Owning the Outcome
Episode: Transformation Tips from Bright Digital’s Head of AI & Innovation
Host: Sarah McDevitt, HubSpot
Guest: Amen Ben emhand, Head of AI & Innovation at Bright Digital
Date: September 24, 2025
Episode Overview
This episode explores how Bright Digital—a leading HubSpot partner—navigates the rapidly changing landscape of AI adoption both internally and with clients. Amen Ben emhand, Bright’s Head of AI & Innovation, shares practical strategies for building an AI-first company culture, overcoming resistance, measuring ROI, fostering trust with clients, and keeping pace with relentless innovation. The insights are especially relevant for organizations seeking to move from piloting AI tools to real results and for partners aiming to define their value in an AI-first world.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. About Bright Digital & Amen’s Role
[01:21]
- Bright Digital is a HubSpot Global Elite partner, serving mid-market and upmarket clients across diverse industries (finance, manufacturing, etc.) with a focus on complex HubSpot implementations.
- Amen leads AI strategy and innovation—internally enabling Bright Digital’s teams to adopt AI and externally guiding clients, particularly at the management/C-level, to integrate generative AI into their operations.
Quote:
“I love innovation, I love AI. I was one of the early adopters of generative AI. But the main two tasks... guide the AI implementation within our own workflows... [and] guiding and helping our clients... especially on C level...” — Amen [02:30]
2. Fostering Internal AI Adoption
[03:32]
- Enable Teams: Provisioning tools while maintaining data privacy and setting clear company guidelines.
- AI-First Mindset: Shifting thinking so people start tasks with AI as a core tool, not as an afterthought.
- “48-Hour Rule": Teams act quickly on AI ideas—write them down and move within two days to maintain momentum.
- Masterclasses & Skill Building: Internal workshops demystified AI, upskilled teams, and improved adoption rates.
- Lowering Perfection Pressure: Encouraging employees to start with solutions that are “good enough” (an 8/10) improved comfort with experimenting.
Quote:
"Let’s start with an 8. If it’s an 8, it’s good enough to start with and from there on we can start building to a 10." — Amen [05:07]
3. Addressing Internal Resistance and Enthusiasm
[05:00–06:31]
- Resistance: Perfectionism, time constraints, and unfamiliarity with AI.
- Solutions: Lowering the expectation from “10/10” to “8/10”; embedding AI tasks into regular routines; providing hands-on training.
- Positive Response: High attendance in voluntary AI masterclasses, even during a summer break (50 employees, 80+ participants due to group companies).
4. Challenges and Success in Client AI Adoption
[07:00]
- Common Blockers:
- Prior failed attempts at AI, leading to skepticism.
- Overburdened teams focused on immediate business operations.
- Only about 11–12% of clients are truly advancing at pace with AI; most require significant buy-in and guidance.
- Approach:
- Relate to clients’ past pain points.
- Show value through tailored approaches, not one-size-fits-all consulting.
Quote:
"62% of mid market already tried to do something with AI and it failed." — Amen [07:17]
5. The Human Touch: Building Relationships in an AI Age
[09:45–11:15]
- Trust as the Foundation: Genuine, relationship-driven sales and consulting—listening deeply to client needs.
- Human Connection Still Matters: Even tech-savvy Gen Z values personal rapport.
- Why Now? Clients have been burnt by fast, impersonal AI projects that didn’t deliver—so trust and partnership are more important than ever.
Quote:
“Gen Z... is expecting again the personal touch, really gaining trust and otherwise you will pass, they will go to somebody else.” — Amen [10:24]
“Been there, done that, never again... It costs a lot of money, costs a lot of headache, a lot of resources.” — Amen [11:16]
6. Scope of AI Services and Revenue Impact
[12:48]
- Bright Digital’s Offerings:
- Strategic AI consulting (with hands-on implementation, not just reports)
- Breeze training and integration (HubSpot’s AI tool)
- Data governance advising
- Building practical Agentic AI workflows and solutions.
- Revenue Impact: AI services remain a growing but not yet dominant revenue stream; under 20% for most partners.
7. Adapting to Rapid Technological Change
[14:36]
- AI is now essential and evolving at an unparalleled pace.
- The challenge: today’s solution could be obsolete next week.
- Strategic focus: continuous learning, staying adaptive, sharing knowledge via internal AI champions and collaborative forums.
Quote:
"Something you thought about today already changes next week and there's nothing else in the world that's changing so fast." — Amen [15:19]
8. Handling AI Tool Overload and ROI
[16:42–19:36]
- Overwhelming Choices: 35,000+ AI tools; risk of FOMO.
- Framework: Focus on business goals and ROI, not the allure of shiny new tools. Evaluate via:
- What problem does the tool solve?
- Does it deliver ROI relative to cost?
- Leverage built-in tools (e.g., Breeze in HubSpot, Gemini in Google, Copilot in Microsoft), rather than chasing every trend.
- ROI Calculation: Still “old-school” process mapping—compare hours saved vs. tool cost; working on more robust frameworks for the future.
Quote:
"It's the same investment that we were doing in SaaS solutions for years and years. But yeah, keep an eye on your goal, check on which AI tools could help you there." — Amen [17:21]
9. Practical Strategies for Staying Up-to-Date
[19:59]
- Prioritize by potential impact for Bright or for clients.
- Create “AI Champions”: Assign team members to specific tools/areas, hold quick weekly syncs to share updates—don’t make one person own everything.
- Document and revisit tools/features that need more maturity, re-evaluate after updates.
Quote:
"You are going to be our head of Breeze updates, you're going to be the one on cursor, you're going to be the one on OpenAI. And weekly we have meetings together with an AI task force." — Amen [20:00]
10. Predictions for the Next 12 Months
[22:56]
- Data will remain a sticking point, but perfection isn’t needed to start.
- Partners who build trust and position themselves as “the smart one-stop-shop” for AI will thrive.
- Early action is essential—“start adapting” before clients turn elsewhere.
Quote:
“Please show me a company that has all this data. 100% nobody. So also with this AI part, you really need to look again to the goal." — Amen [23:00]
Memorable Quotes & Moments
- “If you didn’t start, you’re already too late. But not too late. It’s not the end of the world. But start adapting.” — Amen [24:18]
- "Don’t do panicking things to your clients and just give them again a roadshow and start spamming them with AI is here and we can do everything with AI. Start listening to your clients.” — Amen [24:41]
- "Done is better than perfect." — Sarah [25:05]
Important Timestamps for Segments
- [01:21] — Bright Digital’s client focus & complexity
- [02:30] — Amen’s day-to-day as Head of AI & Innovation
- [03:32] — Internal AI adoption strategy
- [05:00] — Tackling resistance and leveraging masterclasses
- [07:00] — Client-side adoption challenges
- [09:45] — Human relationships and trust in AI engagements
- [12:48] — Scope of AI services and revenue impact
- [14:36] — The pace of change and adapting business models
- [16:42] — AI tool overload and how to focus
- [18:42] — ROI frameworks and process mapping
- [19:59] — Staying up-to-date and using “AI champions”
- [22:56] — Predictions for next 12 months and advice for partners
- [24:18] — Amen’s core advice: Start now, build relationships, adapt
Final Advice
- Start NOW on AI adoption—waiting is falling behind, but don’t panic.
- Leverage your team—build internal champions and collaborate.
- Maintain a human touch with clients—relationship and trust trump everything.
- Keep an outcome-driven focus and be intentional in selecting and measuring the ROI of AI tools.
- Regular learning, sharing, and adaptation are critical to keeping up.