Roundtable Lunch

Yesterday we hosted a CPO Roundtable lunch, with Yan Kruger from Growth Wave. It was a pleasure to host such a candid, insightful conversation with a group of experienced CPOs across many diverse sectors.

Thank you to Yan for facilitating a great discussion. 

And thank you to Aaron and Claudia from the Pinsent Masons team, for collaborating with us and hosting us at their fabulous office. 

Below is a summary of the key insights,and takeaways that emerged from the discussion:

Managing Psychosocial Safety and ‘AI Slop’: beyond driving productivity, HR & leaders must actively manage psychosocial risks; workplace anxiety, job uncertainty, and cognitive overload. At the same time, we need to actively manage “AI slop’ being passed up the hierarchy, creating a real risk of review fatigue and burnout for managers and Execs.

AI Adoption as a Behavioural Challenge: AI is fundamentally a people and cultural transformation rather than simply a tech rollout. To prevent AI from being treated as a mere software upgrade, CPOs must sit right at the centre of strategic decisions, leading the shift in ways of working, trust, and capability.

Proactive Governance to Combat ‘Shadow AI’: internal risk of AI use often comes from well-meaning employees trying to work faster. Establishing clear guardrails, transparent policies, and accessible training is essential to bring ‘shadow AI’ out of the dark and into safe, structured usage.

Anchoring on HR & Org Design Fundamentals: despite the rapid pace of technological change, navigating AI requires doubling down on HR core principles. Success relies on clear role expectations, well-defined levels of work, robust skill frameworks, and a deep understanding of how specific workflows and responsibilities are shifting.