Competing with AI in the Workforce is the 2nd installment of Ron Wilson’s blog posts on how our technological advances directly impact our day-to-day.
Careers Most Likely to be Impacted by AI
Another question I asked AI was to identify 10 careers most likely to be replaced or heavily disrupted by AI in the coming years. As can be seen these roles especially reliant on involve repetitive, rule-based, or digital tasks:
Data Entry Clerks
- Why at risk: Repetitive and structured tasks are ideal for automation.
- AI alternative: OCR (optical character recognition) + machine learning systems can process massive volumes of data instantly.
Telemarketers
- Why at risk: Scripted phone calls and customer engagement can be mimicked by AI voice agents.
- AI alternative: AI-powered call bots with natural language processing.
I have been on calls as shown in the TikTok video. Having been on calls like I am curious if it was person or AI I was visiting with?
Retail Cashiers
- Why at risk: Self-checkout systems and AI-powered kiosks are increasingly common.
- AI alternative: Computer vision + payment automation.
We are seeing retailers needing to modify the self-checkout process and provide a personal touch to handle issues that arise during check out. The customer skills needed by the employee is empathy for the frustration the customer is experiencing and potential theft vs an error in the scanning process.
Fast Food Workers (Certain Roles)
- Why at risk: Order-taking, basic food assembly, and payment are being automated.
- AI alternative: Kiosks + kitchen robots (e.g., Flippy the burger-flipping robot).
Proofreaders and Copy Editors (Basic Editing)
- Why at risk: AI grammar checkers (e.g., Grammarly, ChatGPT) handle grammar and style with high accuracy.
- AI alternative: Language models trained on style, tone, and grammar rules.
Important roles are needed to address industry and generational language models.
Basic Legal Assistants / Paralegals
- Why at risk: Document review, legal research, and contract analysis can be automated.
- AI alternative: Legal AI platforms like Harvey AI, Casetext, or DoNotPay.
Routine Accounting / Bookkeeping
- Why at risk: Data entry, reconciliations, and reports can be handled by AI-integrated platforms.
- AI alternative: AI within QuickBooks, Xero, and other accounting tools.
Basic Customer Support Representatives
- Why at risk: Tier 1 support (FAQ-type questions) is now handled by chatbots and voice agents.
- AI alternative: AI-powered customer service platforms like Zendesk AI or Intercom.
Transport Dispatchers / Schedulers
- Why at risk: AI can optimize logistics, routes, and schedules in real-time better than humans.
- AI alternative: AI logistics platforms with real-time optimization algorithms.
Market Research Analysts (Entry-Level)
- Why at risk: AI can scan and synthesize market data, trends, and customer sentiment faster than humans.
- AI alternative: Tools like ChatGPT for research summaries, or platforms like Crayon and Similarweb.
Important Note:
AI may replace tasks, not necessarily entire jobs. Many roles will evolve, not disappear — humans who can manage AI, interpret results, and make strategic decisions will remain highly valuable.
Careers Least Likely to be Replaced by AI
10 careers least likely to be replaced by AI — these rely heavily on human judgment, emotional intelligence, creativity, or physical presence:
Mental Health Professionals (Therapists, Counselors, Social Workers)
- Why safe: Deep empathy, trust-building, and emotional nuance are difficult for AI to replicate.
- Human edge: Relationship, listening, and emotional discernment.
AI support to the Mental Health Professionals:
- Analyze patient mood/sentiment from voice/text patterns
- Track therapy progress with AI-generated session summaries
- Suggest evidence-based interventions based on client data
Example: An AI assistant could flag signs of depression based on journaling apps between therapy sessions.
Teachers and Educators
- Why safe: Teaching is about more than knowledge delivery — it’s mentoring, adapting to student needs, and fostering growth.
- Human edge: Engagement, encouragement, and personalization.
AI will support Teachers and Educators:
- Customize lesson plans based on student performance
- Automate grading and feedback on assignments
- Offer tutoring/chatbots for homework help outside class
Example: A teacher uses AI to detect learning gaps and adjust curriculum per student.
