Is AI Removing Friction—or Creating More of It?
Hosted by Welland & Co
Tuesday, October 6, 2026
12:00 PM–1:00 PM ET
About
Turning Technology Friction into Organizational Clarity
Core premise
Organizations are rushing to adopt AI because they see the potential to save time, automate work, improve decision-making, and increase productivity.
But there is a problem.
AI is being layered onto organizations where:
Roles are already unclear.
Processes have grown organically.
Employees do not know who owns decisions.
Managers operate differently from one another.
Information lives in too many places.
Workarounds have become normal.
Teams have never stopped to ask why they are doing certain work in the first place.
AI does not automatically solve those problems.
In many cases, AI simply makes an unclear operating model move faster.
The question organizations should ask is not:
“Where can we use AI?”
It is:
“Where is there friction in how work gets done—and is AI actually the right solution?”
Speakers
- Anna Welland - Anna brings more than 25 years of experience building the people, operational, and funding infrastructure that helps research-driven organizations, startups, small businesses, and growing organizations operate effectively, grow sustainably, and scale when the time is right.
- She serves as a Mentor-at-Large with Auxilium Worcester and is a Founding Board Member of Fierce Foundry, a venture studio supporting women founders and entrepreneurs.
- Anna is also a frequent speaker, presenter, and podcast guest, sharing her expertise with founder and entrepreneurial communities through Chambers of Commerce, accelerator programs, and universities including Northeastern, Simmons, and Suffolk.
Host
Welland & Co
Join link
Join link: https://meet.google.com/uaa-vzcq-knb