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Leading the Future in the Intelligent Age

The Three Layers of Exponential Change

KEYNOTE

THE WORLD IN TRANSITION

We are living through the most accelerated decade in human history. Artificial intelligence and emerging technologies are reshaping every system of work and daily life. The next ten years will bring more transformation than the last hundred.

AI is redefining every profession and triggering one of the largest workforce shifts in modern history. As the world transforms around us, leadership itself is being redefined, demanding new ways of thinking and leading.

To succeed in this new era, leaders must learn to operate across three levels of exponential change:

1. Global, 2. Organizational, and 3. Leadership.

In this flagship keynote, Tarja Stephens explores how leadership in the Intelligent Age unfolds across interconnected layers of transformation.

She reveals how the boundaries between human intelligence and artificial intelligence are merging, giving rise to new ways of understanding our own intelligences and the human qualities that will define the next chapter of leadership.

During her talk, Tarja bridges global, organizational, and leadership change, providing practical steps every leader can take to actively shape the future.

LEADING IN THE INTELLIGENT AGE

Book Tarja

THE THREE LAYERS OF EXPONENTIAL CHANGE

1. Global Change

Understanding the Forces Reshaping Our World

This layer examines the powerful global shifts redefining our society and industries. By looking back at history, we uncover patterns that help us navigate the accelerating future, a world where technology sets the pace, but humanity sets the direction.

2. Organizational Change

Redesigning Work for the Intelligent Age

Inside organizations, every system, job, and structure is being reinvented. This layer explores how to build human-led, AI-powered cultures that preserve trust, amplify human value, and help organizations thrive through continuous transformation.

3. Leadership Change

Becoming Future-Ready Leader

The final layer moves to the personal where leadership itself is being reimagined. This layer explores how leaders can work with AI as a true thought partner. Through the lens of “My Day with AI as a Business Leader,” this segment offers action steps of how AI can serve in their daily leadership role.

ABOUT TARJA

Tarja Stephens is a Finnish-American entrepreneur, keynote speaker, author, and strategic advisor specializing in people-centric AI transformation and leadership development. She is the founder of Leaders of the Future, a global peer network focusing on visionary leadership in the AI era, and AI Opportunity, an agency advising CEOs and executives on how to apply AI in leadership roles while building personal leadership skills for a fast-changing world.

With over two decades of international experience in technology, business strategy, and talent development, Tarja helps organizations scale AI initiatives without losing sight of human values such as compassion and empathy. She is also an author of an upcoming book on leadership in the age of AI, and a prominent speaker at major global events. Her work is deeply inspired by nature's intelligence and human potential, focusing on people-centric AI adoption and resilient leadership for the future.