Over the past several years, I’ve had the privilege of working alongside hundreds of women through AWE, WeBC, in my courses, and the classrooms I’ve had the honour of teaching in.

And I’ll be honest. They’ve taught me more than I’ve taught them.

I’ve watched women walk into a room doubting themselves and leave having built something they didn’t think was possible. I’ve watched founders wrestle with hard decisions and make the right ones. I’ve watched students ask the questions that made me rethink things I thought I already knew.

The women who shaped my career didn’t do it with grand gestures. They did it by showing up, doing the work, and refusing to accept “that’s just how it’s done” as a good enough answer.

My mom. My daughter. My partner Colleen. Colleagues who called me out when I needed it and backed me up when it mattered.

I carry all of them into every room I walk into.

To every woman I’ve had the chance to work with, teach alongside, or learn from. Thank you. What you’re building matters. The standard you hold is raising the bar for everyone around you.

Go do something remarkable today.

The rules:

• Collaborative tone. Talk like a teammate, not a robot commander

• Be explicit. Use action verbs, specify quantities, name your audience

• Set boundaries. Constrain length, style, format. Tight boxes = better creativity

• Draft → Plan → Act. Outline first, refine, then produce. Kill the one-shot habit

• Demand structure. Tables, schemas, frameworks. Make outputs usable

• Explain the why. Context, goals, brand values. Help it optimize for what matters

• Control verbosity. "Brief," "expert-level," or "ELI5." Say what depth you want

• Provide scaffolds. Give templates so it fills structure, not invents it

• Use power phrases. "Think step by step," "critique your response," expert personas

• Divide and conquer. Break big asks into subtasks. Blueprint → sections → synthesis

The takeaway: a well-architected prompt beats a clever one-liner every time.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xob-2a1OnvA

https://substack.com/profile/385653226-jt/note/c-186766177?utm_source=substack&utm_content=first-note-modal

What 570 Experts Predict the Future-of-Work will Look Like

Ah, the crystal ball of the Harvard Business Review strikes again!

We know technology is evolving at a rapid pace—think AI, ML, and the latest app that can order your groceries for you while reciting Shakespeare—workers must continually learn and adapt. It’s not enough to ace your job skills once and call it a day. You’ll need to regularly upgrade your knowledge, like updating your phone’s software, or risk being left behind faster than you can say “deprecated feature.”

Four considerations...

1. Stay Relevant: In a tech-dominated world, skills can become outdated quicker than a new meme. Constant learning ensures you’re not just relevant but at the forefront of industry trends.

2. Competitive Edge: Companies will want employees who are excited to embrace the latest tools and technologies. Being a tech-savvy wizard can set you apart from the crowd, making you the go-to person at the office for anything “techy.”

3. Job Security: A continuously evolving skill set can be your safety net. In a landscape riddled with automation, the more skills you have, the harder it is for a robot to take your job.

4. Innovation Fuel: When you’re constantly learning, you’re primed to innovate. New skills can lead to new ideas, which is where the magic happens. Who knows? You might even stumble upon the next big thing while learning a new skill.

In short, if you want to be more than just a cog in the machine, embrace the lifelong learning journey. Think of it as your personal evolution—a way to keep stepping up to new challenges, not just keeping up but standing out. Because let's face it, being average is just not remarkable!

Living Intelligence (LI), refers to capacities/capabilities arising from living systems, emphasizing adaptability, growth, and interconnectedness. Imagine a forest, where trees, plants, and animals interact in complex relationships. The same complex system, is unfolding (at an unprecedented rate) in the digital world.

Digital Living Intelligence (DLI) is real-time learning and adaptation, akin to the experiences witnessed in nature. A new reality driven by the convergence of AI, advanced sensors, and man. Enabling systems to sense, learn, adapt, and evolve. This convergence will drive exponential innovation, disrupt industries, and create new markets.

We are seeing this today, with the development and deployment of #Agents on a broad scale. These #ML algorithms use reasoning capabilities to make decisions and execute actions based on given information. They analyze scenarios and apply logic to determine the best course of action (similar to a strategist on your team). Agents take insights from models (which can include LAMs, that we'll talk about in a moment) and use them to navigate complex decisions. They operate using logic, rules, and sometimes even common sense. It’s like having a wise sage who takes the data and applies it to reality.

Following on the heals of Agents, are Large Action Models (LAMs). LAMs predict what should be done next, breaking down complex tasks into smaller pieces, unlike Large Language Models (LLMs) that primarily generate content. They don’t just memorize tasks; they learn patterns. They are awesome at generating strategies, suggesting actions, or simulating scenarios. They’re the scientists analyzing the chessboard. Together with Agents, they form a formidable team—like Batman and Robin, with brains and brawn working in perfect harmony!

Companies that believe their AI implementation is complete with LLMs are overlooking the broader technological landscape. Leaders need to be moving beyond current AI deployments and preparing for the broader impact of DLI.

