strategy—then, where technology can help. Always. - Spend: Assess your costs—it’s messy (and boring), but highly needed. - Scale: Build a multiplier community early—vet ideas and drive enablement for additional buy-in. - Share: Great tools and prompts deserve sharing—encourage your team and learn. - Strengthen: Establish a strong ethics & governance framework—in practice, not just on paper. But the top-of-mind question came from the audience: “How can I keep my skills relevant, so AI doesn’t make me obsolete?” My simple take: In your role, ask yourself… - if a particular task/ step is truly needed, - if it can be augmented or automated with AI, - if there is a product/ feature that already does what you need, - if and how to get access to it (> easier in smaller organizations). Thank you, DataPhilly, for inviting me to moderate this panel! What's your top-of-mind AI question? #ArtificialIntelligence #PhillyTechWeek #DataPhilly

Getting your business “AI ready” takes more than a CEO memo. But how exactly do you do it? In today’s opening keynote at Data Summit, I shared three critical aspects for AI readiness: - How to support the 46% of team members who are afraid to share they’re using AI (because their boss might think they’re lazy) - Why communities of multipliers are effective for turning the 31% of employees blocking AI efforts into AI champions - How to get funding for your Data project when everyone just wants to talk about AI My favorite question from the audience after the session: “So how do you increase the chances of AI projects succeeding from 15% to 85%?” The good part: If you missed my answer at the summit, it’s all the AI Leadership Handbook, step by step. You have to be AI “ready” to become AI “first.” Drop me a DM to help your organization get started. #ArtificialIntelligence #GenerativeAI #DataSummit

In the race for relevance, tech vendors are leaving their customers behind. Frontrunners like OpenAI, Anthropic, etc. are outdoing themselves with innovation of a basic technology. The higher you move in the stack (applications), the higher the pressure gets. It’s not just about incorporating the latest models as quickly as possible, but it’s also about the business value that these solutions enable and who’s using these features to begin with. Let alone financial investors who ask the C-Suite how they’re expanding their total addressable market with the help of AI, and what additional profits it will drive. No vendor is immune to it. But in the middle of this dynamic, a critical aspect is forgotten: the customer. Because it’s not a matter of your vendor having the “most AI." Especially not, if your customers don’t meet the prerequisites to use it, need to pay extra, will realize unclear (or little) value from using it, and if their organization isn’t quite ready for it either. This risks the gap between potential and realized benefits widening even faster and farther. Yet, it’s the exact same customers who are funding their vendors’ R&D and innovations, and who are getting left behind. Instead of “more AI, faster”, vendors need to resort back to first principles of product management to be truly useful: - What value do we create? - Who is our target audience? - (What) are they willing to pay? - How can we make it as easy as possible to use? But it’s hard to listen to your surroundings when all you hear is the voice of your captain to paddle faster. Thoughts? #ArtificialIntelligence #GenerativeAI #AgenticAI

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝘂𝘀𝗵 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗔𝗜 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻—𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗲 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹? In this episode of "What’s the BUZZ?", host Andreas Welsch sits down with 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗵 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻, Product-Led Growth Leader, to dissect what’s working—and what’s not—when it comes to building, pricing, and selling Agentic AI solutions. 𝗖𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗨𝗭𝗭: • Are startups truly innovating with Agentic AI—or simply chasing the hype cycle? • What are product leaders getting wrong when designing pricing models for Agentic AI solutions? • Why does the vision behind agent-based transformation often collapse at the sales stage? • Where does Agentic AI sit on the maturity and adoption curves? This episode provides a candid and strategic look at what it takes to transition from building an agent to turning it into a business. It is essential listening for product leaders navigating AI and Agentic AI innovations. #ArtificialIntelligence #AgenticAI #ProductLeadership #IntelligenceBriefing *********** 𝘋𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘳: 𝘝𝘪𝘦𝘸𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘴’ 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘵’𝘴 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘵, 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵, 𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘳𝘴. 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘱𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 (𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘵, 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵, 𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦) 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘳𝘴.

YouTube tutorials make building AI agents soo easy. If you've read about "AI slop" lately, you'll find tons of blueprints on how to create AI agents that do that in the no-code tool of your choice. My new favorite is “Building a ‘face-less’ video generator” that goes something like this: - Use a web search API to find trending topics - Save the results in Google Sheets - Add a few agent nodes and GPT-4o APIs ('cause, why not?) - Send the output to JSON2Video (yes, that’s a thing) - And, boom, you’re done It's a masterclass in how to create low-value content en masse. A close second is “Putting your blog & SEO strategy on auto-pilot” (no subject matter expertise required), which is pretty similar. Many of these tutorials include the bare minimum steps to get you started. They work well if you’re running a business with few concerns about data, privacy, and intellectual property. More often than not, though, what is advertised as “agentic” could also be solved by simply prompting an LLM. Don't get me wrong—Do follow these tutorials and start building your agents. It’s never been easier in no-code tools, and you'll see the opportunities and limitations first-hand. And most of all, this experimentation gets you thinking about additional ways in which you can use agents. But also learn the basics of what makes an agent "agentic": planning, reasoning, access to tools, and memory—not just handing a prompt to an LLM. To deploy them in a business, layer security, guardrails, grounding, etc., on top. And remember, while there are shortcuts to experimentation, don't take them on your way to production. Join Ian Barkin and me for our LinkedIn Learning Office Hours next week and bring your questions about using AI Agents in small-/medium-sized businesses. 👇 #ArtificialIntelligence #AgenticAI #IntelligenceBriefing

Another week, another CEO memo about AI. This week, it’s Fiverr. But it’s not the “AI-first” narrative we’ve seen from Shopify and Duolingo. Instead, it’s blunt: “Yes, AI is coming for your jobs.” Don’t get me wrong, many organizations need a wake-up call. But demonizing the enemy at the gates won’t help when your team hasn’t even been to the armory. I can’t help but wonder what kind of irreversible damage CEOs are willing to do to their company’s culture with messages like these. Fiverr’s situation is especially delicate: Not only are Fiverr’s employees facing disruption because of AI, but Fiverr’s business model itself is at risk, too. When AI creates images, logos, social media copy, etc. instead of humans, the sellers on the platform are taking a direct hit as well—as will Fiverr’s revenue. Now, there are several actionable recommendations in the memo about upskilling, experimenting with AI tools, and learning from each other. But it puts the onus solely on the employee: You need to upskill. If you ignore this message, you’ll become irrelevant (to us). We won’t train you—you need to train yourself. Ouch! I firmly believe that leaders have an opportunity to play a different role instead of (and in addition to) the AI-first/ AI-scare messages: Where are the leaders who are taking responsibility for the people who are moving their company forward every day? Where are the leaders who openly commit to investing in training and upskilling their employees in order to become “AI ready”? Where are the leaders who already recognized two years ago that AI was an opportunity for their business (instead of sounding the alarm now)? I have a feeling they are not in the headlines. I have a feeling they not only point out the risk, but also offer a path for their employees to be an even stronger part of the team (human+AI) beyond the rhetoric. What do you think? #ArtificialIntelligence #GenerativeAI #Leadership