What if AI’s greatest value to an executive isn’t giving answers—but challenging how the executive thinks?

And what if some of AI’s “wrong” answers are actually useful?

In the latest episode of The Eppley Experience, I speak with Chris Helsel, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Goodyear. After 30 years of navigating a large, complex organization, Chris has developed a practical—and occasionally surprising—approach to using AI.

He doesn’t treat it as a better search engine. He gives it different roles.

As a trusted advisor, AI helped him question whether he had the right R&D structure for an industry facing new pressures. As a coach, it helped him quickly develop knowledge about race-car vehicle dynamics. As a thought partner, it helps him test strategy, assess market opportunities and uncover possibilities he may not have considered.

But Chris also understands the risks.

AI can hallucinate. It can give you inaccurate information—or simply tell you what it believes you want to hear. Yet sometimes its creative “hallucinations” can lead to an idea worth exploring.

The key, Chris says, is to approach AI more like a chess match: provide context, establish guardrails, challenge its responses and remain actively involved in the give-and-take.

His advice to other executives is simple: get immersed. This is a learn-by-doing technology, and today’s version is the worst it will ever be.

Our conversation explores what happens when an experienced executive stops merely searching with AI—and begins thinking alongside it.

Warning. This podcast is about 45 minutes in length. Chris simply had too much great input to go shorter.

#ArtificialIntelligence #ExecutiveLeadership #TheEppleyExperience

Kevin Hickey is someone I deeply respect personally—a leader of tremendous integrity, a lifelong student of effective leadership and management, and someone who brings both humility and a wonderful sense of humor. In this episode of The Eppley Experience, Kevin shares a candid and practical look at what it really takes to build and preserve a strong culture while scaling a successful business. From navigating private equity ownership and becoming more data-driven, to protecting organizational health as the company grew from 40 to 400 people with an international footprint, Kevin offers hard-earned lessons on leadership, trust, accountability, and the evolving nature of culture. He speaks openly about difficult seasons that required pay cuts, coaching, and tough decisions—and why those moments ultimately strengthened the business. If you are trying to grow a company without losing what made it special in the first place, this conversation delivers practical insight on trust, transparency, vulnerability, and the enormous “shadow” leaders cast every day.

Jeff Tibbitts is the SVP of HR for CESO, an engineering and architectural firm based in Dayton, OH. He and I have done multiple engagements over 20 years. As someone who has played baseball competitively and who has a son in the minor leagues of professional baseball, he brings an understanding of "the game" that few possess. In this episode of the Eppley Experience, Jeff shares his experience of working to achieve optimal structure in two different organizations, and from two different C-suite positions. You'll also appreciate the experiences Jeff shares of the work required to get your structure to align with your strategy. Listen and learn from Jeff!

Tammy Leitsinger is one executive who has seen her CEO literally do cartwheels on a stage to remind the organization how their "core" is for us as people as well as for her company. Physically showing your people your culture seems so practical and so much more powerful than talking about it. Why have I never heard about this before!? This episode is for anyone who wants creative ideas that can make their culture stronger. You'll love Tammy's energy and passion for her work and creating great companies and teams!

Denny Freudeman is one of those rare executives who's seen culture from a variety of roles and organizations that has earned him the right to give all of us advice. He was an employee in a company whose culture was so toxic he left. His next company taught him how powerful it can be as a motivator. As a C-suite exec in a large hospital system, he saw how changing a culture improved staff engagement and patient satisfaction. So when he speaks about how to make your culture a competitive advantage, we all should listen to Denny's practical and proven advice!

I've been fortunate to work with several people who are totally and enthusiastically committed to growing their people. Alan Crookes and Jackie Sample at BMW and Cathy Miller and Rick Packer at CompuServe Network Services are definitely in the top 5. And then there is Rob Goodwin at Necco Foster Care. Rob joins me in this episode of The Eppley Experience to share his insights gained from 30 years of developing talent. We discuss how much a person can actually change and how a manager can't delegate the responsibility for growing their people. Plus, you'll get to hear for the first time, Rob's "WOO" for which he's so famous. Listen and learn from one of the very best!

When I think of my best clients, one thing they have in common is knowing the parts of their P & L that most matter. They know the levers they need to pull that increase margin. They obsess about productivity. They understand that their biggest customers aren't their best customers, or even most important. This minilog is all about helping you become as involved in your financial results as you are the other parts of the business that probably give you more energy. If you want to be more profitable, this is five minutes you don't want to miss!

In this minilog, I explore our ability and responsibility to deal with the uncontrollable things that life will throw at us. These moments of truth, for all the problems they create, also produce opportunities for us. Managers get the chance to be decisive and a chance to take a risk you otherwise wouldn't take. There's also an opportunity to see which of your people rise to the challenges created. What better way to identify your next high potential person!

In this minilog, I talk about the 2nd most poorly executed professional managerial skill, setting clear priorities. (Defining clear expectations is the first and worst.) One of your core jobs as a manager is to help your people to focus. People can't focus if they don't know what is most important for any given period of time. (Day, week, month, quarter, year.) Absence of those clear priorities from above makes it highly likely that you're creating "unwinnable battles" for the managers below. What a terrible waste of time and resources.

