Advisor

Myles Suer, Pedro Amorim

This Advisor explores how agentic AI — autonomous systems capable of reasoning and acting across multi-step workflows — is rapidly reshaping enterprise operations. Drawing on field research and market signals, it distinguishes between firms embedding agents into core processes and those stalled in pilot purgatory due to fragmented data and governance. Early winners aren’t just using better models; they’re better prepared — with mature data pipelines, governed toolchains, and institutionalized knowledge.

Advisor

Noah Barsky

While often overshadowed by buzzwords and tech trends, financial literacy enables leaders to spot early distress signals, assess business health, and make grounded decisions. This Advisor presents two enduring insights: first, while earnings drive headlines, it’s the balance sheet that determines survivability — highlighting the importance of stewardship over growth at any cost. Second, that sales growth rate serves as a company’s “speed limit,” providing critical context for interpreting operational changes and ensuring strategic alignment. In times of transformation, disciplined financial insight remains a leader’s most dependable tool.

Advisor

Ali Ayach, Farhan Mirza

In this Advisor, ADL’s Ali Ayach and Farhan Mirza explore how the healthcare sector can embrace sustainability without compromising care quality or patient experience. It highlights the role of green technologies, international standards, and cross-industry collaboration in reducing environmental impact. Case studies from leading hospitals and health systems demonstrate tangible benefits — such as cost savings, emission reductions, and operational efficiencies — while national action plans in the US and UK reinforce a global drive toward net zero healthcare.

Advisor

Daniel Rees, Roderick Thomas, Victoria Bates, Gareth Davies

This Advisor distills insights from interviews with 48 healthcare and pharmaceutical leaders on the challenges and best practices for cross-sector collaboration using data and technology platforms. Key barriers include trust, governance complexity, misaligned incentives, and limited scalability. Success hinges on shared agendas, clear accountability, streamlined contracts, and strong leadership — all essential for embedding technology in a way that delivers lasting value to stakeholders.

Article

Eystein Thanisch

Part II of this Amplify series on disciplining AI explores how to rigorously evaluate and govern systems amid rising concerns over safety, performance, and accountability. As GenAI plateaus in both capability and ROI, this issue argues for a shift from benchmark-based assessments to context-specific evaluations emphasizing oversight, adaptability, and explainability. It offers philosophical and technical frameworks for aligning AI outputs with human-defined goals — underscoring that effective AI integration demands continuous learning, human judgment, and strategic foresight.

Article

Dan North

ADL’s Dan North examines the engineering discipline of AI evaluations, arguing that this is the locus of an LLM’s translation from task-agnostic capabilities measured by benchmarks to tech that is setting specific and ready-to-deliver success. North emphasizes the ultimately human nature of this discipline. An organization must define the kind of outputs it is looking for through an inclusive process involving customers and stakeholders, alongside engineers.

Article

Paul Clermont

Paul Clermont reminds us of a crucial but under-recognized trait of true AI: learning and improvement in response to feedback independent of explicit human design. The implementation of human requirements is thus both highly feasible and dialogic. Clermont stresses the high level of responsibility borne by humans when interacting with AI. Critical thinking about inputs and outputs, and awareness of both objectives and social context, remain firmly human (and sometimes regulatory) responsibilities — no matter how widely terms like “AI accountability” have gained currency.

Article

Joe Allen

Joe Allen joins the critique of benchmarks as the key means of measuring AI systems, with a focus on agents. Given the open world in which they operate, agents have autonomy over both planning and execution, and Allen argues they have already outgrown even the criteria used to evaluate LLMs. As self-organizing systems, agents should be assessed on their ability to follow their own plans consistently while adapting to unforeseen eventualities — an evaluation that cannot be fully scripted in advance. Drawing on direct experience, Allen details a suite of techniques that can be used to track and improve agent performance in terms of internal coherence, adherence to a context model, and more.

Article

Chirag Kundalia, V. Kavida

Chirag Kundalia and V. Kavida propose using survival analysis to understand when, and under what circumstances, an AI system might need maintenance or replacement. This approach involves modeling the intrinsic and extrinsic factors that could render a system no longer fit for purpose. It also requires organizations to define the standard of output the system must deliver, monitor that performance, and scan the horizon for relevant externalities (e.g., superior technology). Although survival analysis cannot anticipate every eventuality, modeling the future of an AI system enhances budgeting, compliance reporting, and strategic planning.

