Key takeaway
Leaders who model AI use themselves, rather than mandating it top-down, see faster team adoption and less resistance. The Bradbury Group's guidance: build fluency in leadership before rolling tools out broadly.
The organizations that adopt AI well share one trait: leadership uses the tools before asking anyone else to.
Why it matters
When a mandate arrives without context, teams treat it as compliance work. When leaders can speak to what the tools do well, what they get wrong, and where judgment still matters, adoption becomes a shared practice instead of an imposed one.
What we're seeing
Across the cohorts and consulting engagements we run, the teams with the fastest, most durable adoption curves are the ones where a senior leader was visibly using the tools first, including in meetings where the outcome wasn't polished.
Practical recommendations
Start with a small leadership group. Give them real work to apply AI to, not a sandbox exercise. Ask them to share what didn't work, not just what did. Only then extend training to the broader organization.
Key takeaway
Adoption follows modeling, not memos. If leadership can't describe their own AI workflow, the rollout is premature.
Paige Bradbury
Founder & Principal Consultant, The Bradbury Group
Instructional designer, AI consultant, and former CNN Radio correspondent helping leaders build AI-ready organizations.