ELE brings leaders together across companies and industries to work through the messy stuff: decisions, risk, handoffs, execution drag, and what it takes to move from idea to action.

UPCOMING CALENDAR

LATEST IDEA EXCHANGE

RECENT INSIGHTS

WHO WE ARE

About ELE

Schedule a Local Meetup

Companies In Our Network

Contact ELE

<p>Figure out if ELE is for you. Straight answers on what ELE is, who it’s built for, and how contributing members actually work together. Still have a question? Contact us.</p>

Alter Domus

ELE Group, LLC

<div style="font-family: 'Calibri', 'Candara', 'Segoe UI', 'Optima', Arial, sans-serif; color: #333; line-height: 1.6; max-width: 800px; margin: auto; font-size: 1.1rem;">
<blockquote style="border-left: 4px solid #990000; margin: 20px 0; padding: 10px 20px; background-color: #f8f9fa; font-style: italic; color: #555; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">"We frame it to an audition, not an interview." — <a href="https://www.ele.llc/members/marty-murrillo" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Marty Murrillo</a>, Precisely.</blockquote>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">That line from Marty cracked the room open. The business problem on the table at our May 14 AI Practical Lab wasn't tools — it was identity. AI is shifting where talent professionals create value, and hiring managers are increasingly putting candidates in front of a screen and saying <em>show me how you use AI to solve this</em>. Waiting for a corporate framework to catch up isn't a strategy. Each leader has to actively rebrand themselves as someone who drives business impact in an AI-enabled workplace — before the market decides for them.</p>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;"><strong>Who was in the room:</strong> Nicole DeFalco (Upsurge Advisors), serving as the Internal Client who grounded the situation in what the business actually wants; Marty Murrillo (Precisely), our AI Strategist and AI Learning Guru walking the room through live prompt-building; Patti Ouzounian (ELE), co-facilitating and naming the design lens; Dirk Tussing (ELE) anchoring the broader frame; plus senior talent leaders, L&amp;D heads, organizational effectiveness practitioners, and consultants from across the ELE community.</p>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">This was a hands-on lab — not a talk. Everyone built their own prompt in real time using the CRIT model (Context, Role, Interview, Task) from Geoff Woods' <em>The AI-Driven Leader</em>, fed it into their LLM of choice, and watched AI interview <em>them</em> before generating a personal playbook. The output was uncomfortable for several people in the room — and that turned out to be the point.</p>
<p style="text-align: center; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;"><img class=" wp-image-44940 aligncenter" src="https://wp.ele.llc/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Gemini_Generated_Image_CRIT-model.jpg" alt="Infographic of the CRIT model for AI leading, breaking down Context, Role, Interview, and Task with icons and descriptions for each step." width="835" height="455" />
The CRIT Model for AI-driven leadership, from Geoff Woods.</p>

<h3 style="font-family: 'Montserrat', sans-serif; font-weight: bold; color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 1.3rem; margin-top: 30px; margin-bottom: 10px; border-bottom: 1px solid #eee; padding-bottom: 5px;">The interview step is the lever — and the one most people skip</h3>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">When Marty walked the group through CRIT, he kept coming back to the same diagnosis: most leaders don't get value from AI because they ask it to perform before they let it understand. Context first, then questions, <em>then</em> output.</p>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">The Interview step — telling the AI to ask <em>you</em> questions before producing anything — is what shifts AI from a glorified search engine into something closer to a thinking partner. Dirk named the shift out loud while watching it work in his own chat window:</p>

<blockquote style="border-left: 4px solid #990000; margin: 15px 0; padding: 5px 20px; font-style: italic; color: #555; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">"We can use ChatGPT like a glorified Google, or we can use this as a thought partner." — <a href="https://www.ele.llc/members/dirk-tussing" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dirk Tussing</a></blockquote>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">The practical move for senior leaders isn't "use AI more." It's structural: stop treating AI as a generator and start treating it as a coach that surfaces your blind spots before you commit to an answer.</p>

<h3 style="font-family: 'Montserrat', sans-serif; font-weight: bold; color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 1.3rem; margin-top: 25px; margin-bottom: 10px; border-bottom: 1px solid #eee; padding-bottom: 5px;">AI exposes the gap between your title and your value</h3>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">When members pushed CRIT into their own contexts, several got hit hard by what AI surfaced — not in a bad way, but in a "I can't unsee this" way. Cecilia Lillegard captured the room's quiet discomfort in the chat, and Nicole read it out:</p>

