CEOs are often asking the wrong question about AI.
They are asking what it will replace.
Tom McCarty is asking something far more important. Where does your team actually create value?
That distinction changes how you lead, how you scale, and how you build a company that survives what is coming next.
“I believe every single role in a SaaS company needs to be learning and embracing AI into their day-to-day work.”
This is not a future-state idea. It is happening now.
The Shift Most Leaders Are Missing
AI is not about eliminating roles. That is the surface-level conversation.
The real shift is in how work is divided.
Tom frames it in a way that forces clarity. Separate what is routine from what is truly valuable.
- Repetitive analysis
- Manual data review
- Process-heavy tasks
These are no longer the core of most roles.
Instead, the value moves to:
- Judgment
- Creativity
- Decision-making
- Strategic thinking
“It’s not about displacement. It’s about optimizing our work for where we add the most value.”
That is where most companies are unprepared. They are still structured around the old version of work.
Why This Matters More in SaaS
SaaS companies do not have the luxury of waiting.
They operate in environments where speed, efficiency, and iteration define success. AI accelerates all three.
Tom is clear about what that means for leadership.
“This is no longer the time to dip our toes in. We have to just jump into the deep end.”
The hesitation most teams feel is understandable. New tools, new workflows, new expectations. But waiting creates a different risk.
Falling behind companies that are already building this into their DNA.
And once that gap opens, it compounds quickly.
What AI Actually Looks Like Inside a Company
The practical application is not theoretical. It shows up in how teams work every day.
Take product teams as an example.
Traditionally, a product manager might spend days or weeks analyzing:
- Support tickets
- Customer calls
- User feedback
- Internal data sources
Now that same work can be compressed into minutes.
AI can surface patterns, highlight trends, and identify insights at a scale no individual can match.
That does not eliminate the role. It elevates it.
Instead of searching for insights, the team can focus on what to do with them.
This shift shows up across the organization:
- Sales teams move faster with better data
- Marketing teams iterate campaigns more efficiently
- Leadership teams make decisions with broader visibility
The companies that win will not be the ones that adopt AI tools. They will be the ones that redesign how work gets done.
The CEO’s Role in This Transition
This is not something you can delegate and hope it happens.
It requires leadership.
Tom pushes his team to actively rethink their roles.
“What are the things that I do that are monotonous, and what are the things where my unique contribution really comes through?”
That question forces accountability.
It also creates clarity.
As a CEO, your role is to:
- Set the expectation that AI adoption is not optional
- Encourage experimentation without fear of failure
- Push teams to redefine how they spend their time
You are not just introducing tools. You are reshaping how your company thinks.
AI and the Future of Workforce Planning
The impact goes deeper than daily workflows.
It changes how you think about your organization itself.
Tom sees a direct connection between AI adoption and workforce planning.
When companies reduce headcount or restructure teams, they are making decisions about work allocation. AI introduces a new variable into that equation.
Instead of thinking only in terms of roles, you start thinking in terms of tasks.
Some tasks move to AI. Others remain human. Most roles become a blend of both.
That creates a more nuanced view of the organization:
- What work needs to be done
- Who or what is best suited to do it
- How those pieces fit together
This is where companies that think ahead gain an advantage.
They are not reacting to change. They are designing for it.
The Balance Between Efficiency and Growth
There is a temptation to over-engineer this process.
Too many tools. Too much structure. Too much complexity.
Tom brings a disciplined perspective shaped by years in high-velocity revenue environments.
Focus on what works. Remove what slows the team down.
That applies to AI just as much as it does to sales or operations.
The goal is not to create a perfect system. The goal is to create a system that moves faster, learns faster, and scales effectively.
Bringing It Together
AI is not a technology problem. It is a leadership problem.
It forces you to answer questions most companies avoid:
- Where does your team actually create value
- What work should no longer be done by humans
- How do you redesign roles around that reality
The companies that answer these questions early will move faster than their competitors.
The ones that wait will spend the next few years trying to catch up.
I’m Glenn Gow. I coach CEOs navigating exactly this kind of transition.
If you are still thinking about AI as a tool, you are missing the bigger shift. It is redefining how companies operate at every level.
