From the Horse's Mouth: Intrepid Conversations with Phil Fersht

Phil Fersht
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As technology rapidly evolves, the world has undergone a significant transformation. Society has shifted from being human-centered to a complex web of digital automation, AI, and human workers who support it. This rapid innovation outpaces regulations and threatens social mobility. The rise of AI presents a critical challenge: how can businesses and policymakers ensure that AI enhances, rather than hinders, human creativity and innovation? Automating routine tasks could free up people for roles requiring creativity, problem-solving, and emotional intelligence, but it demands a focus on continuous learning and digital literacy. The first season of From the Horse's Mouth: Intrepid Conversations with Phil Fersht explores the intersection of AI, work, and society, aiming to shape the future.

  1. AI at a crossroads: The state of the industry on trust, leadership, and execution

    APR 27 ·  VIDEO

    AI at a crossroads: The state of the industry on trust, leadership, and execution

    In this episode, Phil Fersht is joined by members of the HFS Global Advisory Board to explore why AI has reached a critical inflection point for enterprises. The panel features Malcolm Frank, Steven Hill, Mark Hodges, Cliff Justice, Mary Lacity, and Jesus Mantas, bringing together decades of leadership experience across consulting, academia, and global enterprises. Together, they discuss the growing gap between AI experimentation and real execution, and why trust, leadership conviction, and organizational design are now the biggest barriers to scaling AI. While individuals are rapidly adopting AI in their daily work, enterprises remain slowed by process debt, siloed structures, and fear-driven decision-making. The discussion also examines how AI is reshaping services, workforce models, and business outcomes, and why success will depend less on technology and more on culture, accountability, and the willingness to redesign how work gets done. To watch the full webinar, visit here: https://www.hfsresearch.com/webinar/ai-at-a-crossroads-the-state-of-the-industry-on-trust-leadership-and-execution/ What you’ll hear• Why enterprises are struggling to move from AI experimentation to execution• The AI velocity gap between individuals and organizations• How trust, fear, and leadership behavior are slowing adoption• Why process debt is a bigger barrier than data or technology• The shift from effort-based services to outcome-driven models• How AI is reshaping workforce structures and middle management Key takeaways• AI challenges are more about people, culture, and leadership than technology• Trust in AI remains a major barrier, especially at senior leadership levels• Process ownership and accountability are critical to unlocking value• Enterprises must redesign workflows, not just layer AI onto existing systems• Services firms must move toward outcome-based models to remain relevant• Organizations that act with speed and conviction will outpace competitors Chapters00:00 Introduction and panel overview00:20 Meet the HFS Global Advisory Board02:20 The AI velocity gap in enterprises04:17 Why adoption is slowing inside organizations05:02 Trust vs capability in AI adoption06:41 Lack of strategy and enterprise readiness07:59 Building trust and securing AI systems09:07 Process debt as the biggest barrier10:40 Leadership, culture, and change management12:46 Overcoming fear and driving adoption14:42 The shift to services as software16:48 Industry disruption and business model change18:28 The future of services and global impact21:09 Key takeaways from the panel24:50 Closing remarks

