In this episode, host Michael Marchuk welcomes technologist David Dean to the Transform Now Podcast to discuss Dean’s book, An Inbox Between Us, which explores how work actually gets done through an “unwritten contract” of emails, meetings, and informal workarounds that sit alongside official processes. Dean explains how bottlenecks are overcome through human lived experience, creativity, and psychological safety, and argues AI should be used as a tool for organizational self-realization rather than a magic fix or a replacement for people. He outlines self-service vs controlled AI, likens AI agents to junior coworkers that require trust-building, guardrails, feedback loops, and optional autonomy, and says AI increases authenticity by exposing hidden workflows and artifacts like spreadsheets. The conversation emphasizes reclaiming time for critical thinking and the risks of ignoring human behavior when redesigning workflows with AI.

-The Invisible Contract

-Bottlenecks and Experience

-Resistance and Self Realization

-Self Service vs Controlled AI

-Accountability and Delegation

-Training Wheels to Autonomy

-AI Exposes Hidden Work

-Reclaiming Thinking Time

-Using AI to Understand Work

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In this episode, Transform NOW co-hosts Brad Hairston and Michael Marchuk banter about some interesting recent news headlines in the world of automation and AI.

News stories covered in this episode:

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Meta workers outraged over internal software tracking keystrokes, mouse movements: ‘How do we opt out?’ https://nypost.com/2026/04/22/business/meta-workers-outraged-over-software-tracking-keystrokes-mouse-movements/

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Coding agents ignore their own budgets

https://x.com/RampLabs/status/2046624992956146158

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AI ruling prompts warnings from US lawyers: Your chats could be used against you https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/ai-ruling-prompts-warnings-us-100118983.html

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‘Silent failure at scale’: The AI risk that can tip the business world into disorder

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/01/ai-artificial-intelligence-economy-business-risks.html

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A Newspaper Is Allegedly Slapping Humans’ Names on AI Stories Without Their Permission - https://gizmodo.com/newspaper-company-allegedly-puts-humans-bylines-on-ai-articles-unless-contractually-prevented-from-doing-so-2000749344

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Don't Default To The Biggest AI Model: Agentic Systems Deserve Better - https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbestechcouncil/2026/04/22/dont-default-to-the-biggest-ai-model-agentic-systems-deserve-better/

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In this episode, host Michael Marchuk hosts Len Ward, founder and managing partner of Connexis and former Wall Street VP, who shares his path from Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse First Boston to building a full-service agency that went all-in on AI after OpenAI’s emergence. Len explains the shift from “search and retrieve” to “solve my problem,” emphasizing measurable AI impact by removing bottlenecks in sales, marketing, and customer service, often starting with chatbots that reveal real customer questions. He warns against SEO-style “snake oil,” predicts declining website importance as LLMs reduce links, and urges companies to build brand presence, custom GPTs, and apps. Len highlights organizing SOPs and materials into data rooms for LLMs, preparing for agent-to-agent commerce, and measuring AI success via customer acquisition cost and lifetime value. He advises appointing an internal AI leader, moving from Q&A to building with AI, prioritizing speed, and redesigning operations around the customer journey.

What we talked to Len about:

-Going All In on AI

-Search to Solve Shift

-Getting Found in LLMs

-Writing for Humans and LLMs

-Data Rooms and Knowledge Bases as sources

-Agents and the New Web

-Measuring AI ROI with CAC

-Building AI Leadership Now

-AI Rollout for Midmarket Firms

-Speed as the Winning Moat

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In this episode, Transform NOW co-hosts Brad Hairston and Michael Marchuk banter about some interesting recent news headlines in the world of automation and AI.

News stories covered in this episode:

• ChatGPT app store falters six months after launch https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2026-03-30/chatgpt-app-store-falters-six-months-after-launch

• Industrial Policy for the Intelligence Age: Ideas to Keep People First - https://cdn.openai.com/pdf/561e7512-253e-424b-9734-ef4098440601/Industrial%20Policy%20for%20the%20Intelligence%20Age.pdf

• AI Scientist in Publishing: Is Peer Review Being Outpaced? - https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/ai-scientist-publishing-peer-review-being-outpaced-2026a1000aoz?form=fpf

• How AI is—and isn’t—changing the future of work https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/the-organization-blog/how-ai-is-and-isnt-changing-the-future-of-work

• Gen Z workers are so fearful AI will take their job they’re intentionally sabotaging their company’s AI rollout - https://fortune.com/2026/04/08/gen-z-workers-sabotage-ai-rollout-backlash/

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In this episode, host Michael Marchuk interviews technologist and serial entrepreneur Kevin Surace, an early architect of voice AI with 90+ patents, about how gen AI and agentic automation are reshaping creativity, coding, and business operations. Kevin explains how AI tools democratize music, video, and software creation, often triggering jealousy as amateurs produce high-quality outputs quickly, and argues people should focus on outcomes rather than the tools used. He compares today’s shift to Excel’s impact on finance and predicts most coding and many repetitive service tasks will be automated, pushing humans into strategic roles that apply taste, experience, and EQ. Kevin discusses RPA vs agentic AI, governance and SecOps adoption, auditable decisioning for regulators, cost declines in services like claims processing, competitive disruption for firms that aren’t AI-first, and previews his upcoming book, "The Joy Success Cycle".

