AI Is Not the Strategy, It’s the Test: Leading Big Bets That Drive Growth with John Rossman

Former Amazon executive and bestselling author John Rossman shares with host Tom Schwab what it really takes to lead and innovate in what Rossman calls the age of turbulence. Far from chasing the hype around artificial intelligence, John argues that AI isn’t the strategy, it’s the test. Drawing on lessons from his books The Amazon Way, Think Like Amazon, and Big Bet Leadership, he explains how leaders can drive real growth by focusing on durable customer needs, designing meaningful experiments, and leading with strategic patience. The conversation dives into Amazon’s “working backwards” mindset, the dangers of using yesterday’s logic in today’s fast-moving landscape, and John’s three-layer AI strategy that goes beyond surface-level productivity hacks to help businesses rethink workflows and solve their biggest bottlenecks.

Tom and John also explore how podcast interviews can serve as powerful platforms for innovation, experimentation, and refining your message in real time. Using a real-world example from Interview Valet, they discuss how AI was used to analyze thousands of email pitches to uncover what actually gets podcast hosts to say “yes.” Whether you're a solo expert, a service professional, or scaling a business, this episode delivers a fresh perspective on how to lead with agility and use AI to fuel progress, without falling for the buzzwords.

Timestamps From This Episode:

[03:54] Being an active skeptic with AI, validate before committing

[07:18] Working backwards, Amazon’s innovation process

[15:02] Using AI to analyze podcast outreach

[22:21] Leadership principle - ownership and enterprise thinking

Resources From This Episode:

TheDigitalLeader.substack.com

Linkedin.com/in/john-rossman

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