    25 min
  2. Beyond LLMs into the physical world: Phil Fersht with Cathy Hackl

    APR 7 ·  VIDEO

    Beyond LLMs into the physical world: Phil Fersht with Cathy Hackl

    In the latest episode of From the Horse’s Mouth, Phil Fersht is joined by Cathy Hackl, the tech futurist widely known as the “Godmother of the Metaverse”. Together, they explore the failings of the metaverse, the wider emerging tech space, and what comes next for AI. Cathy makes clear that the future of AI isn’t defined by language alone. Looking beyond LLMs, it will have a much bigger impact in the physical world. That’s why Phil and Cathy discussed world models, spatial intelligence, and even why Claude can’t come to your house and change your lightbulb… Yet! They delve into the shifts we’re seeing as a result of AI, including the reality of AI-driven layoffs and how societies will have to shift when AI is embedded in everything we do. What you’ll hear in 30 minutes: What really happened to the metaverse, and which parts survived Why the future of AI extends beyond language models into the physical world How world models and spatial intelligence are reshaping the next wave of innovation Why enterprises are struggling to scale AI despite widespread adoption The growing tension between AI-driven efficiency and workforce stabilityGuest Snapshot Cathy Hackl is a tech futurist, investor, and gaming executive, and a leading voice on spatial computing and the future of the internet. She has worked with global brands including Nike, Ralph Lauren, and Louis Vuitton, currently holding a role with Nokia, and is an active member of the World Economic Forum. Explore More Phil Fersht on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pfersht/HFS Research Website: https://www.hfsresearch.com/Cathy Hackl on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cathyhackl/

    37 min
  3. You can't cut yourself to growth: Phil Fersht with Julie Sweet

    MAR 2 ·  VIDEO

    You can't cut yourself to growth: Phil Fersht with Julie Sweet

    In the latest episode of From the Horse’s Mouth, Phil Fersht is joined by Julie Sweet, Chair and CEO of Accenture, to discuss what leadership looks like when macro volatility collides with technology advancement. In particular, they explored why cost cutting alone won’t drive enterprise growth. As organizations race to scale AI, Julie made one thing very clear: ‘You do not cut your way to growth”. The conversation pushes beyond experimentation into accountability, how enterprises scale adoption across the enterprise, and the importance of nurturing the next generation of talent. This episode tackles the real questions facing enterprise leaders: How do you drive growth, protect talent pipelines, and reinvent yourself at scale? And how do they do it all at once? What you’ll hear in 30 minutes: Why “you do not cut your way to growth” in the AI era What it means to commit AI initiatives to the P&L The core differences between proof-of-concepts and enterprise scale Why volatility is forcing significant reinvention How AI is reshaping entry level jobs, and why preserving them mattersGuest Snapshot Julie Sweet is the Chair and CEO of Accenture, responsible for 800,000 employees across approximately 120 different countries. After 15 years at the firm, she became the CEO in 2019 and has guided them through a global pandemic and the rapid advancement of AI. Explore More Phil Fersht on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pfersht/HFS Research Website: https://www.hfsresearch.com/Julie Sweet on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julie-sweet/

    29 min
  4. Inventing the agentic enterprise playbook at IBM: Phil Fersht with Mohamad Ali

    FEB 24 ·  VIDEO

    Inventing the agentic enterprise playbook at IBM: Phil Fersht with Mohamad Ali

    In the latest episode of From the Horse’s Mouth, Phil Fersht is joined by Mohamad Ali, Head of IBM Consulting. They delved into what happens when one of the largest services organizations begins operating more like a software firm in the AI era. The conversation covered everything from how digital workers are reshaping delivery models, to the reimagination of margin structures and how value is defined. As enterprises demand more for less, Phil and Mohamad dig into IBM Consulting’s big bets and what the next phase of technology means for the industry. What you’ll hear in 30 minutes: Why the consulting and software worlds are colliding How enterprise expectations are changing The growth of human and digital offerings. Whether AI driven efficiency shrinks margins or grows them What “trillions of agents” means for the modern enterprise Why leaders who stutter will fall behind in the AI era.Guest Snapshot Mohamad Ali leads IBM Consulting, overseeing the entire global services organization that generates over $20 billion in annual revenue. He spent almost 14 years at IBM between 1996 and 2009, before embarking on an career that saw him serve as the CEO at two different companies, before ultimately returning to help lead IBM’s enterprise AI play in 2023. Explore More Phil Fersht on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pfersht/ HFS Research Website: https://www.hfsresearch.com/ Mohamad Ali on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alimohamad/

    22 min
  5. The new enterprise stack and Google's AI play: Phil Fersht with Richard Seroter