This is a change of pace podcast. If you are a parent, nothing makes you feel better than seeing your kids living a very truly fulfilled life. My bride Fran and I are blessed to have two wonderful children. Both have taught me important lessons. If you've read my book Let's Be Clear, you were introduced to our son Ben. He's a geologist and works at a gold mine. Daughter Tess works with autistic adolescents. Hearing her describe the work she does and the impact she gets to have on their ability to become their best selves is inspiring. She's taught me a great deal about patience and the importance of character over accolades or trophies. I thought it would be fun to give you a glimpse of her work as well as her interpretation of mine. BONUS TIP - If you want to know my vices and favorite loungewear, this is the podcast for you!

Every manager's job, at every level, exists to "produce results and grow people". And that's still the primary reason. But in this minilog I share the third reason that your job exists... to keep marginal performers "uncomfortable". This is one of the parts of your job as an executive and manager that won't be intuitive. But it's one of the qualities that separate high performing executives from those who are average. (Or below.) This minilog will likely make you uncomfortable in a good way and show you a simple approach to improved business results!

This is the second of two podcasts about the most important skill a manager or executive can possess; the ability to grow their people. Word of advice, go listen to Part 1 and you'll get even more from this episode. In part one, Rick Packer shared the secret to getting people to retain the training you put them through, and other things he's learned in over 25 years of developing individuals and teams. In this episode, he focuses on how teams become better, how they become more aligned and cohesive. We also talk about where the responsibility for someone's development resides. He shares the impact that a "legacy event" can have on a relationship and a team and the critical importance to not ask people to get better at more than one thing at a time. If I had a manager, or an executive or a team I needed to develop, Rick's the person I would bring in to do the work. Enjoy this episode!

This is is is the first of two podcasts about the most important skill a manager or executive can possess; the ability to grow their people. Rick Packer has been one of the most influential people in my career. He was a participant in management and leadership training I conducted in the '90's. Then he became a protege in learning to deliver the same training. Next came stints with John Maxwell and today Pat Lencioni and The Table Group. Along the way he's become my "go to" any time I find a situation I've never encountered or have a particularly difficult client. That's why I wanted to spend some serious time with Rick.. so you can learn from him like I have. And go figure, we spoke way beyond our normal podcast time. If you listen to this podcast, you'll want to listen to Part 2!

Extending our personal network is one of the best ways we can create more opportunities and more options for our business. In this minilog I discuss the approach I've taken in my career to create an environment where the people I meet become genuinely interested in me. More importantly, they come away from our initial interaction seeing me as different, in a positive way, than almost all of the other people they meet. If you want to know one of my "secrets to success", this minilog is for you!

Brian Ciota is the President of Co-Owner of McClurg Remodeling and Construction in upstate New York. I have watched Brian and his executive team define and then refine their strategy so they can continue their profitable growth. It seemed only natural to include Brian in our series of podcasts on Strategy. Brian has literally grown up in this business, starting when he was 14 and living across the street from the founder, Scott McClurg. He shares how in the early days, their ideal customer was essentially "... someone who needed something done that we could do." That tendency to never say "no" enabled the business to survive and grow. It also started to become a constraint on the business as it grew. There are numerous lessons in Brian's story. You'll really enjoy this podcast about Brian's journey to appreciating the importance of strategy.

There are a couple of books that have had the most impact on my practice as a consultant. The first two are The Advantage by Pat Lencioni. The Effective Executive by Peter Drucker. The latest addition to my hall of fame is Mighty Midsized Companies; How Leaders Overcome The 7 Silent Killers of Growth, by Robert Sher. This book is powerful in making it very clear that the problems holding back your mid sized company are very predictable. In this minilog I share why I love this book and how it can help you and your company!

What's the best way to use your top talent? We only have so many truly high potential people. Where do they bring the greatest return? Where do they help the business the most? There are arguments for different approaches and in this podcast I discuss the one I prefer.... putting our best people on the opportunities or situations that have the greatest potential for the business. In this minilog I share my thoughts about how we can best use our best people. Hope you appreciate Peter Drucker as much as I do!

Jeb Zoller never thought about leadership until he ended up at West Point, ironically on a golf scholarship. After finishing his education, he served his country as an officer in the 82nd Airborne where jumping out of airplanes, at night, from 800 feet above the ground became the norm. Today, he runs a tremendously successful financial planning business. Having seen great and equally poor leadership in his career, no one is more qualified to share their ideas about how each of us can be a better leader than Jeb. You'll enjoy this episode and get to meet someone I'm proud to call my friend!

UPIC Solutions business is built to serve not-for-profit United Way agencies. Their success is proof that when you know your ideal customer and provide value they can't find from your competitors, you've defined and executed a great strategy. J.R. Howard is UPIC"s CEO and he shares some great insights about how their success has made them redo their strategy. He explains the surprising benefit of how their new strategy has energized UPIC's staff. Even more interesting is how changing the way they run meetings has made a big difference in their ability to execute. This is the most for-profit-like, not-for-profit business I've ever seen. If you want your strategy to be more effective, this is the podcast for you!

If you have plans to scale your business, you need to listen to this podcast! This is one of several that discusses the power of getting your executive team to be more aligned and cohesive, creating a better balance between Smart & Healthy. Cody Granneman and Tommy Rowlands are Co-CEO's of R.S. Hanlines Group. (If you've eaten a Wendy's baked potato, then you know part of what they do.) No structure is perfect. You've heard me say that more than once. But a structure with co-CEOs requires even more work than normal for an executive team to show up as fully aligned and cohesive to the rest of the organization. And these two young executives are proof that not only can co-CEO's work, but that the business can thrive. You will hear how they have changed when they have meetings and how they conduct them. And how much impact can come from putting a clear name to each group of executives that lead your business.