The Power of Peers in an Era of Artificial Intelligence with Leo Bottary
Leadership in today's rapidly evolving business landscape presents a profound challenge: the isolation that comes with being at the top. CEOs and senior executives often find themselves surrounded by people who have a stake in outcomes, making it difficult to get honest, impartial feedback. The traditional highlight-reel culture of platforms like LinkedIn exacerbates this problem, creating unrealistic comparisons and leaving leaders feeling alone in their struggles. This episode reveals how peer advisory groups provide the antidote to executive loneliness while supercharging innovation through collective intelligence.
The conversation explores how peer groups create a "practice field" for leaders—a confidential space where CEOs can step away from daily operations to engage with peers from diverse industries. Unlike networking groups focused on industry-specific connections, these forums bring together chief decision-makers from various sectors, enabling cross-pollination of ideas and practices. Members discover that while they share common challenges, the most valuable insights often come from applying processes from one industry to another, creating unexpected competitive advantages.
Trust emerges as the foundational element of effective peer groups, with the discussion tracing the evolution of trust through the Edelman Trust Barometer's two-decade research. As trust in institutions has declined, people increasingly turn to peers for sense-making and validation. This shift has profound implications for organizational leadership, requiring CEOs to become "trust brokers" who can bridge differing perspectives within their teams. The episode reveals how peer groups model this trust-building behavior, teaching leaders to lean into curiosity rather than rushing to judgment.
The conversation then examines how the principles of peer groups translate into organizational innovation through "peer innovation"—a framework that leverages the collective intelligence of teams. This approach becomes particularly crucial in the age of artificial intelligence, where the human elements of judgment, context, and relationship-building complement AI's capabilities. The hosts discuss how collective intelligence (artificial intelligence plus human intelligence) represents the future of organizational effectiveness, with peer groups serving as the training ground for developing these essential human skills.
As AI enables businesses to scale with fewer employees, the episode warns of the potential for increased executive isolation while simultaneously highlighting the growing necessity of peer connection. The discussion concludes with practical guidance on implementing peer innovation principles daily and scaling these approaches globally to meet the challenges of an increasingly complex business environment.
Highlights
The conversation explores how peer groups create a "practice field" for leaders—a confidential space where CEOs can step away from daily operations to engage with peers from diverse industries. Unlike networking groups focused on industry-specific connections, these forums bring together chief decision-makers from various sectors, enabling cross-pollination of ideas and practices. Members discover that while they share common challenges, the most valuable insights often come from applying processes from one industry to another, creating unexpected competitive advantages.
Trust emerges as the foundational element of effective peer groups, with the discussion tracing the evolution of trust through the Edelman Trust Barometer's two-decade research. As trust in institutions has declined, people increasingly turn to peers for sense-making and validation. This shift has profound implications for organizational leadership, requiring CEOs to become "trust brokers" who can bridge differing perspectives within their teams. The episode reveals how peer groups model this trust-building behavior, teaching leaders to lean into curiosity rather than rushing to judgment.
The conversation then examines how the principles of peer groups translate into organizational innovation through "peer innovation"—a framework that leverages the collective intelligence of teams. This approach becomes particularly crucial in the age of artificial intelligence, where the human elements of judgment, context, and relationship-building complement AI's capabilities. The hosts discuss how collective intelligence (artificial intelligence plus human intelligence) represents the future of organizational effectiveness, with peer groups serving as the training ground for developing these essential human skills.
As AI enables businesses to scale with fewer employees, the episode warns of the potential for increased executive isolation while simultaneously highlighting the growing necessity of peer connection. The discussion concludes with practical guidance on implementing peer innovation principles daily and scaling these approaches globally to meet the challenges of an increasingly complex business environment.