Skilled Trades (Electricians, Plumbers, Carpenters)
- Why safe: On-site problem-solving and physical dexterity are hard to automate.
- Human edge: Precision, adaptability, and hands-on troubleshooting.
AI will support Skilled Trades:
- AR/AI-powered glasses to overlay repair instructions in real time
- Predictive maintenance alerts for clients via smart systems
- Digital twins to simulate repairs before doing physical work
Example: A plumber uses AI to analyze smart sensor data from a home water system and spot hidden leaks. Remote diagnostics to determine severity of the event and skill level and resources needed to complete the repair, including ordering of parts.
Healthcare Providers (Doctors, Nurses, Surgeons)
- Why safe: AI can assist with diagnostics, but humans are needed for procedures, patient care, and ethical decision-making.
- Human edge: Touch, care, and accountability in life-or-death decisions.
AI will support Healthcare Providers:
- Diagnoses faster with image recognition (e.g., radiology, dermatology)
- Analyze patient history to recommend treatments
- Predict health risks with AI-powered analytics
Example: A doctor uses AI to scan 10,000 patient records and identify early signs of diabetes trends.
Creative Professionals (Artists, Designers, Writers)
- Why safe-ish: While AI can generate content, original vision, storytelling, and emotional connection remain uniquely human.
- Human edge: Innovation, taste, and authentic voice.
AI will support Creative Professionals:
- Generate rough drafts or design ideas to spark creativity
- Suggest improvements based on audience data or engagement
- Automate routine tasks (resizing images, SEO tagging)
Example: A designer uses AI to create 10 mockup variations, then customizes the best one.
Leadership Roles (Executives, Managers, Strategic Planners)
- Why safe: AI can inform decisions, but leadership involves vision, inspiration, and accountability.
- Human edge: Motivation, decision-making under uncertainty, and moral judgment.
AI will support Leadership Roles:
- Analyze internal data to guide strategic decisions
- Identify trends and risks before they emerge
- Support communication with AI-written summaries or talking points
Example: A CEO uses AI to scan market shifts and adjust business strategy in real time.
Clergy and Spiritual Leaders
- Why safe: AI can reference scripture, but it can’t provide spiritual presence, guidance, or personal discernment.
- Human edge: Compassion, faith leadership, and community building.
AI will support Clergy and Spiritual Leaders:
- Organize sermon content and find relevant scripture instantly
- Help manage community events and communication
- Offer AI prayer or meditation prompts for congregants
Example: A pastor uses AI to pull biblical context, commentary, and sermon illustrations in minutes.
Emergency Responders (Firefighters, Police, Paramedics)
- Why safe: Urgency, unpredictability, and hands-on rescue require real people.
- Human edge: Courage, judgment under pressure, physical intervention. Emergency Responders
AI will support Emergency Responders:
- AI-powered drones and robots to assess hazardous environments
- Real-time GPS and dispatch optimization
- Predictive analytics for crisis hotspots (e.g., fire risks, overdoses)
Example: A firefighter uses AI drone footage to locate trapped civilians before entering a building.
Childcare and Eldercare Workers
- Why safe: Caring for the vulnerable requires human touch, empathy, and real-time responsiveness.
- Human edge: Trust, comfort, and personal interaction.
AI will support Childcare and Eldercare Workers:
- Smart monitoring for safety alerts (falls, irregular activity)
- AI reminders for medication and schedule coordination
- Learning tools personalized for child development stages
Example: A caregiver gets an AI alert that an elderly client hasn’t eaten in 10 hours.
Human Resources and Organizational Development
- Why safe: Hiring, conflict resolution, and culture-building require deep human insight.
- Human edge: Interpersonal dynamics, negotiation, and values alignment.
AI will support Human Resources and Organizational Development by:
- Screen resumes for qualifications and cultural fit
- Identify burnout or turnover risk via employee behavior data
- Facilitate DEI goals by tracking equity in promotions and pay
Example: HR uses AI to generate personalized development plans for each employee.