<blockquote style="border-left: 4px solid #990000; margin: 15px 0; padding: 5px 20px; font-style: italic; color: #555; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">"The discomfort I felt was how unprepared I was for the self-reflection of my impact." — <a href="https://www.ele.llc/members/cecilia-lillegard" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cecilia Lillegard</a></blockquote>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">David Scherer named the same thing after his AI pushed back on his framing:</p>

<blockquote style="border-left: 4px solid #990000; margin: 15px 0; padding: 5px 20px; font-style: italic; color: #555; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">"These questions here are something I've never asked myself." — <a href="https://www.ele.llc/members/david-scherer" target="_blank" rel="noopener">David Scherer</a></blockquote>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">The takeaway for leaders isn't "use AI for self-reflection." It's harder than that: if your AI thought partner is asking sharper questions about your value than your manager or your last interview did, you have a positioning problem — and it's yours to solve, fast.</p>

<h3 style="font-family: 'Montserrat', sans-serif; font-weight: bold; color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 1.3rem; margin-top: 25px; margin-bottom: 10px; border-bottom: 1px solid #eee; padding-bottom: 5px;">The new prep is repeatable — and you do it before the interview</h3>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">Marty's audition reframe wasn't a metaphor. It's already showing up in real hiring loops: <em>here's the problem, share your screen, show me how you use AI in real time.</em> If the last time you "practiced" was rehearsing answers to behavioral questions, you're behind.</p>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">DeBorah Lenchard surfaced the principle that should anchor all of this — and the way she landed it was that she was quoting her own AI output back to the group:</p>

<blockquote style="border-left: 4px solid #990000; margin: 15px 0; padding: 5px 20px; font-style: italic; color: #555; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">"Use AI to accelerate, but you don't outsource accountability." — <a href="https://www.ele.llc/members/deborah-lenchard" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DeBorah Lenchard</a></blockquote>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">That's the line that separates the leaders who'll come out ahead from the ones who'll get lapped. AI as the accelerant. Judgment, accountability, and business framing stay with you.</p>


<hr style="border: 0; border-top: 1px solid #eee; margin: 40px 0;" />

<h3 style="font-family: 'Montserrat', sans-serif; font-weight: bold; color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 1.3rem; margin-bottom: 15px;">What to try next</h3>
<ol style="padding-left: 25px; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">
 	<li style="margin-bottom: 15px;"><strong>Build one CRIT-formatted prompt this week.</strong> Context, Role, Interview, Task — draft it in a Word doc, then paste into your LLM. <em>Early evidence:</em> the interview questions it asks should make you uncomfortable. If they don't, your Context block is too thin. Add more.</li>
 	<li style="margin-bottom: 15px;"><strong>Run the same prompt across two LLMs and compare.</strong> ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot will produce noticeably different outputs from identical input. <em>Early evidence:</em> one will already "know you" based on past use — that tells you which one to invest in deepening.</li>
 	<li style="margin-bottom: 15px;"><strong>Turn your best prompt into a reusable agent or template.</strong> If you're rewriting the same context block more than twice, build it once as a custom GPT, an instructions file, or even a PDF you can drop into any chat. <em>Early evidence:</em> prep time for a strategic conversation drops from 45 minutes to under 10.</li>
</ol>

<hr style="border: 0; border-top: 1px solid #eee; margin: 40px 0;" />

<h3 style="font-family: 'Montserrat', sans-serif; font-weight: bold; color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 1.3rem; margin-top: 25px; margin-bottom: 10px; border-bottom: 1px solid #eee; padding-bottom: 5px;">A note on what's changing at ELE</h3>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">Starting in July, the calendar shifts. Instead of pre-scheduled topics, ELE members will community-source the calendar by submitting real business problems they need solved. Submitters become the Internal Client. We recruit Strategists and Skeptics from the community. Sessions get recorded — and you walk away with portfolio-grade footage of yourself working a real problem with peers.</p>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">The May 14 lab was a preview of that model. The room voted with their attention.</p>

