The Belum Brief: Unvarnished AI
This weekly series is a practical guide to the next era of work, without hype or hyperbole. It will focus on how businesses are actually using AI, where real value is emerging, and what these changes mean for the people inside these organizations. Instead of speculating about distant futures, I’ll focus on the immediate realities: the decisions companies are making right now and the consequences those decisions will create.
Each week, I’ll look at AI through one of a few lenses: what’s new, what’s true, what’s useful, and what it all means for us.
Over the first few weeks, I’ll tackle some of the most misunderstood topics in the AI conversation:
• The Real Math of AI ROI Most AI programs look promising early on and then appear to stall. The problem is usually the measurement, not the technology.
• The Myth of the AI Layoff Wave The headlines don’t reflect how organizations actually behave. Something is changing, but not in the way people assume.
• How AI Reshapes Organizational Power Who gains leverage, who loses it, and why workflows—not job titles—are the first battlefield.
• The Coming Divide Between AI-Enabled and AI-Impaired Companies As the value of AI compounds, operational patterns will determine which organizations pull ahead and which fall behind.
The goal isn’t to evangelize or catastrophize. It’s to replace ambiguity with direction, to map the terrain emerging under our feet, and to give us a place to anchor our thinking as the pace of change accelerates.
If AI is going to reshape work, the people building, leading, and using these systems deserve more than buzzwords. They deserve clarity.
That’s what The Belum Brief will deliver every week. And if I miss the mark, I expect you to tell me.
What’s one misunderstood topic you want covered?
