We chatted with our colleague Henry Kniberg at Crisp about his latest work on generative AI and his upcoming master class in the Leading Complexity program.
He shared some very insightful comments:
“Generative AI makes things less predictable but more intelligent.”
“If I had to estimate, it would be at least a tenfold increase in coding productivity. Tasks that used to take days can now take hours, and those that took hours can now take minutes.”
“Teams that don’t adopt AI will struggle to compete. It’s like refusing to use the internet today. Sure, you could do that, but no one would want to pay for such an inefficient process.”
Check out the short video interview below (6 min) and Henriks’s session on “AI Transformation Guide”.
Join our Leading Complexity Program to learn more from Henrik and the other thought leaders, and sign up to attend Henriks’s Master Class if you want practical tips and guidelines to help make the whole AI thing happen, beyond the hype and into real-world application.
Transcript of the interview:
Michael: Henrik, we’re so glad to have you back in the Leading Complexity program.
Henrik: Thank you!
Michael: You’re a colleague at Crisp, an entrepreneur with many initiatives, and recently you’ve fully immersed yourself in generative AI. You’re running courses, and your popular video series, Generative AI in a Nutshell, has already reached over two million views. It seems you’ve really jumped into the deep end of AI.
Henrik: Yes, absolutely.
Michael: How do you think generative AI will affect leadership, particularly decision-making?
Henrik: I think it’s going to have a radical impact, though it’s hard to say exactly how. It reminds me of when the internet first came along—it changed everything, but no one knew exactly how at the time. We’re in a similar situation now with AI. We know it’s big, but we’re still figuring out the details.
Michael: For years, I’ve taught that tasks that are repetitive can be automated with code, and humans should focus on complex, collaborative tasks. But now, with generative AI, do you think this still holds? Will AI replace or enhance human collaboration?
Henrik: That’s a great question. I think it’s more of a spectrum—from fully automatable tasks to fully human ones. In the past, if you couldn’t describe a task precisely, it couldn’t be automated. But now, AI can handle tasks that require some level of intelligence or creativity. So, more can be automated than before, but not everything. The scale has shifted.
Michael: What do you see as some of the biggest challenges organizations face when trying to introduce generative AI into their operations?
Henrik: One big challenge is that this technology is so new and different. We’ve never had anything like it before, so it’s difficult to create a clear strategy around it. Usually, we want to jump straight to finding value, but with generative AI, you need humility. Organizations need to give people time and resources to experiment before they’ll discover the real golden use cases.
Michael: Have you thought of any implications of generative AI that people aren’t discussing yet?
Henrik: One subtle but important realization is that generative AI makes things less predictable, but more intelligent. That’s a trade-off. Traditional code is predictable because it does exactly what you tell it to do. But when you interact with a generative AI model, there’s an element of creativity or “thinking” happening, which can lead to cooler, more interesting outcomes—but also less predictability. It’s a trade-off you need to navigate.
Michael: So, more unpredictability but also more intelligence. But are there ways to manage that?
Henrik: Yes, definitely. For example, you can use large language models to generate code. The AI generation itself may be unpredictable, but once you have the code, you can review and execute it. Code is still predictable, so there are ways to get the best of both worlds.
Michael: Now that you’ve immersed yourself in generative AI, what has surprised you the most?
Henrik: Honestly, the whole thing has surprised me. I never imagined that a computer could be creative, write code, or help plan a strategy workshop. These were things I didn’t think computers could do. But maybe the biggest surprise has been the incredible increase in productivity when you really understand how to use the technology.
Michael: You mentioned productivity—how much have you seen that increase for yourself, particularly with coding or other tasks?
Henrik: It’s hard to measure exactly, but if I had to estimate, it’s at least a tenfold increase in productivity when coding. Tasks that used to take days can now take hours, and those that took hours can now take minutes. It’s really remarkable, but only if you use the best tools and understand prompt engineering.
Michael: So basically, every team should have an AI on their team?
Henrik: Absolutely. Teams that don’t adopt AI will struggle to compete. It’s like refusing to use the internet today. Sure, you could do that, but no one would want to pay for such an inefficient process.
Michael: Like using a typewriter instead of a computer—it might look cool, but it’s not practical.
Henrik: Exactly. It might have some novelty, but no one’s going to pay for that kind of inefficiency.
Michael: Your session in the program is called AI Transformation Guide. What do you hope participants will take away from it?
Henrik: I hope they’ll feel less worried about the whole AI thing and come away with a concrete roadmap for how they can start applying the technology.
Michael: Is it aimed at individuals, teams, or organizations?
Henrik: It’s more aimed at leaders—those responsible for driving the transition within organizations. This is a big change that companies will need to navigate, so I’ll be offering practical tips and guidelines to help them make it happen, beyond the hype, and into real-world application.
Michael: Fantastic! We’re really looking forward to your session on November 21st in the Leading Complexity program.
Henrik: Great! I’ll see you there.
Michael: See you then!
Join our Leading Complexity Program to learn more from Henrik and the other thought leaders, and sign up to attend Henriks’s Master Class if you want practical tips and guidelines to help make the whole AI thing happen, beyond the hype and into real-world application.