Highlights
- Join a peer advisory group to access impartial feedback and diverse industry perspectives unavailable within your organization
- Implement peer innovation frameworks to transform team collaboration and accelerate organizational problem-solving
- Monitor the Edelman Trust Barometer annually to understand evolving trust dynamics and their impact on leadership
- Develop trust-brokering skills to bridge differing perspectives and foster psychological safety within teams
- Use peer groups as a "practice field" to experiment with leadership approaches before implementing them organization-wide
- Balance AI adoption with human intelligence development through collective intelligence strategies
- Replace highlight-reel comparisons with authentic peer connections to combat executive isolation
Important Concepts and Frameworks
- Peer Innovation Framework — A systematic approach to leveraging collective intelligence within organizations through five factors, three dynamics, and six measurable outcomes
- Edelman Trust Barometer — Annual global study tracking public trust in institutions (government, business, media, NGOs) since 2001, revealing critical shifts in where people place trust
- Psychological Safety — Amy Edmondson's research on creating environments where team members feel safe to take risks, admit mistakes, and voice concerns without fear of negative consequences
- Collateral Learning — John Dewey's concept that how we learn (through engagement with others) shapes how we lead, listen, and approach problem-solving
- Trust Brokering — The leadership practice of identifying common ground among team members with differing perspectives to enable effective collaboration
Tools & Resources Mentioned
- Vistage: The World’s Largest Executive Coaching Organization — Global peer advisory organization for CEOs, executives, and business leaders
- REF | CEO Peer Advisory Boards — International peer advisory network operating in 20 countries for 32 years
- Entrepreneurs' Organization — Global peer-to-peer network of entrepreneurs
- LinkedIn — Professional networking platform described as the "highlight reel" where people present idealized versions of their professional lives
- You: Time's Person of the Year 2006 | TIME — Recognition that every person alive in 2006 was named Person of the Year, highlighting the power of individual voices in the digital age
- Peernovation Online peer-powered team building programmes — Central resource for peer innovation frameworks, books, and implementation guides
Calls to Action
- Research and join a peer advisory group that matches your leadership level and industry diversity preferences to gain impartial perspectives on business challenges.
- Download and review the latest Edelman Trust Barometer report to understand current trust dynamics and their implications for your leadership approach.
- Implement daily peer innovation practices from "Peer Innovation 365" to systematically build collaborative capabilities within your team.
- Add "Time Magazine Person of the Year 2006" to your LinkedIn profile as a conversation starter about collective achievement and peer support.
- Schedule regular "practice field" sessions with trusted peers to test leadership approaches before implementing them in your organization.
- Develop a structured AI onboarding plan that involves your entire team in defining how artificial intelligence will augment rather than replace human capabilities.
Key Quotes
- "Every one of us is trying to sell a Mercedes to someone who doesn't even know what a car is." — Leo Bottary
- "Successful people ask for help. They don't see it as a sign of weakness. They regard it as an act of resourcefulness." — Leo Bottary
- "Collective intelligence equals artificial intelligence plus human intelligence." — Mike Richardson
- "We need to onboard AI like they were an additional employee." — Leo Bottary
- "When you don't trust institutions, who do you look to? We look to one another." — Leo Bottary
## Chapters
00:00 — Introducing the Global Authority on Peer Power and Innovation
01:06 — The Mercedes Metaphor: Selling Peer Groups to an Unaware Market
04:06 — From Staff Member to Category Advocate: The Peer Power Journey
07:00 — LinkedIn's Highlight Reel vs. Peer Groups' Authentic Reality
09:22 — Building the Practice Field for CEO Development
12:07 — Trust Barometer Insights: The Shift from Institutions to Peers
17:44 — Psychological Safety and Collateral Learning in Peer Groups
22:37 — From Peer Groups to Organizational Peer Innovation
27:42 — AI Onboarding: Treating Artificial Intelligence as Team Members
32:53 — Peer Innovation 365: Daily Practices for Collective Intelligence
37:23 — The Future of Leadership in an AI-Augmented World
41:53 — Scaling Peer Innovation Globally for Maximum Impact
45:02 — Trust Brokering: The Essential Leadership Skill for Modern Organizations
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This Episode's Guest:
Leo Bottary
Website: https://www.peernovation.biz/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leobottary/
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About the Host
Mike Richardson – Agility, Peer Power & Collective Intelligence
Website: https://mikerichardson.live/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/agilityexpertmikerichardson/
Creators and Guests
