Why AI Strategies Fail (and What Leaders Get Right Instead)

AI adoption doesn't stall because the technology is too complicated. It stalls because leaders skip the harder work of trust, culture, and change management. In this fireside chat, John Adcock, co-founder of Kinsugi Labs and former Chief People Officer at Eventbrite, sits down to unpack what actually separates organizations where AI sticks from ones where it gets quietly abandoned. Drawing on two decades of executive HR leadership at Eventbrite and Expedia Group — and on Kinsugi Labs' current work guiding companies through live AI rollouts — John will share insights on what can sink AI adoption long before a single tool is rolled out, and how leaders can build AI directly into their broader business strategy from the start.

This talk will be eligible for SHRM credits. Questions for John are welcome!

Takeaways:

• Why more than 80% of AI failures come down to the human side of the equation, not technical limitations
• How psychological safety and frontline engagement shape whether AI training actually works
• How AI can sharpen — or quietly dull — your workforce's judgment, and how leaders design for the difference