How to use AI for management
CFOs can use AI to manage better easily.
Management is one of the easiest things to do with AI.
That’s what Sergey Brin, yes, Google’s cofounder, said in a recent All-in podcast.
He was being real. Brin returned to Google in 2023 to help steer its AI direction. But instead of just tinkering with models, he started using AI as a leadership tool.
He uses AI to manage people. Here’s how:
And it worked so well that his team didn’t even realize the AI was doing half the work.
Now, if you’re a CFO or a CEO buried under Slack threads, team meetings, and scattered reports, you should be asking:
What does Sergey Brin know about managing with AI that I don’t?
In today’s edition you’ll learn:
How Brin’s used AI to promote a junior employee
How CFOs can use AI for management (Prompts + example)
But What About Security?
The bottom line
Read on.
How Brin’s used AI to promote a junior employee
Here’s what he actually did:
Let AI digest entire chat threads. Long Slack-like channels, dozens of messages.
Asked AI to summarize everything. Key themes, decisions, and questions.
Had AI assign action items. Real next steps for the team.
Quietly pasted the results back into chat. No one could tell it wasn’t human.
Then he took it one step further:
Brin asked the AI, “Who’s adding the most value in this group?”
It flagged a junior engineer.
Someone under the radar. Quiet. But doing incredible work.
Brin checked with her manager. The AI was right.
She got promoted.
No HR dashboard. No monthly review. Just AI reading the room better than a human.
He also said AI models perform better when you threaten them with physical violence. But not a lot of people know about this.
How CFOs can use AI for management
If you’re leading finance at a mid-sized or large company, this should stop you cold.
Because the biggest threat to your leadership isn’t bad data, it’s information overload.
It’s challenging to manage…
Daily meetings
Long email threads
Recaps from your managers
Dozens of Slack or Teams channels
And somewhere in there is…
A missed risk
A hidden trend
An underperforming process
You don’t need more dashboards. You need clarity.
This is where AI steps in, not as a toy but as a force multiplier.