#120 - Ian Stevens on Building an AI-Ready Culture
Mon Jan 26 2026
When your people complete the mandated AI training but nothing changes, you don't have a tool problem; you have a culture problem.
As Director of L&D at Publicis Sapient, Ian Stevens watched mandates and endless emails fail to drive the engagement, adoption, or completions they needed.
The breakthrough came when they stopped teaching tools and started building mindsets. Ian reveals their secret weapon, the AI Caravan: 60-minute demos fueled by beer and pizza that brought record numbers into the office voluntarily.
He explains why people need to evolve from writers to editors, why adaptability and judgment matter more than technical skills, and how widening the guardrails unlocked momentum. Most importantly, Ian shows how transformation happens with people, not to them.
If you're tired of the "hurry up and wait" approach to AI adoption, this episode reveals how to build a culture where experimentation beats prescription every time.
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When your people complete the mandated AI training but nothing changes, you don't have a tool problem; you have a culture problem. As Director of L&D at Publicis Sapient, Ian Stevens watched mandates and endless emails fail to drive the engagement, adoption, or completions they needed. The breakthrough came when they stopped teaching tools and started building mindsets. Ian reveals their secret weapon, the AI Caravan: 60-minute demos fueled by beer and pizza that brought record numbers into the office voluntarily. He explains why people need to evolve from writers to editors, why adaptability and judgment matter more than technical skills, and how widening the guardrails unlocked momentum. Most importantly, Ian shows how transformation happens with people, not to them. If you're tired of the "hurry up and wait" approach to AI adoption, this episode reveals how to build a culture where experimentation beats prescription every time.