Managing Your Team Through Change

This is the first episode of Ask Hartley Anything. In this series, I tackle real-world questions from engineers, product managers, and tech leaders — sharing advice and insights from my own journey in the trenches.

Today’s question from Anonymous:

We’ve recently been surprised with a change in direction to become an ai first company. Can you share some advice on how to manage the team through these changes?

AI is a major buzzword in business today, possibly the decade, or even this century. For many companies, it’s more than hype; it’s a new way of working. But what happens when this shift feels sudden? Today, I’ll share advice on managing team dynamics, keeping morale high, and adapting to new expectations. Welcome to Ask Hartley Anything, the advice podcast for engineers. I’m John Hartley, tackling your toughest career and leadership questions.

Today’s episode is timely as we dive into managing teams during big shifts like becoming an AI-first company. If you have questions, send them to askhartley.com or connect with me on LinkedIn. Each week, I’ll focus on one core question from you. Today’s is from Anonymous: We’ve been surprised with a change to become an AI-first company. Can you share advice on managing the team through these changes?