<div style="background-color: #f1f4f9; padding: 20px; border-radius: 8px; margin-top: 40px; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">
<p style="margin-top: 0; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">If any of these insights resonate—and you've got a top-of-mind talent <strong>business problem</strong> you'd like the ELE community to work on—send it our way.</p>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">Members can submit their challenge here: <a style="color: #0056b3; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.ele.llc/faqs/share-top-of-mind-talent-challenges">Submit My Challenge Now</a></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">Looking to turn these ideas into action? Access the <a style="color: #0056b3; text-decoration: underline;" href="https://community.ele.llc/t/pre-chat-post-chat-ai-disruption-career-opportunity/5862" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Idea Exchange Post-chat</a> for an updated Action Planning Worksheet.</p>

</div>
</div>

✨ AI Practical Lab: AI Disruption = Career Opportunity

Future of Work

Digital &amp; AI

dirk.tussing

deborah.lenchard

azizeh.constantinescu

anton.maletich

adrienne.guerrero

nancy.dome

marty.murrillo

patricia.ouzounian

david.scherer

ai practical lab

sara.fitzgerald

nicole.defalco

cecilia.lillegard

mike.hoyt

2Q2026

AI as thought partner

AI Disruption

CRIT Model

AI-Driven Leader

AI Career Opportunity

Personal Playbook

L&amp;D Identity Shift

Prompt Design

Audition vs Interview

AI Accountability

ELE Confidence

ELE Capability

ELE Clarity

<div style="font-family: 'Calibri', 'Candara', 'Segoe UI', 'Optima', Arial, sans-serif; color: #333; line-height: 1.6; max-width: 800px; margin: auto; font-size: 1.1rem;">
<blockquote style="border-left: 4px solid #990000; margin: 20px 0; padding: 10px 20px; background-color: #f8f9fa; font-style: italic; color: #555; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">"I want to go to where the puck's going to be, not where it is today." — <a href="https://www.ele.llc/members/marty-murrillo" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Marty Murrillo</a>, Precisely</blockquote>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;"><strong>A Monday question. A Friday Charrette. A Lab in two days.</strong></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">Most senior talent leaders don't get help fast. They get a stack of articles, a framework, and a six-month engagement quote.</p>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">The ELE Ecosystem moves differently. Here's what just happened.</p>

<h3 style="font-family: 'Montserrat', sans-serif; font-weight: bold; color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 1.3rem; margin-top: 30px; margin-bottom: 10px; border-bottom: 1px solid #eee; padding-bottom: 5px;">Day 1 — The signal</h3>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;"><strong>Monday, May 4</strong>. A senior talent leader's role ends at a major financial services firm. Her first move isn't a Google search or a Coursera certificate. She posts one question in <strong>ELE's Idea Exchange</strong>: <em>how do I upskill myself in AI?</em></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">She had options. She picked peers.</p>

<h3 style="font-family: 'Montserrat', sans-serif; font-weight: bold; color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 1.3rem; margin-top: 30px; margin-bottom: 10px; border-bottom: 1px solid #eee; padding-bottom: 5px;">Days 2–3 — The community listens</h3>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">The responses come fast. But the comments under her question expose something bigger: she's not alone. Learning professionals across the ELE community are quietly wrestling with the same three questions:</p>

<ul style="padding-left: 25px; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">
 	<li style="margin-bottom: 10px;">Where is my value actually shifting?</li>
 	<li style="margin-bottom: 10px;">How do I redefine my role for real business impact?</li>
 	<li style="margin-bottom: 10px;">How do I build AI experience employers actually want?</li>
</ul>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">One question became a curated business problem.</p>

<h3 style="font-family: 'Montserrat', sans-serif; font-weight: bold; color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 1.3rem; margin-top: 30px; margin-bottom: 10px; border-bottom: 1px solid #eee; padding-bottom: 5px;">Day 5 — The Design Charrette</h3>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;"><strong>Friday, May 8</strong>. Twenty-plus senior talent leaders converged for a lively interactive discussion built on the <em>Signals-to-Action Planning Worksheet</em>. <a href="https://www.ele.llc/members/audra-pinter" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Audra Pinter</strong></a> (Discover/Capital One, transitioning into a new role) opened by sharing her own arc — and the room got to work.</p>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">What came out wasn't a topic recap. It was decisions.</p>

<blockquote style="border-left: 4px solid #990000; margin: 15px 0; padding: 5px 20px; font-style: italic; color: #555; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">"They're trying to do these little spot AI projects, but they're not fixing the workflows." — <a href="https://www.ele.llc/members/marty-murrillo" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Marty Murrillo</a>, Precisely</blockquote>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">Stop chasing the tool. Chase the workflow.</p>