By curating initiatives with the potential to be innovative, the organization's chances of achieving success increase, as these applications give the business a competitive advantage. Additionally, showcasing an innovation portfolio allows enterprises to recognize successes early in their development. A company can assess which ideas will work best through proper analysis of initiatives and configurations and seek improvements where necessary. Ultimately, the key to successfully implementing an innovation portfolio lies in employees being creative, adaptive and driven. This blog post will look at how to create an effective innovation portfolio and the benefits it can bring to your organization.

Defining Aspirations & Resources in Your Portfolio

The first step in creating a compelling innovation portfolio is defining your aspirations and resources. Starting with assessing the need for initiatives—what will be necessary to move forward?—and determining the appropriate mix of initiatives that will be most beneficial for your organization. You should also identify new opportunities that could drive growth, such as emerging technologies or changes in customer preferences. 

Every initiative within a portfolio is paramount in achieving the desired outcomes, and, as such, separate aspirations and associated resources need to be established for each. A clear definition of these needs to be determined so that there is a thorough understanding of all expectations. Knowing with certainty what is required of an initiative will help team members effectively plan and work together to accomplish their tasks. Not only does this ensure that everyone is on the same page towards developing meaningful solutions, but it also can promote collaboration to efficiently work through any potential roadblocks along the road to success.

Strategies for Managing Your Portfolio

Once you have created an innovation portfolio, you will need strategies for managing it. Establishing priorities and goals is critical; with clear objectives, measuring progress or determining when adjustments are needed can be more manageable. Additionally, utilizing automation tools and technologies can help streamline processes so that data is collected quickly and accurately. Analyzing this data can provide valuable insights into how well projects are performing, helping you make informed decisions about which actions should be taken next. Finally, building a team of employees who specialize in different areas of the project—such as research & development or data analysis—can ensure that tasks are delegated so that they are completed efficiently and effectively.

The Advantages of Having a Well-Managed Innovation Portfolio

A well-managed innovation portfolio provides numerous advantages for any organization looking to stay competitive in today's market. It allows organizations to identify their strengths and weaknesses. So, they can focus on areas where improvement is needed most; it helps them prioritize tasks according to importance; it enables them to utilize technology solutions for better insights into their performance, and it allows teams to collaborate more effectively on projects from start to finish. 

This portfolio management strategy is key to a successful business as it forecasts what must be done and how it should be accomplished. Managing a portfolio in this way allows one to effectively explore new opportunities and stay well informed on the number of initiatives which need to be taken. By understanding the optimal mix for each venture, decisions can be made quickly and accurately. Ultimately, an effective innovation portfolio gives organizations the tools they need to succeed in today's fast-paced world! It's like having a roadmap for success at your disposal - all that's required is dedication and fortitude to see things through.

With Slack's recent unveiling of its newest tool, Slack Canvas, your organization can experience next-level productivity and collaboration. This new era of technology has made it easier for teams to work together and get more value from their technology.

So what exactly is Slack Canvas and how can you use it to transform productivity and collaboration within your organization? Keep reading to find out. 

What is Slack Canvas? 

Slack Canvas is a new tool that can be thought of as similar to a virtual whiteboard– a place where teams can come together, create, edit, and collaborate, without the fear of losing valuable information and data. 

Your Digital HQ

Following the pandemic, hybrid work has become the norm for many organizations. If your organization has adopted a hybrid work model, what are you doing to ensure your team can still work as effectively as they were before?

A potential solution is building a digital HQ. A digital HQ can support hybrid work by enabling employees to connect and work cohesively, no matter where they live, what timezone they’re in, and what their schedules look like. 

No matter the industry you’re in, the size of your organization, or your company model, Slack offers the perfect opportunity to build a digital HQ within your organization. 

Building Your Digital HQ with Slack 

In a world where departments and teams within organizations often struggle to find and gain access to the same tools, Slack provides a solution. 

With Slack Canvas, it’s even easier to organize and share information, reducing the time and frustration of hunting for information. Slack users take about 15 billion actions in channels every week, and Slack Canvases can supplement real-time collaboration in channels with a permanent place to keep essential resources and information.

Paired with other Slack tools like Slack Platform and Slack Huddles, any leader can customize Slack to their organizational goals. From allowing spontaneous discussions and live co-working sessions to features like lightweight audio, multi-person screen sharing, message threads, and more, Slack makes it possible to build a Digital HQ you, and your employees, can rely on. 

By providing teams with a centralized place for information and teamwork, organizations can streamline processes, maximize effectiveness, and improve productivity. In addition, Slack Canvas has been integrated with Salesforce Customer 360, making it even easier for sales, service, and marketing teams to work together and access customer information. 

Driving Your Organization Forward

Slack is the latest technology solution that has been revolutionizing the way organizations work and communicate. In a world where digital transformation is crucial for business success, Slack provides a digital headquarters for teams to work together effectively, even during uncertain times. 

The Takeaway 

Slack has proven to be a game-changer for organizations looking to transform their work processes. With its new product innovations, Slack has made it easier for teams to communicate, collaborate, and stay organized. The integration with Salesforce Customer 360 and the open beta platform have only further solidified Slack's position as the digital HQ for modern organizations.

In this article, we’ll discuss how you can focus on these three core elements to bring your team, and organization, to success.

