Adecco CEO Denis Machuel Explains The AI Workplace Readiness Gap Crisis, Ep. #28

May 21
24 mins

Episode Description

What does it take to scale AI across an organization?

Rachel Wells talks with Denis Machuel, CEO of Adecco Group, about key findings from the newly-released 2026 Business Leaders Report — a survey of 2,000 C‑suite leaders across 13 countries.

The conversation reveals a worrying gap: the proportion of “future‑ready” organizations has dropped, and only a minority of leaders have talent strategies that clearly show how AI will create opportunities for workers.

Denis argues that successful AI adoption hinges on people‑centered leadership: measuring trust as a business metric, co‑designing job changes with employees, prioritizing upskilling (only 22% of leaders feel confident they’re developing AI skills), and deploying agents where they augment frontline work.

He shares real examples from Adecco on how co‑design and focusing agents on client‑facing processes have increased job satisfaction and adoption.

A must‑listen for leaders who want to avoid resistance and wasted investment, and instead build an AI‑enabled workforce that works with people, not to replace them.

🎧 Available now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube Podcasts, and more.

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