Your newest colleague doesn't sleep, doesnt drink coffee and just drafted three potential q1 strategies while you were pouring a mug. Are you ready to manage them?
- Matt Symes
- Jan 2
- 2 min read
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The lightbulb didn’t save the craftsperson. It just extended their day. ****  **** In the early days of electrification, the artisan (left) felt like a superhero. They could work later, see better, and produce more. They amplified their work with more light. But the real revolution was happening in the minds of engineers who weren’t looking at the tool, but at the flow. They realized that if you reimagined the workflow entirely, you could decouple the output from the human effort. **** We are standing at that exact same precipice with AI. Some aren’t bothering to invest at all (the 91%). Some of us are still in the “Amplified” stage (8%). We are using AI to write emails and summarize meetings. We feel productive. We feel safe. We are using electricity to run a hand-drill. The problem is that most people don’t see knowledge work as a flow. They don’t look at it as a system. They focus on the “Human” variable... trying to make the individual craftsperson 10% faster. That is the “Lightbulb Phase.” It’s useful, but it’s not transformative. To get to the “Assembly Line Phase” (right image), you have to break down the actual mechanics of value creation. **** You have to treat knowledge work as a system. Here is the breakdown:
Right now, we are using Amplified AI to prop up outdated workflows. But Agentic AI is coming to do for knowledge work what the assembly line did for physical work. **** It doesn’t just assist the human; it fundamentally changes the skill required to participate in the economy. The artisan who survived the Industrial Revolution wasn’t the one who bought the best lightbulb. It was the one who learned how to redesign the floor plan. Don’t get comfortable with the light. Look for the flow. As I ramp up for 2026, I always like to have one major challenge front and center. This is mine. **** |
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