Final Insight:
Careers that blend emotional intelligence, physical presence, creativity, and ethical judgment are the most AI-resistant. The future of work isn’t about beating machines — it’s about being more human than ever.
AI is a superpower for these roles — not a replacement. The best outcomes happen when humans do what machines can’t, and machines do what humans shouldn’t have to.
Preparing to apply and utilize AI in your current role — and planning your career path with AI in mind — means developing the right mindset, skills, and strategic habits.
Recovery and Our Minds.
Guest writer David Griffith returns with another post for his Muddy Boots Blog, this time talking about “Recovery and Our Minds.”
I am sitting in the cardiac care wing of the University of Pennsylvania Hospital in my fashionable hospital gown, looking out the 9th floor window, reflecting. Last Thursday I had open heart surgery to repair two valves. While I have a several month recovery, it went well.
I find in the quiet of the night laying in a hospital bed with more electronics than a NASA mission, post surgery the mind dreams near the surface of consciousness.
In surgery you are on devices that pump your blood and breathe for you.
As a generator guy my last thought was about back up power. You have put total trust in the entire medical team. They are amazing.
You think of family and the woman you love.
You search your faith.
You think about many things, and you realize the great value of what is important, essentials to the things that make life a life.
Why is it that we need to lose control to understand what matters?
Lying in bed, unable to sit or go to the head without help.
Trusting people, you really don’t know to stop and start your heart, but you will appreciate forever.
You think about what you will change in version 2.0. And that I think is the lesson in all this.
I have been blessed, no question, but were values, deeds, and actions aligned as well as they could?
There are many with deep challenges and needs. Can we answer their call as well as our own?
Thank you all, Jacqui, family, friends, community and especially the stranger.
The Professional Service Tech: Grit Over Gloss
Guest writer Jim Dettore returns this week with his blog post, “The Professional Service Tech: Grit Over Gloss.”
Being a professional service technician isn’t about a shiny shirt with your name stitched on the chest. It’s about showing up early, not “on time.” It’s about walking into a job site where the machine outweighs you by 40,000 pounds, the oil is hot, and the customer is already frustrated, and still having the confidence to say: “We’ll get it handled.”
It’s knowing that the way you carry yourself matters. You don’t drag in late, you don’t track mud through the control room, and you sure don’t leave a job site looking like a scrapyard exploded. A pro cleans up after himself, not because the boss says so, but because pride doesn’t let him do otherwise.
A professional service tech works clean, but he doesn’t stay clean. Grease under the fingernails, diesel in the blood, a service truck that runs tighter than some offices I’ve been in. The toolbox isn’t just organized, it’s an autobiography. Every wrench has a scar; every socket tells a story.
And when the last bolt is torqued, the last fluid topped off, the pro doesn’t disappear. He grabs the paperwork, fills out the report before climbing in the truck. Not tomorrow, not “when I get around to it.” Right there, right then. Because communication is part of the repair, maybe the most important part.
This isn’t a job for clock-punchers. It’s for men and women who take pride in machines that aren’t theirs, for customers who may never say thank you, on days when the weather makes you question your sanity.
It’s blue-collar professionalism, the kind nobody brags about on Instagram, but the kind that keeps engines running, boats moving, and gas flowing.
If you’re a service tech and you do all that? You’re not just making a living. You’re upholding a standard. And that standard says: we don’t quit until the work is done, and we sign our name to it when it is.
Competing with AI in the Workforce Part 3
Guest writer Ron Wilson returns this week with part 3 of his series on competing with AI in the workforce.
Adopt an “AI-Augmented” Mindset
Stop thinking, “Will AI take my job?” Start thinking, “How can AI make me better at my job?”
Evaluate Your Current Role
Ask yourself:
➤ AI can help here.
➤ This is where you shine.
Example: If you’re in marketing, AI can author draft emails or analyze campaign data, freeing you to focus on creative strategy and client relationships.
Learn the AI Tools Relevant to Your Field
Start with free or low-cost tools and platforms to get comfortable using AI.
