EP 27 - Leading Across Cultures: How AI Supports Human Wisdom
Leadership today is increasingly defined by one’s ability to operate across cultures. In our globalized industry, borders may have blurred commercially, but culturally they remain deeply relevant.
In this Episode:
Francois and Neil discuss cross-cultural leadership and how AI can empower, not replace, human decision-making. A conversation on global leadership, awareness, and transformation.
In my recent conversation with Neil, we reflected on what it truly means to lead internationally, particularly as technology continues to reshape how organizations operate.
Based in Luxembourg, I see this complexity daily. The country sits at the intersection of Germanic structure and French fluidity, a unique blend that informs how teams collaborate, make decisions, and build trust. Selling or leading from Luxembourg into Germany or France requires a deep appreciation of these nuances. Even between neighboring countries, the difference in how business is done can be significant.
Neil expanded on this idea by pointing out that while data and digitalization are critical, the majority of stakeholders in any organization are still human beings. Leadership, therefore, is not just about optimizing processes, but also about understanding how people communicate, how they interpret feedback, and how culture shapes their behavior.
In Latin America, for instance, you may hear that everything is fine even when challenges exist. In Scandinavian markets, feedback is often more direct. Neither is right nor wrong; both are cultural expressions. The effective international leader reads the tone, not just the words.
We also touched on the role of AI in this evolving landscape. I believe AI should not be viewed as a replacement for human intelligence but as an augmentation of it. It brings speed, precision, and access to data that can enhance decision-making. Yet, it is still human wisdom, rooted in cultural awareness and emotional intelligence, that interprets that data meaningfully.
As Neil noted, AI can surface insights faster, shorten decision cycles, and help teams act in real time. But true leadership still requires presence, empathy, and trust. These are qualities technology cannot replicate.
For organizations navigating complex, cross-border transformation, this is the essence of leadership today: combining human composure with digital capability, cultural understanding with strategic clarity. AI can be a partner, but the leadership must remain human.
Timecode:
00:00 Understanding Cultural Differences
00:41 Navigating Business Cultures
01:13 The Role of Leadership in International Business
02:48 The Impact of AI on Business
03:05 The Future of AI in Entertainment
Francois Links:
Apple Podcast
Guest:
Neil Wirasinha:https://www.linkedin.com/in/neilwirasinha
Transcript:
Francois: I think it's super important to understand the difference in culture. And you know, in the,based in Luxembourg,we have Germany and France next to,to, to us, and Luxembourg speaks, uh, Luxembourgish. So it's a mix of French, but it's very, very Germanic language. But there's French in it as well. And the law is written in French, in
Luxembourg, but The culture is a bit more Germanic. So you see, it's, it's a bit between countries, but if you sell from Luxembourg in Germany, you're Luxembourg, but you're still part of you know, okay. And, and the same for France because you know, but try to sell from, you know, France and, and Germany culturally in, in, in the business actually very, very different.They found that the German and Spanish in, in the business there, or the people I worked with, because I need to be careful. I don't want to profile anything here, but you know, that, that there are so many similarities into, into the way they approach the business. theythey actually work in the, in, during the day to day.It's the case for workers, for our team members. It's the case for the clients. It's the case for the distribution. They don't work the same. I mean,distribution is, is between those two countries that can example,it's miles away miles Away from each other.
Neil: But I think, here's the thing, right? You are, you are an experienced guy that's been in the industry for a long time and, and I think we can all look at trends around data, data provisioning, data processing, and of course they're really, really important.But the majority of the stakeholders in a seniorbusiness are human beings and understanding how to navigate those cultural moments.Is something that you learn, and I don't think it's something that can be driven outta a single country, but really being international and, and understanding the, you know, in, in Latin America, when somebody says, how's it, you know, you ask where the problems are, there's no problems.Everything's fine. When you, when you listen to really the texture of how they're saying, everything's fine, and then you can highlight an issue again. Oh yeah, that has been troublesome. So, so you'll never get a hard, this is terrible. In other markets, you will get a very, you know, in Scandinavian markets, they'll be very abrupt with you and tell you that things are not working out.But I think as a, as a leader and an international leader, it's really important that for yourself in.In those sectors that people have and also the, the people beneath you in adjacent can say, wow, there's a lot of wisdom there. And I think that's one of the things as we go through disruption and digitalization, I think people are always looking for a leader that can, that's been there and can navigate, you know, calm waters and stormy waters.
Francois: work together there. Yeah. So that's, that's the, creating a team that is able to do that. But understanding the, uh, the environment and, and this awareness is, is, is so, is so critical. And in that sense, to conclude on, on the ai, AI is there to help us.It's not to replace us.it's to, it's to create an additional element or additional elements that will help us navigate the environment.That's, uh, I do believe that.
Neil: I agree. I agree. I think it's, it will help us achieve a number of things that certainly even in the en entertainment business that we just didn't have the time, because you're working on three or four films at the same time and, and, and, and agencies and people that have your data sets. It can take six months to get a meeting and to talk about it, when actually you can surface the information that much quicker and, and make change while there's a chance to make a change to make some more money.Or there's a great set of learning for the next project that actually feels not too dissimilar. So I think it's, it's a really good empowering piece. Um, but, you know, I also think that the narratives around it need to be a bit more friendly and less weaponized at times that, 'cause sometimes I think that there are certain aspects that, that, that can antiquate or exclude people and, but I think those models just need
Francois: is the beginning, is the
Neil: It's very much the
Francois: But the key that emotion remain Oh, absolutely. And trust in it. You know, then both industries,will, uh, will survive.