Article

Michael Papadopoulos, Olivier Pilot, Eystein Thanisch

ADL’s Michael Papadopoulos, Olivier Pilot, and Eystein Thanish argue that with model performance plateauing, the critical differentiator for AI in 2025 is how the technology is integrated into the specifics of an organization — and the context in which it will operate. Benchmarking, which is concerned with models out of context, is of diminishing applicability. After reviewing some entertaining but troubling examples of theoretically capable AI systems disconnecting disastrously from data, business rules, and basic plausibility, they propose an evaluation framework more attuned to contemporary challenges to prevent similar outcomes.

Advisor

Trevor Hunter

This Advisor explores how leader character can strengthen board governance and support ethical, effective decision-making in the face of growing ESG demands. It argues that traits such as courage, integrity, humility, and judgment are essential for directors to fulfill their fiduciary duties while navigating complex stakeholder expectations. By embracing character-driven leadership, boards can move beyond compliance to shape resilient, purpose-led organizations capable of long-term value creation.

Advisor

Catherine Drumheller, Matthew Ling, Laura Lawlor

This Advisor introduces a practical, integrated methodology for evaluating the holistic benefits of nature-based solutions (NbS). It addresses the shortcomings of current valuation approaches — either overly simplistic or excessively complex— by combining qualitative and quantitative measures within a structured multi-criteria analysis framework. The proposed benefit-screening method enables decision makers to transparently assess NbS across environmental, social, and economic dimensions.

Advisor

Joseph Farrington

This Advisor presents a case study from a major London hospital, showing how a simulation-first approach can guide AI model development in complex clinical settings. By simulating blood bank operations, the team assessed the potential value of predictive models before investing in data acquisition and model training. The simulation revealed that even moderately accurate predictions could reduce waste, especially when combined with optimized ordering policies. Beyond technical insights, the process fostered early stakeholder collaboration, ensuring the final model addressed real-world needs.

Advisor

Jeremy Blain

This Advisor urges leaders to move beyond surface-level digital upgrades and confront the deeper cultural and strategic shifts required for true transformation. By focusing on digital ambition, data-driven decision-making, and organizational alignment, it provides a roadmap for boards and executives to overcome inertia, reengage their teams, and lead with purpose in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.

Advisor

Shannon Ames, Whitney Stovall

This Advisor explores the often-overlooked sustainability potential of hydropower — highlighting how long-standing facilities are evolving to support environmental stewardship, community engagement, biodiversity, and transparent governance. From adaptive river management to educational outreach and innovative turbine designs, hydropower is demonstrating its capacity to deliver more than just renewable energy.

Advisor

Curt Hall

This Advisor, Part II in a series that explores the current state of on-orbit data centers, spotlights the countries, companies, and initiatives leading their development. From national space agencies to emerging start-ups, it maps the key players building space-based computing infrastructure — transforming satellites into intelligent, autonomous systems that can process data in real time.

Advisor

Alessia Falsarone

This Advisor explores the growing importance of lead independent directors (LID) in strengthening board oversight, especially in firms with concentrated leadership or weak governance. The LID plays a key role in balancing power, fostering accountability, and enhancing investor trust — but only when backed by real authority and engagement.

Advisor

Kelly Cooper, Neil Hawkins

This Advisor argues that many firms abandon sustainable business transformation (SBT) too soon, overlooking its proven financial, cultural, and societal benefits. Success depends on a Constancy of Purpose — an enduring, organization-wide commitment that embeds sustainability into strategy, avoids greenwashing, and positions companies to achieve lasting growth and resilience.

Advisor

Guido Peterssen Nodarse, Jose Luis Hevia

This Advisor argues that to unlock the full potential of private quantum hubs (PQHs), organizations must implement centralized governance systems tailored to the unique demands of quantum ecosystems. These systems must coordinate diverse technologies, manage hybrid architectures, and ensure secure, scalable access for a broad spectrum of users. Without such purpose-built governance, PQHs risk inefficiency and fragmentation — undermining their role as key enablers of enterprise quantum innovation.

Advisor

David Larcker, Amit Seru, Brian Tayan, Laurie Yoler

As this Advisor explores, AI is transforming corporate governance by narrowing the information gap between boards and management. With greater access to data and analysis, directors can exercise more informed oversight— but face higher expectations, new legal questions, and cybersecurity risks.