General Tools (all fields):
Industry-Specific Examples:
Develop Key AI-Era Skills
Focus on skills that pair well with AI:
Complementary Skills
Experiment with AI in Your Current Role
Start small:
Then build up:
Plan Your Career Path with AI in Mind
Ask:
Consider:
Join Communities and Learn from Others
Stay plugged in:
Build a Portfolio of AI-Enhanced Work
Start documenting how you’ve used AI:
This will make you stand out when seeking promotions or new roles.
Final Thought:
The best way to stay ahead is to stop trying to “catch up” to AI — and start running alongside it. Those who understand both their craft and AI tools will shape the future of work.
Looking back, when a field service technician carried paper service manuals and a micro fiche reader to look up parts and service information and we transitioned to having laptop computers assigned to every service truck. We had some very experienced technicians leave their roles due to the disruption of the laptop computer. We must not be surprised the same impact can/will happen with the introduction of AI within the dealership and the various roles across the company.
The Interview
The Interview is part of guest writer David Griffith’s Muddy Boots blogs series.
When I graduated from college and started interviewing for my first job, I was fortunate to get an interview with IBM. One of the meetings was with a branch manager in New York City. I walked into his office, and he was sitting behind his desk. I sat in front. Early on in the interview, he pulled out of his desk a set of wooden-handled, rubber-tubed stretching exercisers called a pull-apart. While he asked questions, he pulled the handles apart, perhaps 30 or 40 times. Near the end of the interview, he tossed them into his desk drawer.
“I have one more question.”
“OK”
“Can you use these?” Tossing me the pull-apart.
“Sure”
As much as I pulled and tugged, I could not get them apart. Not an inch. I asked him what I was missing.
“Nothing, thank you for coming in. We will call you.”
I was sure I had blown the interview.
Two days later, I was hired.
Fast forward 20 years, and I’m sitting down with my family at our new church as I start a new job at Modern. In the back, a familiar voice asks, “Dave, good to see you, what brings you here?” My retired branch manager was now a fellow member of our new church. We became good friends and collaborated on several volunteer projects together.
One day over coffee, I asked him about the pull-apart interview. He laughed.
You did fine. I had two pairs in my desk — one with rubber that stretched, and one made out of a fan belt. You couldn’t have pulled those apart with a pull-along.
I must have looked confused. He went on, and I wanted to see how you handled the pull-apart. Most folks busted a gut trying to pull it apart. Most people get frustrated. What I look for is how people dealt with adversity. Almost no one asks for help. We wanted folks who would try, make an assessment, and not be afraid to ask for help. Our work is intricate, and we wanted people who would be willing to ask for the how and keep moving forward. The background is essential, chemistry even more.
It is not individual talent, but the talent of the team. Those of you who read muddy boots will recognize the message: talent matters. Every time I interview, I look for that chemistry.
Years later, I visited with him days before he passed away from cancer. We talked, remembered, and laughed.
The day after he died, a package arrived in my mailbox. It was the pull-apart with a note.
He was still being my mentor.
They sit in my office.
Competing with AI in the Workforce
Competing with AI in the Workforce is the 2nd installment of Ron Wilson’s blog posts on how our technological advances directly impact our day-to-day.
Careers Most Likely to be Impacted by AI
Another question I asked AI was to identify 10 careers most likely to be replaced or heavily disrupted by AI in the coming years. As can be seen these roles especially reliant on involve repetitive, rule-based, or digital tasks:
Data Entry Clerks
Telemarketers
I have been on calls as shown in the TikTok video. Having been on calls like I am curious if it was person or AI I was visiting with?
Retail Cashiers
We are seeing retailers needing to modify the self-checkout process and provide a personal touch to handle issues that arise during check out. The customer skills needed by the employee is empathy for the frustration the customer is experiencing and potential theft vs an error in the scanning process.
Fast Food Workers (Certain Roles)
Proofreaders and Copy Editors (Basic Editing)
Important roles are needed to address industry and generational language models.
