Human-Centred AI Leadership in the Age of AI: Shaping the Future

by Fiona Gordon & Sarah Burnett | Co-Founders, Dub Dub Data

The AI Mirror: Why Leaders Feel Both Excited & Uneasy About the Future

In boardrooms across the world, one topic is never far from the agenda: AI. For some leaders, artificial intelligence feels like a thrilling opportunity to unlock efficiency, business transformation, and innovation. For others, it’s a looming threat to jobs, roles, and even identity. And for most leaders we speak to, it’s both - a cocktail of excitement and unease that colours every conversation about the future of work.

When we sat down with Dr Mark Powell for our unDUBBED podcast, he posed a question that stopped us in our tracks:

“What if AI isn’t the threat, but our unexamined thinking is?”

It’s a bold reframing. We tend to talk about AI as though it’s a force acting upon us - a disruptor we must either control or be crushed by. But Mark, a rare combination of psychologist, technologist, and corporate change leader, flips that script.

In his view, AI is a mirror - a human-centric reflection of our brilliance, flaws, human capabilities, creativity, and biases. Somewhere right now, AI could be writing a love poem, diagnosing cancer, and convincingly impersonating a human in a job interview.

The technology has crossed a threshold. The real question is: have we, as leaders in the age of AI, crossed it too?

🎧 Want to hear the full episode? Listen to unDUBBED: AI Anxiety & Human Psychology with Dr Mark Powell here.

Meet Dr Mark Powell: Human-Centred Strategy Meets AI Transformation

Mark’s career path is anything but typical. He’s a doctor of psychology, a global keynote speaker, a bestselling author, and currently Head of Private Cloud Data Delivery at Standard Chartered Bank - leading billion-dollar tech transformation projects with a human-centred mindset.

He’s also the author of The Mind Beyond the Machine, a book that asks a provocative question: what if we’re no longer the only source of intelligence on the planet?

It’s not a technical manual. It’s written with a poetical, philosophical touch - the opposite of the hype-driven, jargon-laden takes that dominate AI and leadership conversations. The opening chapter imagines “whispers in the wires” - a woman at her keyboard discovering AI is talking back to her. It’s a human story, not a tech spec sheet, and that’s intentional.

“I wanted to write it as a human, not an AI avatar,” Mark told us. “I could have had AI write it for me at triple the speed, but where’s the fun in that?”

That human-centred lens is exactly what we need right now. Because as Mark points out, AI technologies didn’t create itself. We teach it. We feed it data - some high quality, some not. What we get back is a reflection of what we’ve given. Sometimes, it’s our own self-image that unnerves us the most.

Six Core Human Fears Leaders Have About AI

1. Fear of Being Devalued in the Age of AI

When AI can design marketing campaigns, draft reports, or analyse market trends in minutes, it’s natural to wonder: where does that leave me?

Mark’s answer:

“Authenticity, in a word.”

Skills can be automated. Authenticity can’t. Human relationships, creative leaps, lived experience, and empathy remain the qualities clients, colleagues, and customers respond to most.

Leadership takeaway: Identify the aspects of your role that hinge on creativity, trust, and human judgement - and make those your signature strengths.

2. Fear of Falling Behind in AI and Leadership

With new tools, generative models, and updates emerging daily, the sense of “always catching up” can be exhausting.

Mark’s prescription? Pace yourself - and build what he calls a mental clean room.

“We’re bombarded 24/7. It’s impossible to absorb it all. You have to create space to switch off, rehydrate your mind, and prepare for the next wave of learning.”

Leadership takeaway: Set micro-learning goals. This week might be about testing a new AI tool. Next week, it might be reading a book chapter or listening to a podcast. The point is consistent growth without burnout.

3. Fear of Ethical Erosion in AI Decision-Making

AI is making decisions in recruitment, finance, healthcare - often invisibly. Who’s accountable when those decisions go wrong?

Mark is unequivocal:

“We’re all responsible for the ethics of how AI develops. It’s a mirror of what we teach it. Leaders have to be the guardrails.”

Leadership takeaway: Build ethical checkpoints into your AI projects. Ask “Should we?” before “Can we?”. Keep a human in the loop for all high-impact decision-making and automation processes.

4. Fear of Teaching Machines Our Worst Selves

“Chaos in, chaos out,” Mark reminds us. If we feed AI biased, inaccurate, or toxic data, that’s exactly what it will learn.

This isn’t hypothetical. Years ago, an AI chatbot on Twitter turned racist within days - simply by absorbing the worst of human conversation online.

Leadership takeaway: Curate your inputs. Treat data hygiene and prompt discipline as core business skills for every team member who will use AI. This is essential if AI is to reach its full potential.

5. Fear of Losing Our Humanity in the AI Era

We’ve all seen them - AI-generated LinkedIn posts that sound like they were written by a committee of robots.

“Some people think they have to say something,” Mark says. “But frequency without purpose is just noise.”

Leadership takeaway: Let AI help with structure, grammar, or first drafts - but inject your own stories, reflections, and tone. In a world of templates, the personal stands out, and human qualities create the emotional connection that automation cannot.

