Good Morning Reader it's Maria, By now, I have had enough conversations about AI transformation to spot the pattern. Some companies keep getting stuck at the same bump in the road, and nine times out of ten, it comes down to the same issue: nobody actually owns the AI rollout. When most businesses decide to get serious about AI, their first instinct is to do the obvious thing and hand it to IT. It makes sense on paper. AI is a technology, so give it to the tech people and let them figure it...
about 1 month ago • 5 min read
Good Morning Reader it's Maria, I came across a post this week that stopped me mid-scroll. Sol Rashidi, the world's first Chief AI Officer back in 2016 (and a woman), was speaking at the AI Congress about something that should concern all: We are deploying one of the most powerful technologies in human history, without any security around it, not even the equivalent of seatbelts. I think about this a lot. I am genuinely for AI. I have built my work around it, and I do believe it is going to...
about 2 months ago • 4 min read
Good Morning Reader it's Maria, I've been watching this play out for years: A company hits a rough patch, or just wants to look lean for the shareholders. They announce a sweeping new strategy, headlines follow, share prices go up, and then, people start losing their jobs. The official reason changes depending on the decade: market conditions, offshoring, automation...today, the reason is AI. But here's what the data is finally telling us: it isn't working. If podcasts are more your speed,...
2 months ago • 6 min read
Good Morning Reader it's Maria, Most people I speak to have never heard of the EU AI Act. And the ones who have, they've mostly hidden it under the "something to deal with later" pile. I get it! I did too. To be honest, before I started researching it for this newsletter, I didn't fully understand the implications and urgency around it. It sounds like boring bureaucracy, something for big companies with legal teams that doesn't apply to you yet. But it does, and August 2026, which is when it...
3 months ago • 6 min read
Good Morning Reader it's Maria, Something happened at the end of last month that I haven't been able to stop thinking about. On the 31st of March (just before Easter), thousands of Oracle employees woke up to an email. It arrived at 6 am and was signed "Oracle Leadership." No manager, no phone call... just a message telling them their access had been revoked and today was their last working day. Some of those people had been there for decades, and one woman was 30 weeks pregnant. That email...
3 months ago • 3 min read
Good Morning Reader it's Maria, Something small but meaningful is changing today. This newsletter is getting a new name. From this issue forward, it's going out as Ask Maria Kelly. For as long as I can remember, people have come to find me when they needed to figure something out. A problem at work, a decision they couldn't make, a situation they didn't know how to handle. And the answer from whoever they asked was almost always the same: "Go and ask Maria Kelly." Some of my colleagues would...
3 months ago • 6 min read
Good Morning, Reader it's Maria, My birthday is coming up. I'll be 53. And I'll be honest with you, there are moments when that number has me worried. Because of what's happening around us. AI is moving fast, and sometimes I catch myself wondering: Am I keeping up? That feeling is exactly why I did my AI certification. Why I built Ask Maria Kelly around strategy and AI together. And why, this week, standing in front of a room of sharp, curious students talking about the future of work, I felt...
4 months ago • 4 min read
Good Morning Reader, it's Maria, I had a conversation recently that felt worth sharing A consultant I know, experienced and genuinely brilliant at what she does, told me she'd been putting off using AI in her business for months. She'd dabbled a little, tried a bit of ChatGPT, but kept pulling back. I assumed it was the usual stuff: Not knowing where to start Too many tools Not enough time But what she actually said is something a lot of people feel, but don't often bring up. She'd been...
4 months ago • 5 min read
Good Morning Reader, it's Maria, When I left corporate, there was something I didn't expect. I assumed my reputation would do the heavy lifting. After 22 years at Sotheby's, I had a strong network. People trusted me, respected my work, and knew what I was capable of. I believed that when I stepped out on my own, that foundation would carry me. Clients would come, the phone would ring, and the doors I had built relationships behind would open. Some did. My first clients came from people who...
5 months ago • 3 min read