Basic Legal Assistants / Paralegals
Routine Accounting / Bookkeeping
Basic Customer Support Representatives
Transport Dispatchers / Schedulers
Market Research Analysts (Entry-Level)
Important Note:
AI may replace tasks, not necessarily entire jobs. Many roles will evolve, not disappear — humans who can manage AI, interpret results, and make strategic decisions will remain highly valuable.
Careers Least Likely to be Replaced by AI
10 careers least likely to be replaced by AI — these rely heavily on human judgment, emotional intelligence, creativity, or physical presence:
Mental Health Professionals (Therapists, Counselors, Social Workers)
AI support to the Mental Health Professionals:
Example: An AI assistant could flag signs of depression based on journaling apps between therapy sessions.
Teachers and Educators
AI will support Teachers and Educators:
Example: A teacher uses AI to detect learning gaps and adjust curriculum per student.
Skilled Trades (Electricians, Plumbers, Carpenters)
AI will support Skilled Trades:
Example: A plumber uses AI to analyze smart sensor data from a home water system and spot hidden leaks. Remote diagnostics to determine severity of the event and skill level and resources needed to complete the repair, including ordering of parts.
Healthcare Providers (Doctors, Nurses, Surgeons)
AI will support Healthcare Providers:
Example: A doctor uses AI to scan 10,000 patient records and identify early signs of diabetes trends.
Creative Professionals (Artists, Designers, Writers)
AI will support Creative Professionals:
Example: A designer uses AI to create 10 mockup variations, then customizes the best one.
Leadership Roles (Executives, Managers, Strategic Planners)
AI will support Leadership Roles:
Example: A CEO uses AI to scan market shifts and adjust business strategy in real time.
Clergy and Spiritual Leaders
AI will support Clergy and Spiritual Leaders:
Example: A pastor uses AI to pull biblical context, commentary, and sermon illustrations in minutes.
Emergency Responders (Firefighters, Police, Paramedics)
AI will support Emergency Responders:
Example: A firefighter uses AI drone footage to locate trapped civilians before entering a building.
Childcare and Eldercare Workers
AI will support Childcare and Eldercare Workers:
Example: A caregiver gets an AI alert that an elderly client hasn’t eaten in 10 hours.
Human Resources and Organizational Development
AI will support Human Resources and Organizational Development by:
Example: HR uses AI to generate personalized development plans for each employee.
Final Insight:
Careers that blend emotional intelligence, physical presence, creativity, and ethical judgment are the most AI-resistant. The future of work isn’t about beating machines — it’s about being more human than ever.
AI is a superpower for these roles — not a replacement. The best outcomes happen when humans do what machines can’t, and machines do what humans shouldn’t have to.
Preparing to apply and utilize AI in your current role — and planning your career path with AI in mind — means developing the right mindset, skills, and strategic habits.
Competing with AI in the Workforce
Recently there has been a lot of conversations about AI replacing entry level jobs, and in some cases roles that are well established within the organization.
This concept hit closer to home while attending a recent birthday party where two friends shared how their children (40 somethings) had recently been laid off due to AI. One worked the film industry in the Los Angeles area, and another worked in Oregon developing virtual material for various companies.
We know it’s coming (it’s here); AI is going to have a direct impact on many jobs in the near future. We can’t avoid it; it’s going to happen. So, my question to those in the workforce is how do we compete with AI in the workforce and career fields we are employed?
Below is some information collected using AI to outline how those in the workforce can prepare themselves for the inevitable.
The information is broken into five elements:
I entered “How to compete with AI in the workforce” using a popular AI search engine. Some of the information is a result of the AI search,
Competing with AI in the workforce doesn’t mean working against it — it means learning to work differently and strategically.”
AI is not the first innovation that has/will disrupt the workforce. If we look back over time within our own work history, and back to our parents and grandparents we can identify how industrialization and technology has played a role in disrupting many jobs and careers over time. Those that recognized the challenge and began adjusting their purpose and skill set are much more likely to succeed in the changes coming to their careers/jobs.
There is also a responsibility for the government (federal, state, and local), educational institutions, and employers to be early adopters to provide transitional training and educational opportunities to assist in transitioning in the application of AI within the workforce.