-AI Music and Engineering Roots

-GenAI Unlocks Creativity

-Jealousy and AI

-Coding Purpose in AI Era

-Jobs Shift and Reskilling

-Excel and Automation Lessons

-Future Skills and Trade Work

-Industries Reshaped by Zero Cost

-AI Avatars and Trust

-Companies Stuck Experimenting

-Unstructured Data Wins

-RPA Versus Agents

-AI First Mindset

-Governance And SecOps

-Smart Automation Explained

-Rethinking Processes

-Humans As Overseers

-Accountability And Audits

-Importance of Emotional Intelligence

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In this episode, Transform NOW co-hosts Brad Hairston and Michael Marchuk banter about some interesting recent news headlines in the world of automation and AI..News stories covered in this episode:.Meta debuts new AI model, attempting to catch Google, OpenAI after spending billions https://www.cnbc.com/2026/04/08/meta-debuts-first-major-ai-model-since-14-billion-deal-to-bring-in-alexandr-wang.html .Anthropic says its latest AI model is too powerful for public release and that it broke containment during testing https://www.businessinsider.com/anthropic-mythos-latest-ai-model-too-powerful-to-be-released-2026-4 .OpenAI closes Sora video-making app and cancels $1bn Disney deal https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3w3e467ewqo School Districts Prioritize AI Governance, Not Adoption Speed https://www.govtech.com/education/k-12/school-districts-prioritize-ai-governance-not-adoption-speed .Social media users delighted by brand’s unique tactic to dispel AI concerns https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/articles/social-media-users-delighted-brands-220000296.html .Visit us on our socials:🦾 Get started with SS&C Blue Prism: https://okt.to/JcMLdU🧑‍💻LinkedIn: https://okt.to/k8zIdp✖️Twitter: https://okt.to/fHyd9G🙋‍♀️Facebook: https://okt.to/Vyjfiz📸Instagram: https://okt.to/5nYvIf💭Blog: https://okt.to/QuGqVP🤩Case studies: https://okt.to/ft1AMX.To ensure that you never miss an episode of Transform NOW, be sure to subscribe!

In this episode, Brad Hairston talks with John Rossman (author, advisor, former Amazon executive) and Andy Forti (PE-focused advisor) who co-wrote a paper that speaks to how companies can more effectively achieve big bet transformations. In the era of AI, big bets are being made everywhere, so this episode is very timely!

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Link to white paper discussed on this episode: https://rossmanpartners.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Big-Bets-in-Zone-to-Win_March2026.pdf

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What we talked with John and Andy about:

*How Geoffrey Moore's Zone to Win portfolio framework and John Rossman's Big Bet Leadership execution playbook perfectly complement each other

*How to avoid "innovation theater" and get real results

*How many transformation irons in the fire are manageable

*Why CEOs should act more like "heat shields" versus project managers

*Advice for leaders struggling with transformations.

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Visit us on our socials:🦾 Get started with SS&C Blue Prism: https://okt.to/JcMLdU🧑‍💻LinkedIn: https://okt.to/k8zIdp✖️Twitter: https://okt.to/fHyd9G🙋‍♀️Facebook: https://okt.to/Vyjfiz📸Instagram: https://okt.to/5nYvIf💭Blog: https://okt.to/QuGqVP🤩Case studies: https://okt.to/ft1AMX.

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To ensure that you never miss an episode of Transform NOW, be sure to subscribe!

In this episode, Transform NOW co-hosts Brad Hairston and Michael Marchuk banter about some interesting recent news headlines in the world of automation and AI.

News stories covered in this episode:

• Senators tell ByteDance to shut down Seedance 2.0 AI video app 'immediately' - https://www.engadget.com/ai/senators-tell-bytedance-to-shut-down-seedance-20-ai-video-app-immediately-112146241.html

• AI CEO Says Only 2 Types of People Will Survive in Job Market - https://www.newsweek.com/palantir-ceo-says-only-two-types-will-succeed-job-market-11743080

• AI can accelerate real estate transactions — But it can’t replace the professional work that protects property rights - https://www.housingwire.com/articles/ai-can-accelerate-real-estate-transactions-but-it-cant-replace-the-professional-work-that-protects-property-rights/

• One company's 'AI salary bump' is designed to end vague productivity mandates for good - https://fortune.com/2026/03/30/this-company-is-giving-workers-a-raise-for-using-ai-heres-what-they-have-to-do-to-earn-it/

• We Won’t be Missed: Work and Growth in the AGI World - https://www.nber.org/system/files/chapters/c15315/c15315.pdf

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