When “AI-Polished” Leaders Lose the Room
TL;DR:
AI can make your leaders sound human. Until they start talking. True credibility comes from showing up the same way—on paper, on stage, and in every room.
So, your leaders want to start using AI to craft their written communications.
Everyone’s doing it.
Because of course they are. it’s 2025, and AI is all anyone can talk about in the workplace. It’s creating efficiency. Enhancing productivity. “Lean in! Embrace it!” Or risk being left in the dust by someone who understands how to use it as an accelerator.
AI to the Rescue (Sort of)
You dutifully sit down with said leaders and start coaching them on how to use AI prompts to refine messages. One leader has gotten feedback that their emails feel cold and distant, so you help them prompt: “Help me refine this email to my direct reports to be more empathetic and human.”
Job done. The leader’s all smiles. Their direct reports are touched—but in an office-appropriate way.
Another leader wants to inject more levity into their written communications. They’ve heard that their team wants to have more fun and not be so stiff and serious all the time. Again, job done. You help them prompt AI to add some professional wit and pithiness into an email draft.
The leaders are pleased. Their teams are noticing. You’ve made a measurable impact.
When the Prompt Ends, the Problems Start
That’s all fine and good—until those same leaders step into an in-person meeting or walk onto a stage at a large-scale event. There’s no AI (yet) whispering in their ear, prompting them to sound more empathetic or more human. They’re freestyling. And you can almost hear the record scratch as they slip back into tone-deaf remarks or jokes that land flat.
You’re witnessing the crash and burn of someone dependent on AI to make them sound, ironically, more human.
The Human Gap
These are the moments when lapses in soft skills—human skills—become glaringly obvious. AI can accelerate, coach, and enable, but it cannot replace the nuance and connection that happen when someone looks you in the eye.
Leaders who are witty and empathetic on paper but stiff and disconnected in person show their cards fast. That inconsistency chips away at trust and authenticity—two of the most talked-about qualities in modern leadership.
Where IC Pros Come In
Here’s where internal communication (IC) professionals—or anyone supporting leadership—can step in:
Learn leaders’ strengths and weaknesses—Not every leader, even CEOs, should be on stage delivering key messages. Identify who your natural “stage presence” folks are. They may not all be in the C-suite. Look for those who naturally embody your organization’s mission, vision, and values.
Coach where you can, compensate where you can’t—When I was earning my executive coaching designation, the first lesson I learned was that not everyone can be coached. There has to be a problem worth addressing, a willingness to work through it, and genuine enthusiasm for the process. Without all three, coaching will fail.
Prioritize consistency over AI polish—Trust comes from alignment. If leaders sound great on paper but flat in person, it’s a dead giveaway that someone—or something—is writing for them.
The Punchline
AI can help leaders find their voice, but it can’t be their voice. The most effective communicators don’t just sound authentic. They are consistent in how they show up, write, and lead. So, yes, teach your leaders to use AI. Then teach them to be human without it.