<blockquote style="border-left: 4px solid #990000; margin: 15px 0; padding: 5px 20px; font-style: italic; color: #555; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">"You don't actually own it anymore, because it's out of your control." — <a href="https://www.ele.llc/members/peter-hogaboam" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Peter Hogaboam</a>, CNA Insurance</blockquote>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">Peter drew the AI / outsourcing parallel. Smart resistance isn't a brake. It's a leadership skill.</p>

<blockquote style="border-left: 4px solid #990000; margin: 15px 0; padding: 5px 20px; font-style: italic; color: #555; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">"We have to avoid becoming just the AI training department for everyone." — <a href="https://www.ele.llc/members/kathryn-sobey" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Katie Stone</a>, Global Talent Leaders</blockquote>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">L&amp;D's value isn't being the help desk for prompts. It's building the conditions that make adoption stick.</p>
Three leaders. Three angles. One shared business problem coming into sharp focus.
<h3 style="font-family: 'Montserrat', sans-serif; font-weight: bold; color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 1.3rem; margin-top: 30px; margin-bottom: 10px; border-bottom: 1px solid #eee; padding-bottom: 5px;">Day 10 — The AI Practical Lab</h3>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;"><strong>Thursday, May 14</strong>. The Action Planning Worksheet from Friday's Charrette becomes the input — not a recap slide, the working brief. The room moves from <em>"what should we try"</em> to <em>"what did we ship."</em> Playbooks. Early evidence loops. Implementation moves.</p>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;"><strong>That's the ELE Ecosystem.</strong> Listen → Curate → Co-design → Implement. Loop.</p>


<hr style="border: 0; border-top: 1px solid #eee; margin: 40px 0;" />

<h3 style="font-family: 'Montserrat', sans-serif; font-weight: bold; color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 1.3rem; margin-top: 25px; margin-bottom: 10px;">Who was in the room</h3>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;"><strong>Audra Pinter (Discover/Capital One)</strong> anchored the real-world signal; <strong>Patti Ouzounian (ELE)</strong> walked the room through the <em>Signals-to-Action Planning Worksheet</em>; co-facilitator <strong>DeB Lenchard (L&amp;D Consultant).</strong> Strong voices from <strong>Adrienne Guerrero (Positive Delta), Peter Hogaboam (CNA Insurance), Katie Stone (Global Talent Leaders), Marty Murrillo (Precisely), Mike Hoyt and David Scherer (Chicagoland Talent Leaders)</strong> — plus additional contributing members from the ELE community.</p>


<hr style="border: 0; border-top: 1px solid #eee; margin: 40px 0;" />

<h3 style="font-family: 'Montserrat', sans-serif; font-weight: bold; color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 1.3rem; margin-bottom: 15px;">What to try next — the ELE move, not the AI tactic</h3>
<ol style="padding-left: 25px; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">
 	<li style="margin-bottom: 15px;"><strong>Post the question, not the certificate.</strong> When something shifts in your work, drop it in the Idea Exchange before you Google it. <em>Early evidence: peer-level expertise back in 24–48 hours, not generic articles.</em></li>
 	<li style="margin-bottom: 15px;"><strong>Bring your business problem to the next Charrette.</strong> If a Charrette built around someone else's question pulled this much value, imagine what happens when it's built around <em>yours</em>.</li>
 	<li style="margin-bottom: 15px;"><strong>Show up for the Practical Lab on May 14.</strong> It's running on May 8's APW as direct input. Bring a colleague. This is implementation, not theory.</li>
</ol>
<div style="background-color: #f1f4f9; padding: 20px; border-radius: 8px; margin-top: 40px; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">
<p style="margin-top: 0; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">If any of these insights resonate—and you've got a top-of-mind talent business problem you'd like the ELE community to work on—send it our way.</p>
<p style="font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">Members can submit their challenge here: <a style="color: #0056b3; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.ele.llc/faqs/share-top-of-mind-talent-challenges">Submit My Challenge Now</a></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0; font-family: 'Calibri', sans-serif; font-size: 1.1rem;">Looking to turn these ideas into action? Access the <a style="color: #0056b3; text-decoration: underline;" href="https://community.ele.llc/t/pre-chat-post-chat-ai-disruption-career-opportunity/5862" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Idea Exchange Post-chat</a> for an updated Action Planning Worksheet.</p>

</div>
</div>

✨ AI Practical Lab: AI Disruption = Career Opportunity

Design Charrette | AI Disruption = Career Opportunity

Login