    FEB 4 ·  VIDEO

    The new enterprise stack and Google's AI play: Phil Fersht with Richard Seroter

    In the latest episode of From the Horse’s Mouth, Phil Fersht is joined by Richard Seroter, Chief Evangelist at Google Cloud. They discuss the latest developments with enterprise AI and why its impact feels different to every technology wave before it. The conversation looks deeper than flashy press releases and hype to explore how AI is reshaping behaviours, decision-making and enterprise risk. It covers everything from the shift in how people search and interact with technology to the growing tension between speed, trust, and scale. Phil and Richard delve into whether advantage comes from moving first with AI, what separates experimentation from transformation, and why AI adoption will be defined by outcomes. What you’ll hear in 30 minutes Why Google’s move into the enterprise collided with the AI explosion How ChatGPT changed consumer expectations, and what it revealed about how humans want to interact First movers versus fast followers, and why second mover advantage matters more Why Services-as-Software is growing, and what it signals about the industry’s futureGuest Snapshot Richard Seroter is the Chief Evangelist at Google Cloud, where he works across enterprises, developers, and leaders to drive outcomes with emerging technologies. Richard previously held roles at firms like VMWare, Microsoft, and Accenture. Explore More Phil Fersht on LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/pfersht/ HFS Research Website: https://www.hfsresearch.com/ Richard Seroter on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seroter/

    33 min
  6. Fast AI and fragile enterprises: Phil Fersht with Gary Hoberman

    JAN 27 ·  VIDEO

    Fast AI and fragile enterprises: Phil Fersht with Gary Hoberman

    In the latest episode of From the Horse’s Mouth, Phil Fersht sits down with Gary Hoberman, Founder and CEO of Unqork, to break down what’s really happening below the AI hype, and why the race to scale AI might just be deepening enterprises’ technical debt. Enterprises are discovering that speed alone isn’t the advantage they thought it was. Security, reliability, repeatability, and explainability are becoming the real bottlenecks for AI adoption. It’s exposing a divide between what can be built quickly, and what can be trusted at scale. What you’ll hear in 30 minutes Why AI is accelerating code creation, but enhancing complexity The hidden risks of low-code, AI-assisted development, and code replication Why security, reliability, repeatability, and explainability matter more than speed Why control, not velocity, will define the next phase of enterprise transformationGuest Snapshot Gary Hoberman is the Founder and CEO of Unqork, a no-code enterprise application platform used across key industries like financial services, insurance, healthcare, and the public sector. He is a former CIO and technology leader at firms like Citi and MetLife, and has spent more than three decades building and scaling mission-critical systems in highly regulated environments. Explore More Gary Hoberman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gary-hoberman/Phil Fersht on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pfersht/More from HFS: https://www.hfsresearch.comMore from From the Horse's Mouth: https://horsesmouthpodcast.com/

    37 min
  7. AI Pretenders, platforms and scaling extraordinary talent: Phil Fersht with Malcom Frank

    JAN 20 ·  VIDEO

    AI Pretenders, platforms and scaling extraordinary talent: Phil Fersht with Malcom Frank

    In the latest episode of From the Horse’s Mouth, Phil Fersht sits down with Malcom Frank to unpack why the IT Services model is starting to crack, as well as what comes next once AI reshapes delivery, scale, and value. They delve into topics from Wall Street’s growing skepticism of traditional services economies to the challenge of scaling extraordinary people. It’s a conversation that cuts through the noise to find where real advantage will be created in the AI era, and the gap between hype and execution is rapidly growing. This isn’t about chasing a first-mover advantage. We’re not even sure that matters anymore. It’s about understanding which business models can actually scale, and which ones are set to fail. What you’ll hear in 30 minutes Why Wall Street no longer trusts five-year cash flows in IT Services. Why extraordinary people don’t scale and what replaces that model. First mover versus fast followers, and where the real advantage is created. How hyperscalers are positioning themselves as the new advisors The parade of pretenders, and what it signals about market transitions Where the next generation of services winners will come fromGuest Snapshot Malcom Frank is a longtime technology services leader, advisor, and board member with more than three decades of experience helping services firms scale through major market transitions. He has held senior leadership roles at firms like TalentGenius and Cognizant. Explore More  Malcom Frank on LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/malcolm-frank-92028/Phil Fersht on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pfersht/More from HFS: https://www.hfsresearch.comMore from From the Horse's Mouth: https://horsesmouthpodcast.com/