Below are some examples AI recommends on how individuals can remain relevant and even thrive in a world increasingly shaped by AI (quoted from AI- I can’t explain it better than this):
Double Down on Human-Centered Skills
AI is fast and efficient — but it lacks emotion, creativity, and nuanced judgment. Humans excel at:
“Empathy, communication, leadership, and the ability to build relationships still give people an edge, especially in customer service, sales, teaching, counseling, and management.” This sounds simple, but we have all struggled and in many cases are providing training in these areas due to the current workforce lacking these important skills.
“Evaluating AI output, making tough decisions, and navigating moral gray areas are human strengths.” Again, employers and training institutions (educational and consulting services) have provided training and education in this area to continue develop the workforce.
“While AI can generate content, the spark of originality and intuition is still uniquely human — especially in art, design, strategy, and storytelling.” This is a great opportunity for us as individuals, teams, and leaders to continue developing the “spark” needed to continue growing our businesses, leading, and developing our employees.
Learn to Work With AI
“Become “AI-augmented” rather than “AI-replaced.” Learn how to use tools that enhance your productivity”:
Stay Adaptable and Continuously Learn
AI is evolving rapidly. Staying competitive means staying curious:
Examples:
Focus on Complex Problem-Solving
AI handles repetitive, rule-based work well. Humans still lead in complex, ambiguous situations.
The sweet spot:
Specialize in Roles Where Trust Matters
Certain jobs require a human touch:
People still value human presence when the stakes are emotional, deeply personal, and need additional clarification and understanding.
Embrace Entrepreneurial Thinking
AI lowers the barrier to starting a business, creating content, or building products.
Final Thought:
You don’t need to be better than AI at what it does best — you need to be better at being human. The future belongs to those who can use AI as a tool, keep learning, and lead with insight and empathy.
Clover
Clover is the new installment in guest writer David Griffith’s Muddy Boots blog series.
Clover is our third dog, first female and second Westie, although our first was a Cairn/Westie mix. She was born on April 21, 2019, and landed in Solebury in July of that year. She shares a birthday with my son and his daughter and our anniversary. She loves to walk, swim, and hang with her dog buddies and is a champ when she travels. Early on, she decided that the best place to sleep was under my wife’s desk, where she had a heat vent and dog bed, and at night, the end of our bed, which she discovered as a puppy. She never had an accident and had no trouble telling me when she needed to go out.
Westies were first bred in the Highlands of West Scotland by farmers who needed a white dog, small enough to go down vermin burrows and tough enough to handle them quickly. White so they wouldn’t be mistaken for a groundhog and not get shot, and with short, muscular tails, they could be pulled out if they needed any help. Please make no mistake: they were bred to be working dogs. Clover patrols our three acres and handles the deer, rabbits, squirrels, and the occasional woodchucks, aka groundhogs, who underestimate her speed and jaw strength. I have seen her handle them, which does not go long into the first round.
Her other job is to be, on occasion, my work buddy. Both when I was working at ECS and now with the Delaware Valley Family Business Center as a senior advisor. At ECS, I would unleash her, and she would make the rounds. Having a bad day, she could change a mood quickly with a wag of the tail and letting you give her a belly rub. If she stayed in someone’s office, I knew I needed to check in and see why Clover was concerned. She rarely had a misread. At DV, when we meet with a client, she breaks the ice better than anyone I know; she sleeps under the meeting table, bringing a sense of calm and friendliness into the meeting. I have seen her when someone needs comfort and has the sense to spend time with them. All I know is people feel better.
We can learn a lot about life from our dogs. We would do well to follow their lead. Check-in with people to see whether they have dog treats or not. There is more to business than business; it is about relationships, checking in, being present, and listening to their challenges. Therein lies the ability to coach and help bring solutions. To ease pain, you first must find it. I am convinced that Clover listens; sometimes, that is all people need.
That and someone to keep the rabbits out of the garden and sometimes other places.
