Using AI at Work: AI in the Workplace & Generative AI for Business Leaders

74: Using AI at Work to Rethink Roles, Risk, and Readiness with Zac Engler

24 snips

Oct 20, 2025

Zac Engler, Chief AI Officer and author of "Turning On Machines," dives into the practicalities of AI adoption in the workplace. He shares his Crawl → Walk → Run framework, emphasizing the importance of foundational training for employees. Zac highlights the urgency of embracing AI to avoid falling behind and discusses common fears surrounding automation. He also introduces a trifurcation model of work roles and the concept of a "machine shepherd" to navigate human-AI collaboration. Plus, he teases insights from his new book, exploring the complex relationship between humans and intelligent systems.

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ADVICE

Start With LLM Access, Prompting, Transcription

Give every employee access to a known-good large language model to start productivity gains immediately.
Teach prompt frameworks and transcribe meetings so teams can get consistent 10% improvements fast.

INSIGHT

Crawl→Walk→Run Adoption Path

Adopt AI in three stages: Crawl (foundation), Walk (automation/agents), Run (custom systems) to avoid premature complexity.
You must build the foundational skills first or custom systems will fail to deliver at scale.

ADVICE

Pick Infrastructure Or Operations First

Decide whether your AI strategy is for infrastructure (custom systems) or operations (LLM rollout) before planning timelines.
Prioritize pilots where your biggest cost centers or revenue drivers will gain the most from AI.

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Chris Daigle sits down with Zac Engler, Chief AI Officer and author of Turning On Machines, to discuss how organizations can adopt AI responsibly and practically while preparing their teams for a transformed future of work.

Zac shares his framework for helping companies move through the Crawl → Walk → Run stages of AI adoption, from getting every employee comfortable with large language models and prompting frameworks, to deploying agentic workflows that drive exponential productivity gains.

They discuss how leaders can address fear, risk, and confusion around AI tools, how to decide between infrastructure vs. operations strategy, and why delaying adoption means falling exponentially behind. Zac also gives a preview of his new book, Turning On Machines, exploring the three meanings behind the title: activation, rebellion, and connection, and how each reveals the complex relationship between humans and intelligent systems.

If you’re leading AI transformation or rethinking how humans and machines will work together, this episode delivers both frameworks and foresight.

🛠 AI Tools and Resources Mentioned in This Episode

ChatGPT ➡ https://openai.com/chatgpt
Perplexity ➡ https://www.perplexity.ai
Notebook LM ➡ https://workspace.google.com
Chief AI Officer Resources ➡ https://chiefaiofficer.com

📌 Chapters

00:00 – Introduction to Zac Engler and Turning On Machines
02:30 – The Chief AI Officer Role and the People Side of AI
04:10 – The Crawl–Walk–Run Framework for AI Adoption
06:00 – Three Levers for 10% Instant Productivity Gains
09:00 – Infrastructure vs. Operations: Two Types of AI Strategy
12:00 – From Walk to Run: Deploying Agentic Workflows
14:00 – Why Waiting on AI Means Falling Behind
16:30 – Managing Risk and Choosing the Right Tools
19:00 – Favorite AI Tools: Copilot, Perplexity, Notebook LM
21:30 – Inside Turning On Machines: Three Meanings and Lessons
26:00 – Parallels Between the Printing Press and AI
30:00 – Pushback, Fear, and the Trifurcation of Work
33:00 – Becoming a “Machine Shepherd” and Future-Proofing Your Role
39:00 – Human-Only, Human + AI, and AI-Only Workflows
43:30 – Frameworks for Mapping Where AI Fits in Your Business
46:00 – Why Reflection Matters: Learning How to Think About AI
49:00 – Where to Get Turning On Machines and Connect with Zac