Be Bold or Be Replaced: AI Agents, Human Courage & the New Enterprise Reality | DisrupTV Ep. 419

This week on DisrupTV, hosts Vala Ashar and R "Ray" Wang sat down with two leaders shaping the future of enterprise AI and leadership: Marty Kihn, SVP of Strategy at Salesforce and author of Agent Force, and Ranjay Gulati, author of How to Be Bold: The Surprising Science of Everyday Courage.

From the rise of agentic AI inside the enterprise to the science behind building courageous organizations, this episode delivered a powerful look at the mindset and technology needed to lead through massive transformation.

Inside Salesforce’s Agent Force: AI Agents at Enterprise Scale

Kihn kicked off the discussion with an inside look at Agent Force, Salesforce’s platform designed to help organizations create, test, deploy, and monitor AI agents safely and at scale.

He emphasized that building enterprise-grade AI requires more than great models—it demands:

  • Safety and trust: personal data masking, toxicity detection, and bias mitigation
  • Data grounding: keeping agents connected to accurate, real-time business context
  • Narrowing scope: focusing agents on specific, well-defined tasks instead of vague ambitions
  • Extensive testing: because LLM-driven agents can be non-deterministic and unpredictable

Kihn framed the future as a hybrid human–agent workforce, where AI augments employees, automates workflows, and gives leaders clearer articulation of what tasks need attention.

He also highlighted the three A’s of the agentic enterprise:

  • Automation — Streamlining repetitive work
  • Augmentation — Boosting human capability
  • Articulation — Making business processes and decisions explicit, observable, and improvable

As organizations move toward this future, Kihn argued, they must invest in protocols and standards that ensure AI agents can communicate with each other and with core enterprise systems. He pointed to emerging frameworks like:

  • Model Context Protocol (MCP)
  • Agent-to-Agent Protocol (ATA)
  • Advertising Context Protocol (AdCP)

These will shape the future of orchestration across the agentic enterprise.

Building Courage in an AI-Transformed World with Ron J. Galati

If agentic AI is the technology of the future, courage is the human capability that will define who thrives in it. Ranjay Gulati joined the show to discuss the science behind bold leadership, inspired by his new book and informed by receiving a forward from none other than the Dalai Lama.

Gulati’s message was clear:

  • Courage isn’t the absence of fear—it’s action despite it.

He explored how leaders can cultivate courage at scale inside their organizations by focusing on:

  • Self-efficacy — the belief that you can succeed
  • Deliberate action — small moves that build momentum
  • Purpose — a deeper mission that fuels resilience
  • Generosity — creating a “clan” mindset where people support one another

Gulati argued that courage will be essential as companies navigate accelerating advancements like autonomous vehicles, AI-driven automation, and massive shifts in job roles.

  • “Fear is real,” he said. “But courage emerges when people feel capable, connected, and committed to something bigger than themselves.”

Why Courage and AI Must Evolve Together

A unifying theme from both guests:

  • The future belongs to organizations that blend bold leadership with trustworthy AI.
  • AI will automate and augment work, but humans must bring purpose and judgment.
  • Agents will take over complex workflows, but leaders must set the vision and build trust.
  • Uncertainty will grow—but so will opportunity for those willing to act boldly.

As Ray and Vala wrapped the episode, they emphasized that the path forward requires both technical excellence and human bravery.

Key Takeaways

  • Agent Force is Salesforce’s platform for building and managing enterprise AI agents.
  • Enterprises must focus on safety, data grounding, and narrow scope when deploying AI.
  • Emerging protocols like MCP and ATA will standardize how agents operate at scale.
  • Courage is a learnable skill, driven by purpose, generosity, and action.
  • The future of work will be shaped by hybrid human–AI teams, requiring both innovation and bold leadership.

Final Thoughts: Innovation Starts Within

As enterprises step into the agentic era, one truth is becoming increasingly clear: technology alone won’t determine who succeeds—courage will. AI agents like those built on Salesforce’s Agent Force will accelerate work, reshape roles, and unlock new forms of value. But it’s bold, purpose-driven leaders who will guide teams through uncertainty, build trust in these new systems, and inspire a culture willing to experiment, learn, and evolve.

This episode was a reminder that the organizations ready to blend AI innovation with human bravery will be the ones that define the next decade. Whether you're exploring agentic architectures or building a more courageous workforce, now is the time to lean in.

If you're navigating AI transformation—or preparing your teams for the future—this episode is a must-watch.

Related Episodes

If you found Episode 419 valuable, here are a few others that align in theme or extend similar conversations:

 

Business Research Themes

Future of Work, New C-Suite, Tech Optimization

Roles

Chief Data Officer, Chief Executive Officer, Chief Information Officer, Chief People Officer, Chief Technology Officer