Human-Centered Productivity for a Changed Business World
Executive Function: Decision-Making Centered in the Mind
Executive Function (EF) refers to the neurocognitive skills that regulate the attention needed for focus and goal-directed problem-solving, perspective-taking, and emotional regulation.
Measuring EF through RPI’s assessment software enables an upstream driver to transform human and organizational productivity. Based on 20+ years of scientific research to inform product development, RPI’s app is designed to be easy to use while connecting EF skills to workforce performance.
To date, applications have included workforce upskilling, team development, and performance assessment and improvement. RPI’s SaaS technology delivers a seamless assessment and improvement experience.
Everchanging Business Landscape Demands Executive Function Skills
The urgency to address EF measurement and skills development has been exacerbated by:
Measuring EF skills and supporting the growth of individual and team EF skills helps reduce employee risks, improves well-being and productivity, and generates substantial ROI.
Objective Measurement Leverages the Human Productivity Lifecycle
EF can be correlated to human performance factors to develop a more productive workforce. Reflected in these example measurements of EF is a wide dispersion of results along a declining normative curve for participants between 20 and 60 years old. Positive outliers above the curve demonstrate how cognitive skills can remain strong while others could benefit from maintaining or improving cognitive skills at any age.
Reflect/EF: Unlocking Productivity in 5 Minutes with a Measurement App
Reflect/EF, RPI’s game-like app, provides a quick, easy to use online experience. Introduced by a video to improve the participant’s foundational awareness of Executive Function (EF), the game then begins by presenting a series of challenges that progress in the level of difficulty. The game is deceptively simple yet reveals thinking power through a scientifically validated and proven measurement that enables improvement in self-management skills to benefit all areas of life.
Executive Function Measures Higher-Level Thinking
RPI’s objectively scores EF measurement directly from data obtained within the Reflect/EF app’s results. It is not observational, nor self-scored. Participants obtain scores for EF and three of the cognitive root skills that underlie EF. These scores anticipate human factors across any business.
It is not so much what participants know that matters in the app’s measurement. It is whether they can apply their knowledge in the moment, which is designed to model the intensity and pace of modern workplaces and life in general, including high-stress situations and other diverse environments.
RPI’s Assessment Delivers Improvement for Individuals and Teams
RPI’s EF measurement is applicable to all adult ages, and useful for life success or work performance. It has also been integrated into a seamless online improvement experience delivered by laptop, tablet, or smartphone. Participants receive a read-out of productivity aids based on assessed cognitive strengths and weaknesses, which can be enhanced through EF skills training.
Is the Right Person in the Right Role?
Cognitive Technology Puts Team Productivity First.
Workforce turnover can be extremely costly and disruptive when it comes to organizational development and the ability to execute. Despite the embedded costs and lost revenue results, management teams often rationalize such churn as business as usual. With the support of their boards, they often focus on the risks of failing to retain their top executives, salespeople, and technologists, while leaving other turnover ignored across the organization.
But what if executives could universally increase the probability of recruiting and developing the right person for the right role — and then obtaining higher performance and retention through innovative lifecycle metrics that integrates personalized training results.
Solving this perennial challenge requires finding and supporting the talent best suited to the team by emulating how the best athletic coaches develop high-performing teams. In most cases, this doesn’t necessarily mean finding “top talent.” Instead, assessments for ideal “fit” from the outset are critical to team composition and ability to learn and perform in high-stress situations.
Adopting a Systems Model for Productivity: Putting the Team First
The traditional point-to-point employment model first analyzes individual skills, competencies, and personality types. Expanding upon this approach can help reduce turnover, as there is little operational or financial leverage in building an organization person by person while other employees continue to come and go through a continuously revolving door.
Instead, a systems model can help with both assessing and developing the high-performing teams that make up organizations. This includes Executive teams, Sales teams, Product
Development teams, Production teams, R&D teams, Implementation teams, and Support teams.
A systems view enables objective assessments that cut through subjective, observational, and historical criteria to focus on team composition and specific roles within the team. From this vantage, neurodiversity matters and importantly, lower-level, and mid-level employees are critical team players that also impact execution and results, even if they’re commonly overlooked or ignored in project planning and corporate development.
