Generative Leadership in an AI World: Building Cultures of Adoption Amid Uncertainty
Organizations are moving quickly to implement AI. But many leaders are discovering a harder truth: you can’t mandate curiosity, adaptability, or trust.
As employees navigate anxiety about job security, overload from constant change, and uncertainty about expectations, AI adoption often stalls. What’s getting in the way may be less about tools and more about culture.
In this one-hour conversation, Suzanne Dove (Center for Academic Innovation, University of Michigan) will interview Monica Worline, a leading faculty member at Michigan’s Ross School of Business and an expert in leadership and organizational culture. Together, they will explore what it takes to lead effectively in a time when employees are stretched, skeptical, and under pressure around the role of AI in their work.
The discussion will focus on a critical question for today’s HR and business leaders:
How do we cultivate cultures where people feel safe, motivated, and equipped to experiment with AI — rather than resistant or overwhelmed by it?
Key themes will include:
The emotional realities of AI adoption inside organizations
Generative leadership practices that build trust and agency
Creating conditions for adaptability in times of rapid change
Practical strategies for increasing AI engagement without increasing burnout
Designed for senior HR and business leaders, this session will offer both research-informed insights and actionable leadership practices to help organizations move beyond AI implementation toward meaningful adoption.
SPEAKER BIOS:
Monica C. Worline, PhD, is an organizational psychologist and faculty member in the Organizations and Management group at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business. Monica is the Faculty Director of the Center for Positive Organizations and has dedicated her research, writing, and teaching to understanding how we can cultivate more courageous thinking, compassionate leadership, and forms of organizing that bring people’s best work to life. Monica is passionate about inviting people to become better architects of thriving organizations.
Monica co-authored the book Awakening Compassion at Work: The Quiet Power that Elevates People and Organizations with Jane Dutton and she leads the CompassionLab, a global research collaboratory focused on compassion in organizations. Monica has previously served as associate director and research scientist at Stanford University’s Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education and on the faculties of Goizueta Business School at Emory University, the Paul Merage School of Business at the University of California Irvine, and the UC Irvine School of Social Ecology.
As the Chief Education Solutions Officer at the Center for Academic Innovation, Suzanne Dove plays a lead role in addressing organizational learning and workforce development challenges, leveraging CAI’s capabilities to drive revenue growth, deliver customized programs, and ensure exemplary service and support to organizations that turn to Michigan Online. As a member of CAI’s senior leadership team, she identifies and cultivates new opportunities and builds strategic partnerships, delivering tailored educational solutions that empower global learners and meet the evolving needs of industries and organizations.
Prior to joining the Center, Suzanne served as Assistant Vice President for Strategy & Innovation at Bentley University, where she was responsible for global partnerships and oversaw digital learning product design. Suzanne spent the first decade of her academic innovation career at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In addition to several years teaching undergraduate and master’s degree students, she held a variety of leadership roles in which she developed business and cross-campus partnerships, led development of digital learning solutions for various audiences, and built faculty development programs. With extensive experience living and working in Europe and Latin America, Suzanne brings a global perspective to her work and is passionate about human-centered learning that unleashes curiosity, creativity, and community.
Suzanne is a certified ProSci Certified Change Practitioner.