AI is no longer a technology experiment—it’s a business imperative. Val Elbert, a member of BCG’s Technology, Media & Telecommunications practice, explains why CEOs must shift from AI pilots to profit, demand quarterly results from all AI initiatives, and lead cross-functional AI transformations that deliver real bottom-line impact. The winners will scale fast. The rest will be left explaining themselves to investors.

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Val Elbert, BCG Managing Director and Senior Partner, https://www.bcg.com/about/people/experts/val-elbert

As AI Investments Surge, CEOs Take the Lead, https://www.bcg.com/publications/2026/as-ai-investments-surge-ceos-take-the-lead

Turning AI Disruption into a Telco's Growth Engine, https://www.bcg.com/publications/2026/turning-ai-disruption-into-telcos-growth-engine

Driving Growth and Innovation at Verizon Consumer Group, https://www.bcg.com/publications/2025/driving-growth-innovation-leading-telco

Chapters

00:00 Introduction 00:44 Where TMT companies stand on AI adoption

02:32 The boardroom shift from AI pilots to scale

03:11 Building AI into business agendas

03:49 AI adoption patterns across industries 0

4:37 Leaders need to see quarterly results

05:22 Why AI can't run as a three-year program

05:59 What separates AI winners

07:22 Why structure needs to change

07:52 Where friction blocks AI value creation

09:19 How to focus amid technology noise

10:00 The mindset shift to move from AI pilots to P&L

10:30 What scaling AI in telecom looks like

12:08 The role of humans in an AI-driven operating model

13:28 What the next 18 months will look like

13:55 Will AI drive mergers?

15:10 Is It harder for legacy companies to compete in AI?

15:36 How AI-driven change will impact consumers

16:44 If you're stuck in the pilot phase

17:45 Physical AI at MWC Barcelona

18:11 Outro

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What makes a leadership team truly high performing, and why does it matter for the entire organization? Judith Wallenstein, CEO Advisory Global Lead of BCG, and Khadija Ben Hammada, Chief People Officer of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, explore this topic and more. They share how CEOs can build executive teams grounded in trust, purpose, and psychological safety. When the top team clicks, the whole company moves faster and with more clarity.

Learn more: https://lnk.to/so-what-general-show32

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Judith Wallenstein, Managing Director & Senior Partner, Global Lead, CEO Advisory

https://www.bcg.com/about/people/experts/judith-wallenstein

Khadija Ben Hammada, Member of the Executive Board and Chief People Officer for Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany

https://www.emdgroup.com/en/company/management/executive-board/khadija-ben-hammada.html

Subscribe to BCG’s YouTube channel: https://goo.gl/hsFsVT

Visit us at https://www.bcg.com

Chapters

(00:00) Intro

(00:17) How do you build a high-performing leadership team?

(01:36) What makes a team work?

(02:12) What does a high-performing team feel like?

(03:45) How much of team success depends on the CEO’s behavior and decisions?

(05:55) When hiring, what are you looking for — what’s the secret sauce?

(08:47) What should the CEO–Chief People Officer relationship look like?

(09:50) What did you learn as chief of staff that you apply on an executive team?

(11:42) How do team members to elevate collective performance?

(13:01) How should leadership adapt in an era of uncertainty?

(16:35) How do you keep a team successful when key people move on?

(19:27) What's steps should leaders take now to create a top-performing team?

(21:03) Outro

The global energy transition is growing in complexity with shifting economics, soaring electricity demand, and competing national priorities. Maurice Berns and Asheesh Sastry from BCG’s Center for Energy Impact lay out how leaders can keep up by focusing on the economics, creating strategies for individual markets, and staying ahead of policy shifts.

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1. Maurice Berns, Chair, BCG Center for Energy Impact https://www.bcg.com/about/people/experts/maurice-berns
2. Asheesh Sastry, Managing Director & Senior Partner https://www.bcg.com/about/people/experts/asheesh-sastry
3. The Energy Transition’s Next Chapter https://www.bcg.com/publications/2025/global-energy-landscape-next-chapter
4. BCG Center for Energy Impact https://www.bcg.com/industries/energy/center-for-energy-impact/default
5. About the Energy Transition https://www.bcg.com/industries/energy/energy-transition