The Rise of the Supermanager: Redefining Leadership in the AI Era

The rise of fluid leadership

One of Root’s most compelling concepts is fluid leadership. This is the idea that leadership should move dynamically based on context and capability, not title. Specifically, AI is democratizing knowledge skills like analysis, synthesis and even language itself. As those skills become table stakes, leadership can no longer remain static.

Instead of working with a single specialist until completion, leadership passes to whoever is best positioned to move the work forward right now.

Fluid leadership prioritizes:

• Collaboration over control
• Context over hierarchy
• Momentum over ownership

In this model, leadership becomes situational, and collaboration becomes a measurable skill rather than a soft one.

The human shift: From ego to curiosity

Ironically, as AI becomes more powerful, human behavior becomes more decisive. Root argues that many traditional leadership models are ego-driven — built around certainty, authority and control. AI quickly exposes the limits of that approach.

“No one person can hold all the knowledge skills that an AI can,” he says. “The shift leaders need to make is from ego to curiosity.”

Curiosity enables better questions. Better questions unlock better AI outputs. And better outputs accelerate smarter decisions. Supermanagers don’t need to have the answers; they need to know how to think multi-dimensionally and how to best structure inquiry.

Tool fluency is table stakes. Cognitive architecture is the edge.

In the near term, executives still need fluency with AI tools. Understanding how to prompt, validate outputs and integrate AI into workflows matters. But that advantage won’t last. What will differentiate leaders over the next three to five years is cognitive architecture: the ability to rapidly build temporary mental structures that help them frame problems, ask precise questions and hold complexity without becoming overwhelmed.

The future-ready executive doesn’t know more. They think better, faster, and with more flexibility.

What This Means for the Next Generation of Leaders

While Gen Z is often criticized for lacking social skills, Root sees opportunity rather than a deficiency. This generation entered adulthood during COVID, armed with high tool fluency but disrupted relational development. Rather than inheriting legacy leadership norms, they are positioned to rebuild leadership models from scratch. They aren’t broken. They’re unburdened.

If organizations create environments that value collaboration, curiosity and fluid leadership, the next generation may adapt faster than anyone expects.

What Executives Should Do Next

For leaders navigating this transition, Root offers clear guidance:

• Audit where your time actually goes.
• Identify tasks driven by ego rather than impact.
• Design systems instead of workflows.
• Practice collaboration intentionally.
• Read deeply and often.
• Invest in personal resilience and health.

As complexity accelerates, leadership sustainability becomes a competitive advantage.

Leadership in an Age of Abundance

AI doesn’t diminish leadership. It demands more of it. The supermanager isn’t replaced by machines. They are revealed by them. In an age of abundance, the executives who thrive will be those who recalibrate their roles — not as commanders of work, but as architects of possibility.