AI-Augmented Leadership: How Leaders Make Strategic Decisions Alongside AI

Abstract

This thesis explores the paradigm of AI-augmented leadership, a new model of strategic decision-making that is emerging in the age of artificial intelligence. It argues that the role of the human leader is not being diminished by AI but is, in fact, becoming more critical and more complex. As AI takes on the tasks of optimization and prediction, human leaders are freed to focus on the higher-order cognitive and emotional skills that are essential for effective leadership in the 21st century. The thesis introduces two novel theoretical frameworks to guide our understanding of this new leadership paradigm. The first, “cognitive scaffolding,” describes how AI can enhance the leader’s natural abilities in three key areas: augmented perception, augmented cognition, and augmented imagination. The second, the “SAFE” framework, provides a set of ethical principles—Scrutiny, Accountability, Fairness, and Explainability—for the responsible use of AI in leadership. Through a proposed mixed-methods research design that includes in-depth case studies, agent-based modeling simulations, and large-scale surveys, the thesis provides a roadmap for the empirical validation of these frameworks. The research aims to offer practical insights for leaders who are navigating the complexities of the digital age, as well as a new theoretical foundation for the study of leadership in a world of intelligent machines.