Leadership Paves the Way

Firstly, it is crucial for leaders to demonstrate their commitment and drive towards achieving software centricity beyond the implementation of DevOps. Leaders should strive to create an environment filled with collaboratively-minded individuals with the technical expertise necessary to propel the organization forward. 

This means that leaders must invest in their people, providing them with the necessary training and resources to help them develop the necessary skills to stay competitive in the market. Additionally, they must accept and embrace that there may be sudden shifts in direction due to rapid changes in technology or customer needs. 

By fostering an environment of flexibility and adaptability, leaders can help ensure that their organization remains agile and capable of responding to changing circumstances.

Communication is Key 

With regard to communication within the organization, all stakeholders need to be on the same page when it comes to making decisions about new developments or growth strategies. Everyone needs to understand just how critical software has become for businesses if they will remain competitive within their respective markets. As such, developing systems of feedback loops should be seen as essential for keeping everyone connected and attuned to crucial information regarding product development cycles or feature requests from customers. 

Effective communication not only helps ensure that everyone is working towards the same goals, but it also fosters a culture of collaboration and teamwork, which can lead to increased innovation and productivity.

Invest in Your People

Finally, investing in the engineers who will serve as stewards of your digital future is paramount if you want your business to stay ahead of the curve. Companies must focus on hiring quality technical talent capable of taking high-level concepts from the idea stage all the way through to fruition, thereby enabling them to maintain their technological edge over competitors. Moreover, leadership should also consider paying extra attention not only to those involved directly in coding but also to those engaged in roles more focused on researching new technologies or developing creative algorithms which could shape up task automation at scale – something especially important considering how rapidly technology advances nowadays.

The Takeaway

While building a software-centric culture certainly isn’t easy, it can be done by focusing on three key aspects: leadership, communication, and investment. Once these principles are clear within an organization, success should soon follow by allowing teams greater agility, faster turnover times, better customer service experiences, plus more innovative products built upon strong technical foundations.

As we move into 2023 and beyond, AI will undoubtedly continue to shape the business landscape in new and exciting ways. As a business leader it’s crucial to stay up to date with these trends, or risk falling behind. 

In this article, we’ll discuss some of the top AI trends that are expected to have a significant impact on businesses across all industries in the upcoming years. 

Setting the Expectation: How AI Could Affect Business as We Know it

AI is changing the way businesses operate, and its impact is expected to be felt by businesses across all industries, no matter their size, culture, or purpose.

From improving customer experience to streamlining operations, AI has the potential to revolutionize the way businesses interact with clients, employees, suppliers, and all other stakeholders. 

While Ai is constantly changing, here are some of the ways we expect AI to impact businesses across various example industries:

Manufacturing 

AI is already being used in the manufacturing industry to improve efficiency and reduce costs. It can be used to monitor specific processes and predict equipment failures, which in turn can reduce downtime and increase productivity. AI can also be used to optimize supply chain management and to automate repetitive tasks, freeing up employees to focus on more complex work.

Retail

In retail industries, AI can be used to analyze all sorts of customer data and preferences, allowing retailers to personalize the retail experience and increase conversion rates. As we;ve already seen in recent years, AI-powered chatbots will only get more intelligent, handling a wide range of customer service requests, freeing up employees to handle more strategic work. 

Financial Services

AI is expected to play a critical role in reducing costs, improving efficiency, and enhancing the client experience in the financial industry. AI can be used to automate operations, such as processing claims, analyzing data, and event detect and prevent fraud. Additionally, AI-powered advisors can help customers make informed investment decisions.

AI Trends to Keep an Eye Out for in 2023

As AI continues to evolve, organizational leaders must stay on top of the latest trends and developments. 

In 2023, AI is expected to have a significant impact on the way businesses operate, and leaders who are aware of the most important trends will be better equipped to help bring their organization to success. 

Here are some of the AI trends that organizational leaders have to watch out for in 2023:

AI-Powered Personalization

Personalization is expected to become an even more important trend in 2023. As AI is used to analyze customer data and preferences, allowing businesses to create tailored experiences for each customer will be essential. This will enable organizations to improve customer engagement and increase conversion rates. 

Automated Customer Service

Automated customer service, or chatbots and virtual agents as we know them today, is expected to become even more sophisticated in 2023. With advances in natural language processing and machine learning, these virtual services are becoming more conversational and human-like, improving the customer experience and helping businesses across a variety of industries save time, money, and other valuable resources. 

Ethical AI

As AI continues to play a larger role in business, concerns about ethics and bias are becoming more prominent. In 2023, organizations must pay attention to the role AI plays, and focus on ensuring that their AI systems are fair, transparent, accountable, and unbiased. This will involve implementing ethical guidelines and regularly auditing AI algorithms to ensure that they are not perpetuating any of these issues. 

The Takeaway 

AI is expected to have a significant impact on businesses in 2023, and organizational leaders must stay on top of the latest trends to make informed decisions and stay ahead of the curve. 

From AI-powered personalization to AI automation, organizations that embrace AI and use it to their advantage will be well-positioned to reap the benefits of this powerful technology. However, it's important to approach AI with caution and to ensure that it is being used responsibly, with a focus on ethical considerations and fairness.