From Activity to Impact: Harnessing AI to Rebuild the Mid-Market Business Model with Ron Baker, Co-Founder, Threshold

How CEOs Can Play AI Offense (Stop Delegating Your Strategy)

Stop treating AI as a sales shortcut and start redesigning your business from the ground up to survive the fastest technology adoption in history. In this episode, Ashok Shivanand deconstructs a recent workshop with veteran CEOs to reveal why so many established leaders are struggling with an AI confidence gap. We explore the dangerous instinct to "wait and see" and why delegating AI to your "defensive" executive team could be a terminal mistake for your operations. In this episode: The Redesign Imperative: Why the electric motor failed to increase factory output for 30 years and how that applies to your AI implementation today. Frontier Tools vs. Copilot: Why Microsoft Copilot might be limiting your team's vision and why you need to provide access to Claude, Gemini, and ChatGPT. Playing Offense: How to identify "champions" in your organization to build a nucleus for institutional AI capability. The "Context First" Prompt: A simple, practical instruction that transforms AI from a basic search engine into a high-level thought partner. Mentioned in this episode... Claude AI (Claude.ai) ChatGPT Gemini Microsoft Copilot Convergence.fm Office Hours

The AI Adoption Playbook Every Business Needs (From an OpenAI Partner)

Dawid Naude, CEO of Pathfindr and one of Australia's leading AI implementation experts, joins the show to break down what it actually takes to drive meaningful AI transformation inside a business. Drawing from his work with companies ranging from small teams to enterprise retailers like Coles, Dawid shares why most organizations overcomplicate AI, and how the biggest wins often come from simple, accessible tools used the right way. The conversation unpacks a proven framework for adoption, starting with leadership enablement and scaling through internal champions, while highlighting why capability-building is the real unlock rather than rushing to custom development. Along the way, Dawid shares practical tactics, surprising case studies, and a clear perspective on how AI is reshaping roles, teams, and the future of work. Unlock the full potential of your business team with our office hours. Listeners of the show get a pro bono 30 minute session. Reach out at officehours@convergence.fm for a to gain clarity and confidence in harnessing AI for your business. Inside the episode... * Why most AI transformations fail before they start * The 3-step framework: leadership → champions → company-wide adoption * How a small real estate firm outpaced enterprise AI investments * Why you should delay building custom AI as long as possible * The role of "AI champions" and how to choose them * Turning AI usage into training, policy, and scalable systems * How AI is reshaping job roles and org structures * Practical tactics to become an AI power user immediately * The difference between AI strategy vs actual usage * Why capability—not technology—is the true competitive advantage Mentioned in this episode * Pathfindr * OpenAI / ChatGPT * Microsoft Copilot * Claude * Gemini * Granola AI * Gamma * HeyGen Subscribe to the Convergence podcast wherever you get podcasts including video episodes on YouTube at youtube.com/@convergencefmpodcast Learn something? Give us a 5 star review and like the podcast on YouTube. It's how we grow.

From Activity to Impact: Harnessing AI to Rebuild the Mid-Market Business Model with Ron Baker, Co-Founder, Threshold

Ashok sits down with Ron Baker, co-founder of THRESHOLD and founder of the VeraSage Institute, to explore how mid-market companies must rethink their economic model in the age of AI. Ron began his career at KPMG before pioneering value pricing and leading a decades-long movement away from time-based billing. He is the author of eight books, including Times Up, and has sold more than 80,000 copies worldwide. This conversation digs into how CEOs in traditional industries can move from activity-based thinking to outcome-based economics in an AI-enabled world. In This Episode.. • Why most firms optimize around internal activity rather than measurable customer outcomes • The idea of the Transformation Economy and what it means for traditional industries • Why customer profit is the most overlooked metric in business • A real-world example of a CPA who created 15 million dollars in value but billed only 38,000 • Outcome-based pricing and the concept of a tip clause • How AI increases structural capital and changes firm design • Why smaller, more leveraged firms may outperform larger legacy organizations • The direct primary care model and what it teaches about transformation • Why human capital, structural capital, and social capital matter in the AI era Mentioned in This Episode Ron Baker - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ronaldbaker THRESHOLD - https://thresholdnow.com VeraSage Institute - https://www.verasage.com Times Up by Ron Baker - https://www.amazon.com/Times-Up-Reinventing-Professional-Economy/ The Soul of Enterprise Radio Show - https://www.voiceamerica.com/show/2735/the-soul-of-enterprise-business-in-the-knowledge-economy Fender and Fender Play - https://www.fender.com/play Howard Moran and MD Squared - https://www.mdsquared.com Dr. Paul Thomas - https://www.plumhealthdpc.com/ Palantir Technologies - https://www.palantir.com Peter Drucker - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Drucker [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Drucker] Ron's articles on "Earning his mouse ears" from his time at Disney University https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20131020050344-38251380-earning-my-mouse-ears-part-i/ [https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20131020050344-38251380-earning-my-mouse-ears-part-i/] https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20131103175004-38251380-earning-my-mouse-ears-part-ii/ [https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20131103175004-38251380-earning-my-mouse-ears-part-ii/] https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20131117162628-38251380-earning-my-mouse-ears-part-iii/ [https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20131117162628-38251380-earning-my-mouse-ears-part-iii/]

