On 5th December 2025, LEAD Executive Search and Consult Recruitment proudly co-hosted an AI & Leadership event, bringing senior New Zealand business and AI leaders together to explore what it really takes to lead people through one of the biggest transformations of our working lives.
The topic of the event: “Do we still need all these humans? Leading people in an AI world.”
AI is reshaping our working lives faster than most organisations can adapt, and leaders everywhere are asking the same questions: Am I being left behind in AI? Where do I start? And, how do I build and lead my team in an AI-enabled future?
There’s plenty of talk about AI transformation. Plenty of discussion about technology implementation. But far less honest conversation about the real lessons learnt in business – the good, the bad and the people side of the equation – and that’s where most AI strategies actually succeed or fail.
Across the conversation, we explored:
- what it actually takes to lead people through AI (beyond the hype, the tech demos and the fear)
- what AI is actually doing inside organisations right now
- how roles, skills and leadership expectations are changing
- where the real risks and opportunities lie for people and organisations
It was clear this topic is top of mind for many leaders, with strong interest in how other New Zealand businesses are navigating AI transformation and redesigning work in ways that benefit both people and organisations.
Here were some of the strongest themes from the session:
- People inside organisations are adapting faster than organisations. Individuals are already using AI to save hours each week, but businesses haven’t redesigned roles or workflows around these new capabilities, which means the benefits aren’t being fully realised at an organisational level yet.
- The panel highlighted how AI literacy needs to start from senior leadership. The missing link is AI-literate leaders and middle managers who understand the possibilities well enough to support change and help their people apply the tech meaningfully.
- The leaders in the room recognised how important it is to help their people see AI as a career accelerant, not a threat. Upskilling your teams in AI is more than about productivity, it’s also protecting and growing your people. Organisations that don’t invest in building AI capability risk seeing their talent displaced or drawn to employers who are.
- There was also strong reflection on New Zealand’s missed opportunity in under-using the affordable, off-the-shelf AI that are already available.
Event summary available now – Register for a copy
We have a fantastic summary capturing all the key highlights and takeaways from the event – especially great for leaders looking to understand what AI means for their people and organisations. If you’d like to receive a copy, please reach out and let us know: [email protected]
Thanks to our incredible panel
We are incredibly grateful to our panel for joining us and bringing their insights, experience and humanity to a conversation that impacts every leader and every business right now.
Thank you to:
David Downs – CEO of NZ Story, Chairman of The Icehouse & Consult & a member of the Government AI Expert Advisory Panel, helping advise the NZ government on the use of AI.
Mark Laurence – Founder of Ten Past Tomorrow, Partner of AI Strategy at The Icehouse and AI Advisor at AUT
Madeline Newman, Executive Director of the AI Forum New Zealand
Scott Gambling, Technology Lead at IAG
and Scott McLiver, Partner and Chief AI Officer at PwC New Zealand
Thank you as well to everyone who came along to our event. It was great to see a full room of senior leaders leaning into what AI is doing inside NZ organisations and how quickly it’s reshaping expectations of leadership, capability and work.
Looking ahead
We are at the edge of a defining shift in how work gets done and we see real opportunity to build organisations that are smarter, more human, more adaptive and more future-ready than anything we’ve led before.
At LEAD Executive Search, we work with senior leaders at the intersection of people strategy and business performance. Right now, AI is fundamentally reshaping that intersection. We’re seeing firsthand how AI is reshaping roles, skills, expectations and organisational design. Some roles are changing, some are disappearing, but new ones are emerging. The skills needed differ, and how we recruit and lead our people will change as well.
If you’re reshaping your organisation, evolving leadership capability, or hiring roles that sit at the intersection of people, technology and transformation, feel free to reach out, we’d love to support you: [email protected]
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