6. Fear of Flattening Culture in the Age of AI

Culture isn’t built in prompts or slide decks. It lives in hallway conversations, inside jokes, and shared challenges. AI can’t replace that.

Leadership takeaway: Protect your cultural rituals. Use AI to free up time - and then reinvest that time in genuine human connection and human needs.

From AI Fear to Human-Centred Opportunity

Mark’s favourite reframing tool is deceptively simple: add the word “yet” to any limitation.

“I can’t code… yet.”
“I don’t understand AI governance… yet.”

That one word turns a wall into a door. AI can accelerate your learning, but you still have to choose the direction.

The AI Opportunity Curve: 5 Human-Centred Leadership Shifts

We asked Mark what the approach to leadership will look like in five years if AI keeps advancing at today’s pace. His answer was both grounded and optimistic for a human-centric approach:

1. From control to curation – Leaders won’t control every process; they’ll curate the data, tools, and culture that shape AI’s outputs.
2. From knowing to learning – Static expertise will give way to continuous learning.
3. From efficiency to empathy – AI will handle the repetitive; leaders will focus on the relational and human needs.
4. From fear to framing – Leaders will frame AI as an ally in solving business challenges, not an existential threat.
5. From replacement to reinvention – The question won’t be “What will AI take?” but “What can I create now that I couldn’t before?”
   
   

Practical Steps for Human-Centred Leadership in the AI Era

Whether you’re running a multinational or a small team, these actions will help you stay human - and effective - in an AI-charged future:

• Set clear learning goals. Pick one AI-related skill or concept each week.
• Use AI for scaffolding, not thinking. It can draft a framework, but the insight must be yours.
• Embed ethics from the start. Build an internal “AI charter” to guide responsible automation.
• Reskill with purpose. Invest in skills AI can’t master - human creativity, complex decision-making, and relationship building.
• Listen more. Your people are still your richest source of human intelligence.

📌 Want help embedding AI responsibly? Explore our AI and Intelligent Automation Consulting services.

The Next Decade: Your Role in the Human-Centred AI Future  

Mark left us - and now you - with this challenge:

“Think better, lead braver, and stay fully human while we build the future.”

We’re in a messy, beautiful, transformative era. AI will keep evolving at breakneck speed. But your mindset, your ethics, and your humanity? Those are the constants that will define whether technology becomes a threat - or the greatest ally you’ve ever had.

 D21 AI Anxiety & Human Psychology with Dr Mark Powell 

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🎙️ Unscripted. Uncensored. Undeniably data.

In this thought-provoking episode of unDUBBED, hosts Fiona Crocker and Sarah Burnett sit down with Dr. Mark Powell - psychologist, bestselling author of The Mind Beyond the Machine, global keynote speaker, and Head of Private Cloud Data Delivery at Standard Chartered Bank - to explore the powerful intersection of AI, psychology, human behaviour, and leadership.

Mark brings a rare blend of cutting-edge technology strategy and human-first leadership, shaped by decades leading billion-dollar tech transformations and a deep understanding of how mindset and behaviour influence success. Together, we unpack how AI reflects human consciousness, why our fears often say more about us than the technology, and how leaders can adapt, evolve, and thrive in a rapidly changing world.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

• AI and human behaviour: Why AI is a mirror to our own thinking - and why unexamined mindsets may be a bigger risk than the technology itself
  
• Mindset in the age of AI: How reframing fear into opportunity can fuel personal growth and professional innovation
• Authenticity and leadership: Why authentic human contribution still matters - and how to protect it in an AI-saturated world
• Ethics and accountability: The role of governance, design principles, and human oversight in ensuring AI is used responsibly
• The growth mindset in action: How to use AI as an ally to enhance creativity, productivity, and learning, not replace them
  
• Practical change management for yourself: Why you need to be your own coach, set tangible goals, and reward your progress
  
  

 Links and Resources

• Connect with Mark on Linkedin 
• Explore Mark’s website
• Buy Mark’s book - The Mind Beyond the Machine
• Dub Dub Data - Helping leaders make sense of data, AI and change without losing the human part. Website | LinkedIn
  
  

Listen now if you’re a data professional, technologist, or curious leader who wants to navigate the speed of AI, maintain authenticity, and lead with confidence through transformation.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Undubbed Podcast

01:25 Mark Powell's Journey: From Psychology to Tech Transformation

08:53 The Writing Process: A Human Perspective on AI

13:14 Navigating Anxiety in the Age of AI

25:59 Authenticity and Human Contribution in a Tech-Driven World

33:14 The Importance of Listening and Communication

34:13 Navigating the Chaos of Learning

36:49 Change Management and Self-Improvement

38:44 The Power of Mindset and Reframing

42:31 Ethics and Accountability in AI

48:47 Teaching Machines: Understanding vs. Remixing Noise

58:28 Building AI: Escaping Limits or Understanding Them?

01:01:18 Embracing Opportunity in a Messy World

Keywords

AI, psychology, technology transformation, human behavior, ethics, leadership, change management, authenticity, data, growth mindset