Stop Delegating AI: How CEOs and Founders Can Take Charge of AI Transformation

Stop letting a software rollout define your leadership. In this episode, we dive into why relying solely on Microsoft Copilot might be giving your team the wrong impression of AI's true potential. While Copilot offers deep integration into your Microsoft 365 environment and enterprise-level security, many leaders find that a "Copilot-only" approach creates more culture friction than creativity. We share real-world stories of how mid-market CEOs are using a multi-tool approach—leveraging Copilot for data extraction and Claude for strategy—to solve high-stakes problems. From automating 70% of document assembly in government consulting to building robust VP-level onboarding plans, learn how to move past the frustration and start shipping successful AI-driven results. In this episode: The Copilot Fallacy: Why your CIO's rollout isn't a substitute for a real AI strategy. Real-World Success Stories: How a medical device company and a consulting firm saved millions in consultant time. The "AI Intern" Framework: How to balance AI speed with human-led quality control. Practical Prompting Habits: Three ways to get Copilot to cite its sources and self-flag areas for review. Subscribe to the Convergence podcast wherever you get podcasts including video episodes to get updated on the other crucial conversations that we'll post on YouTube at youtube.com/@convergencefmpodcast Learn something? Give us a 5 star review and like the podcast on YouTube. It's how we grow. Follow the Pod Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/convergence-podcast/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/convergence-podcast/] X: https://twitter.com/podconvergence [https://twitter.com/podconvergence] Instagram: @podconvergence

Building REAL Business Products Using AI with Jay Singh, Casper Studios

How does a young agency land a partnership with Netflix, Pepsi, and Doritos? Meet Jay Singh, the founder of Casper Studios and a former LinkedIn Business Development lead who is redefining how we think about distribution in the age of AI. Jay's team recently powered a voice AI experience for Stranger Things that saw over 400,000 fans call in to speak with their favorite characters, resulting in a staggering 30% revenue lift for their partners. In this episode, we move past the AI hype to discuss the "deterministic vs. probabilistic" debate, why Jay builds products specifically to lower his Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC), and how he uses a long-horizon LinkedIn strategy to land Private Equity clients. If you want to know how the biggest brands in the world are navigating the transition to AI—and how you can protect yourself from the dark side of voice cloning—listen in. Most entrepreneurs struggle to move from "building" to "distributing." In this episode, Jay Singh, CEO and Founder of Casper Studios, joins Ashok Sivanand to pull back the curtain on the 400,000-call marketing campaign for Netflix, Pepsi, and Doritos. Jay shares the surprising reason why the creators of Stranger Things pulled back on fully generative AI, choosing instead a deterministic model that drove a 30% lift in-store. We explore Jay's background at LinkedIn, the future of digital identity and verification, and a specific 6-month networking framework that can land even the most elusive "whale" clients. Whether you are leading an AI transition in a Private Equity firm or trying to protect your family from voice cloning, this conversation provides a front-row seat to the future of media and technology. In this episode: * The Stranger Things Activation: A deep dive into the 400k-call "Teen Telethon" and the ROI of voice AI. * Distribution over Product: Why Casper Studios builds "learning products" to acquire enterprise customers. * The LinkedIn Strategy: A 6-month framework for building authority and landing mid-market PE clients. * Digital Identity: Why a family "safe word" is the most important security tool you own. * AI Adoption Roadmaps: How to implement AI in regulated industries without the legal headaches. Mentioned in this episode... * Casper Studios (AI-focused product studio) * LinkedIn Verification (Jay's legacy project) * LiveKit (The orchestration layer for voice agents) * Eleven Labs (Voice cloning technology) Subscribe to the Convergence podcast wherever you get podcasts including video episodes to get updated on the other crucial conversations that we'll post on YouTube at youtube.com/@convergencefmpodcast Learn something? Give us a 5 star review and like the podcast on YouTube. It's how we grow. Follow the Pod Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/convergence-podcast/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/convergence-podcast/] X: https://twitter.com/podconvergence [https://twitter.com/podconvergence] Instagram: @podconvergence