    39 min
  8. From process debt to AI divide: Phil Fersht in conversation with Tiger Tyagarajan

    12/23/2025 ·  VIDEO

    From process debt to AI divide: Phil Fersht in conversation with Tiger Tyagarajan

    There will be AI winners and AI losers. There will be no middle ground. In this candid and wide-ranging episode of From the Horse’s Mouth, Phil Fersht is joined by Tiger Tyagarajan to unpack why 2025 was the beginning of the services industry finally moving beyond AI talk to AI action. If you’re an AI ‘fast follower’, this is one you don’t want to miss. What you’ll hear in 30 minutes: Why 2025 was the beginning of a great separation between AI winners and losers Why process debt is one of the top blockers to enterprise success Why the fast-follower approach doesn’t work in the AI world The end of “mess for less” and what replaces it Why culture is the competitive advantage today What leadership looks like once AI slices through layers of management How AI is enabling smaller, faster, founder-led enterprisesGuest Snapshots Tiger Tyagarajan is a global business leader, best known for his 13-year stint as the CEO of Genpact, where he helped the company evolve from its 2005 GE spinout into one of the top IT and Business services players today. Since stepping down as CEO, Tiger keeps himself busy advising global enterprises, private equity firms, and venture investors on all things AI adoption and transformation. He does this through advisory roles at BCG, Bain Capital, Brighton Park Capital, and many others. Timestamps 0:00 – Welcome and intro to Tiger Tyagarajan 0:26 – Tiger’s career journey and advisory roles2:26 – Genpact’s evolution and the problem of process debt3:31 – 2025 outlook: AI winners vs. losers  5:39 – Why there’s no “fast follower” strategy in AI 6:44 – What Tiger sees at BCG and global markets 7:08 – Middle East leapfrogging with AI investment  9:01 – Competing as a smaller, nimbler firm10:08 – Headcount reduction and the next service disruption11:21 – Culture as the #1 differentiator in AI 12:14 – Faster, iterative transformation cycles13:08 – The new operating model: people, agents, and AI budgets    14:30 – Emerging challengers vs. Wall Street incumbents15:03 – Why services are becoming a dirty word    16:07 – Cannibalizing revenue to scale IP and margins    17:35 – New job roles and changing talent models    18:32 – The future of work: AI + human skills    21:01 – How GenAI reshapes management work    22:28 – Leadership in the AI era: trust and adoption    24:09 – AI exploits, humans explore    25:21 – McKinsey layoffs: reality vs. messaging    28:18 – Big firms shrink, SMBs grow    28:59 – Capital-light business models at a global scale    31:45 – 2026 as the “year of how.”    32:13 – Winning in the last mile    33:22 – Final thoughts and wrap-up Explore More Phil Fersht on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/philipfersht HFS Research Website: https://www.hfsresearch.com/ Tiger Tyagarajan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tigertyagarajan/?originalSubdomain=pt

    34 min
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As technology rapidly evolves, the world has undergone a significant transformation. Society has shifted from being human-centered to a complex web of digital automation, AI, and human workers who support it. This rapid innovation outpaces regulations and threatens social mobility. The rise of AI presents a critical challenge: how can businesses and policymakers ensure that AI enhances, rather than hinders, human creativity and innovation? Automating routine tasks could free up people for roles requiring creativity, problem-solving, and emotional intelligence, but it demands a focus on continuous learning and digital literacy. The first season of From the Horse's Mouth: Intrepid Conversations with Phil Fersht explores the intersection of AI, work, and society, aiming to shape the future.

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