Podcast

SPOS #996 – Christie Smith On Distributed Teams, Generative AI And Global Shifts

Welcome to episode #996 of Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast.

Christie Smith is a former senior executive at Apple, Deloitte and Accenture with over three decades of leadership experience across industries including life sciences, consumer goods and finance. She holds a doctorate in Social Work and Organizational Psychology and now leads The Humanity Studio, a leadership advisory firm focused on redefining the future of work. In her new book, Essential – How Distributed Teams, Generative AI, and Global Shifts Are Creating a New Human-Powered Leadership (along with her co-author Kelly Monahan), Christie outlines a bold new framework for leaders navigating a post-pandemic, AI-driven, decentralized world. This episode explores the urgent need for management transformation – from command-and-control to people-centered leadership – and how today’s leaders must adapt to rising expectations around purpose, trust and equity. Topics include the power shift from corporations to individuals, the cultural cost of distributed work, and why organizations must stop measuring productivity and start cultivating human energy. The discussion also unpacks the psychological strain of “always-on” work cultures, the promise and peril of generative AI, and how leaders can build communities, not just companies. At its core, this conversation is about what comes after burnout… what it means to lead with humanity, design systems that elevate people, and use power responsibly in a time of profound disruption. For anyone rethinking what it means to lead, build and belong in the modern workplace, this episode offers a timely and hopeful reframing of what’s possible. Enjoy the conversation…

Running time: 56:23.
Hello from beautiful Montreal.
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Here is my conversation with Christie Smith.
Essential – How Distributed Teams, Generative AI, and Global Shifts Are Creating a New Human-Powered Leadership.
The Humanity Studio.
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Chapters:

(00:00) – The Evolving Role of Leadership.
(03:06) – Emotional Maturity in Leadership.
(05:51) – The Impact of the Pandemic on Leadership.
(08:55) – Employee Expectations and Organizational Change.
(11:54) – The Shift Towards Purpose-Driven Leadership.
(15:05) – Navigating Challenges in Large Organizations.
(18:11) – The Rise of Entrepreneurship and New Work Models.
(21:03) – Community and Connection in the Digital Age.
(33:24) – The Human Element in AI and Workplaces.
(39:10) – Agency and Connection in Leadership.
(45:51) – Legacy and Leadership in a Changing World.
(52:10) – Building a New Organization: Culture and Purpose.
(58:28) – Curiosity and Hope in the Face of Challenges.

Download the Podcast here: Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast – Episode #996.

Before you go… ThinkersOne is a new way for organizations to buy bite-sized and personalized thought leadership video content (live and recorded) from the best Thinkers in the world. If you’re looking to add excitement and big smarts to your meetings, corporate events, company off-sites, “lunch & learns” and beyond, check it out.

Mitch Joel

Mitch Joel lives at the intersection of technology, business transformation and consumer culture. He is the Executive Director of Next Era Institute, a strategic intelligence platform helping leaders understand the forces reshaping business, technology, culture and society. The Institute identifies which shifts matter, explores their wider significance and translates them into strategic direction and momentum. Mitch is also a globally recognized keynote speaker. He has delivered thousands of presentations across both B2B and B2C industries to organizations including Google, Walmart, LEGO, Shopify, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and Unilever. Strategy Magazine has called him “one of North America’s leading visionaries.” Mitch built his career by working directly inside the waves of change that reshaped modern business. He founded and built a digital marketing agency that worked with some of the world’s largest brands and was later acquired by WPP, where he served as President of a firm operating in 25 countries with almost 3,000 employees. Mitch is the bestselling author of Six Pixels of Separation and CTRL ALT Delete, and the host of Thinking With Mitch Joel, one of the longest-running business podcasts in the world. His writing and commentary appear in outlets including Harvard Business Review, Fast Company and Inc. Magazine. He is a member of Dr. Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches and was named to the Thinkers50 Radar. Mitch also hosts Groove – The No Treble Podcast, documenting the oral history of electric bass players. Mitch is also Co-Founder of ThinkersOne, a platform that enables companies to bring personalized thought leadership from world-class experts into meetings, events and off-sites in focused 15-minute bursts.