With Reflective Performance, Inc., our cognitive assessment centered in Executive Function measurement helps optimize greater productivity with attention to the sum of all parts.
Creating System Change: Driving Performance from the Human Source
Human factors are widely understood as determinants of business success, yet they are rarely managed systematically through objective data. Advances in cognitive science have created a new method to measure performance across the employment lifecycle through Executive Function skills in terms of cognitive functioning and mental acuity. Reflective Performance, Inc.’s Reflect / EF software app measures the brain’s responses to provide a score around four fundamental measures: a composite Executive Function score and underlying measures of Working Memory, Cognitive Flexibility, and Impulse Control.
These scores represent how people think, act, and make decisions — and can be analyzed based on norms developed for diverse employee groups. As a result, they provide an enhanced measure of performance improvement at the root-cause level across the workforce, with even greater success than content knowledge or experience. They develop innovative insight into how employees perform in the moment-critical in team relationships, customer interactions, and unsupervised operations.
Executive Function Scores.
Systems Analysis.
High ROI and Higher Profitability
Human-centered Systems Design and Augmented Intelligence
AI is powerful for assessing performance yet best applied in combination with a more forward AI: Augmented Intelligence.
When organizations are viewed as a human-centered system, advanced cognitive measurement creates two transformative performance levers:
Performance understanding is moved upstream to the mind-body connection. This Productivity Multiplier is developed by corporate talent and teams working in unison at the highest efficiency across the business out to customers
Achieving these competitive advantages starts with SaaS measurement through a 5-minute game for a greater understanding of human factors, then analyzed through a systems model.
Reflective Performance, Inc.’s Executive Function analytics further unlock solutions for workplaces to address turnover by supporting the right person in the right role while doing so in a way that’s mutually beneficial for job prospect, employee, and employer alike.
Corporate leaders can be empowered from upstream measurement of cognitive functioning to develop clearer root cause analysis across domains and team by team. They are then better equipped to develop their organization for peak performance and achieve operational excellence by viewing corporate structure and systems in new, human-centered ways.
John G. Carlson, © 2025, all rights reserved jc******@**********************nc.com
Reflections on 70, a Muddy Boots Blog.
In October, I turned 70, retired from ECS, became an independent consultant and senior advisor to Delaware Valley Family Business Center, and decided to continue my board work with the for-profit and nonprofit world.
I also committed to my partner and spouse of 45 years that we would travel more, walk more, and I would go to the gym. The dog and I are working out that I am home for lunch. I’m not quite there with Jacqui yet, but we are figuring it out. I also plan to fish more as I have learned that fishing is not about the fish.
I am the youngest of three brothers and have seen what lies ahead through them. For the record, I am not a fan of “retirement.” I am a fan of staying active, staying involved in causes that interest me, and answering the call to service in ways that bring value.
I am looking forward to Jacqui and I doing more of this together. Retirement means we have the time to focus on what matters.
I am also learning that sharing our experiences and lessons with the younger folks entering the system is the best gift. To convey that your vote, your voice in the political process, and how you spend your time, treasure, and talent matters. That why we face many challenges; it is not an option to sit on the sidelines. Teddy Roosevelt was right. It is the man (or woman) in the Arena that counts. We need everyone in the Arena. Otherwise, the individuals on the far right and left will decide our future. Make no mistake: freedom around the world is at risk.
What matters is that we put Grandchildren over greed. That we look beyond our own backyard and see that poverty, freedom, and the environment are forces we ignore at not only our peril but that of future generations. Greed is a nasty word as it hits both at home and away. One would hope that the nation founded almost 250 years ago could look to our founding documents, live into its call to action, and give current credence.
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” And “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Establish Justice, promote the general welfare, free speech and press, redress of grievances. Quite a punch list, but not if we don’t all get in the Arena and we hold ourselves and our leaders accountable. That would put Grandchildren over Greed. If we do not, go to Arlington or Gettysburg National Cemetery and see the cost.
So much for retirement.