Our CEO, Mel McGee, recently published a piece on what she calls “loop lapse”: the condition where people reviewing AI-generated work don’t know which parts are theirs to own. It’s one of the best takes I’ve read on where AI adoption actually breaks down, and every leader managing an AI rollout should read it.
But that got me thinking about a different person.
The person who opened that article already nervous. The one quietly wondering if their role will get replaced by AI. Maybe that’s you, or someone on your team who has gotten a little quiet since the AI rollout began.
In reality, the more judgment a task requires, the less AI can help. That’s where you come in. For high-judgment work, you’re the author, not the editor.
There’s power in having the context that AI doesn’t. You know this client had a rough quarter and the report you are creating has to delicately convey it to shareholders. You know the framing AI chose for a blog is technically right but lands wrong for your audience. None of that lives in a prompt — that’s all you.
AI is good at recognizing patterns across lots of data. It’s not good at knowing the person, relationship, and situation. That’s the gap only you can fill.
Think of it this way. The human in the loop isn’t there to rubber-stamp what AI created. They’re there because the most consequential judgment in any workflow belongs to someone who actually knows the context. Someone who’s been in the room and understands what this particular person needs to hear.
That’s your part in the play.
Don’t be afraid to ask your AI champion where human judgment fits in the strategy. Transparency and just naming “the thing” is often enough to change how people see their place in it.
I hope this framing is helpful for anyone who feels nervous about AI. It’s a valid concern, but ultimately, you are the one in control. Try flipping the script to see AI as a co-pilot, freeing you up to get to more meaningful parts of your work.