General Managers must own AI, not CIOs or CTOs.A new report from Bain & Company reveals a sharp divide: while most companies are stuck in "pilot purgatory," a small group of AI leaders are securing 10–25% gains in EBITDA. The difference isn't the software, it's the strategy.

Shazrul Asari and Dhruva Murugasu, Partners at Bain & Company, join us to explain why scaling AI requires a fundamental business transformation rather than just "sprinkling AI on top" (like adding extra sambal to Nasi Lemak). We explore why plugging AI into old workflows is like driving a supercar in a traffic jam, and why the rise of "Agentic AI" demands a total rethink of the organisational chart.

We discuss:

  • The Divide: Why leaders achieve scale while others get stuck in sheltered pilots.
  • Workflow Redesign: Why you must decommission old processes, not just layer AI on top.
  • Agentic AI: The structural shift from "digital helpers" to "digital workers" that act autonomously.
  • The Talent Trap: How to prevent the "hollowing out" of junior roles via augmented apprenticeships.
  • CEO Advice: Why momentum matters more than perfection in the race to scale.

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