Is AI affecting how Leaders manage their teams?

The introduction of AI (Artificial Intelligence) has had a significant effect on the digital world. Thanks to innovations such as its fast analytics and tailor-made responses, it continues to re-shape leadership as we know it. Whilst AI is an effective tool for workforce planning, content creation, business-to-customer communications, Chatbots, for instance, it causes stigma within the professional community, leading to questions such as “Is it replacing jobs?” and “How does it affect staff recruitment?”. Questions where the answers are still unknown.

According to a Visier study surveying over 750 UK people managers found that 86% believe generative AI tools can enhance their effectiveness. Additionally. an IBM survey of 1,600+ senior executives revealed that 79% of UK business leaders either already use generative AI or intend to within a year. The survey also revealed:

• 93% believe it enhances leadership decision-making

• 97% are actively shaping ethical and governance frameworks around AI

5 key ways AI is impacting leadership:

Data-driven decision making – AI allows leaders to make quicker and more accurate decisions based on real-time data, consumer behaviour patterns, and analytical forecasts. This enables leaders to pull data from multiple sources and reassemble it within minutes.

Personalisation / Personal Branding - Leaders and Marketers are tailoring their content to their brand specifically. The use of AI tools is assisting them to create hyper-personalised campaigns to optimise engagement, with less manual effort.

Innovative and experimental ideas – Thanks to AI, professionals have more room for trial and error as they can create new formats and generative content. This leaves more room for out-of-the-box thinking at less risk.

Aiding efficiency in teams - As AI automates routine tasks. For example: note taking, calendar organisation, and CRM data analysis. It takes over the once mundane and time-consuming tasks. Allowing more room for ideation and control. Although this sounds very positive, it is often stigmatised as people believe it poses a threat to their role.

Enhanced Decision-Making with Data-Driven Insights – Leaders are leveraging AI tools to analyse large amounts of data from team performance, customer feedback, and market trends. Leaders use these insights to identify high-performing employees, burnout risks and they tailor their decisions based on real-time analytics rather than gut instinct.

Personalised Employee Development - AI also helps leaders offer more personalised coaching and development in various ways. These include:

• Tracking skill gaps and suggesting tailored learning paths.

• Providing real-time feedback using tools like AI-driven performance reviews

• Facilitating one-on-one engagement with conversational AI tools for check-ins

It remains clear: AI is not just a tool; it’s a catalyst for transformation and it’s having a huge impact on the way leaders manage their teams, make decisions, and design strategies.

While the opportunities are vast and sometimes incomprehensible, leaders must also navigate the cultural and ethical shifts they bring. Judging by the feedback from workforces around the UK, AI is here to stay, and those who have not yet embraced its use it are beginning to be swayed in that direction. It is up to the leaders to decide how much AI is in their future.