Agentic AI. Culture wars. Rewiring leadership. In this electric conversation, Phil Fersht, CEO of HFS Research, sits down with Karthik Krishnamurthy, CEO of Ascendion, to explore why the future of work isn’t just being automated, it’s being reimagined.

From building trust in AI-powered enterprises to rethinking capital allocation and redefining what it means to be a services firm, this episode dives into the seismic shifts shaping the next decade. Is your company stuck in a legacy mindset, or ready to embrace Services-as-Software?

This one’s for the bold.

What You’ll Hear in 30 Minutes

Why 2025 was the year of Agentic at work, but not at scale
The real reason people embrace AI in their personal lives but not at work
Why medium-sized companies are driving the most disruption
How trust, not tools, is the missing ingredient in enterprise AI
The myth of “digital transformation” and what needs to happen next
What Services-as-Software really means—and why it’s already here
Why investors need a new playbook for the platform era
The talent profiles needed to win the next decade

Guest Snapshots

Karthik Krishnamurthy is the CEO of Ascendion, where he’s pioneering the transformation of traditional IT services into platforms and products designed to deliver meaningful business outcomes. A veteran of the services space, KK’s leadership is rooted in redefining how technology connects to enterprise value, and why trust is now the currency of transformation.

Timestamps
00:00 – Welcome and setting the stage for 2025
01:45 – The year of agentic AI at work
04:45 – Personal vs professional AI adoption
06:30 – The leadership trust gap
10:20 – Why mid-sized firms have an edge
13:00 – The fear of change in enterprises
16:00 – The reality of job elimination vs cyclical layoffs
18:20 – Why this industry is about to explode
20:00 – Services firms as last-mile tech partners
22:40 – Breaking the revenue–people linearity
24:00 – What needs to change: leadership, IP, and culture
26:00 – Platforms over PowerPoints: the trust imperative
29:20 – Redefining the services firm
32:00 – The investor POV: Outcomes vs headcount
35:00 – Talent that gets their hands dirty
39:30 – Storytelling as a core capability
41:00 – Smashing the silos, building alignment
43:00 – Rethinking capital allocation
46:00 – R&D and the reinvention imperative
48:00 – Final thoughts: Change is here. Get on board.

Explore More

Phil Fersht on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/philipfersht
HFS Research Website: https://www.hfsresearch.com/
Karthik Krishnamurthy on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karthikkrishnamurthy
Ascendion Website: https://ascendion.com/