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u/S_Shiralkar

r/it r/systemsthinking r/LeadershipDevelopment r/humanresources r/strategy r/PromptCentral
▲ 1 r/humanresources+1 crossposts

Forward Deployed Engineers: Need for 'Human Skills' in the Hybrid Intelligence Era

Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) role is becoming more in demand and is shaping a definitive career path as AI reshapes the work.

Unlike traditional engineering roles, FDEs must be able to deal seamlessly across AI systems, architecture, customer needs, business context, and people.

The challenge is that technology alone cannot provide all the answers. FDEs will often face decisions where human judgment, adaptability, and ethics matter more than technical execution.

But here’s the catch: these skills aren’t built in classrooms.

They need rehearsal.

This raises a bigger question: As AI shapes the work, are we providing engineers a way to rehearse, becoming better at the parts, AI cannot do?

reddit.com
u/S_Shiralkar — 5 days ago
▲ 0 r/systemsthinking

Sometimes you walk a path, long before it has a name..

For me it started in 1998. The first scaled deployment that proved it could work was ~2000.

What I learned: a game is not the learning. The learning is in how you "design the entire experience" - initiation, deliberate reflection, and reinforcement so it stays longer.

That's what I call a game-based approach.

It connects loosely to experiential learning and gamification, but the design of the full arc is what makes it different.

I tried to articulate it in "IT Through Experiential Learning" (Apress, 2016) and more recently in "Games for Gravitas" (Amazon, 2025).

One story stays with me. Around 2013, a CFO wanted her board sensitized on technology-led transformation but was not sure the board would give it time. She was apprehensive when I mentioned games. To her surprise, the entire board not only stayed through the full-day workshop, but they also participated actively till the end. I've seen that pattern repeat.

Over the years, researchers across domains - from pedagogy to organizational change - have cited this work in different parts of the world. Have had Interviews aired on TV and radio, all has been very humbling.

Today, as AI changes how we work and think, I keep asking - how do we keep critical thinking alive?

If you work with learning, teams, or transformation, I'd love to hear how you see "games" shaping awareness or dealing with making leadership real.

More visuals from this journey are on my FB Page, LinkedIn Page, YouTube and Instagram - game_based_aapproach. Links are in the first comment

reddit.com
u/S_Shiralkar — 7 days ago
▲ 0 r/strategy

Sometimes you walk a path, long before it has a name..

For me it started in 1998. The first scaled deployment that proved it could work was ~2000.

What I learned: a game is not the learning. The learning is in how you "design the entire experience" - initiation, deliberate reflection, and reinforcement so it stays longer.

That's what I call a game-based approach.

It connects loosely to experiential learning and gamification, but the design of the full arc is what makes it different.

I tried to articulate it in "IT Through Experiential Learning" (Apress, 2016) and more recently in "Games for Gravitas" (Amazon, 2025).

One story stays with me. Around 2013, a CFO wanted her board sensitized on technology-led transformation but was not sure the board would give it time. She was apprehensive when I mentioned games. To her surprise, the entire board not only stayed through the full-day workshop, but they also participated actively till the end. I've seen that pattern repeat.

Over the years, researchers across domains - from pedagogy to organizational change - have cited this work in different parts of the world. Have had Interviews aired on TV and radio, all has been very humbling.

Today, as AI changes how we work and think, I keep asking - how do we keep critical thinking alive?

If you work with learning, teams, or transformation, I'd love to hear how you see "games" shaping awareness or dealing with making leadership real.

More visuals from this journey are on my FB Page, LinkedIn Page, YouTube and Instagram - game_based_aapproach. Links are in the first comment

reddit.com
u/S_Shiralkar — 7 days ago
▲ 1 r/LeadershipDevelopment

Sometimes you walk a path, long before it has a name..

For me it started in 1998. The first scaled deployment that proved it could work was ~2000.

What I learned: a game is not the learning. The learning is in how you "design the entire experience" - initiation, deliberate reflection, and reinforcement so it stays longer.

That's what I call a game-based approach.

It connects loosely to experiential learning and gamification, but the design of the full arc is what makes it different.

I tried to articulate it in "IT Through Experiential Learning" (Apress, 2016) and more recently in "Games for Gravitas" (Amazon, 2025).

One story stays with me. Around 2013, a CFO wanted her board sensitized on technology-led transformation but was not sure the board would give it time. She was apprehensive when I mentioned games. To her surprise, the entire board not only stayed through the full-day workshop, but they also participated actively till the end. I've seen that pattern repeat.

Over the years, researchers across domains - from pedagogy to organizational change - have cited this work in different parts of the world. Have had Interviews aired on TV and radio, all has been very humbling.

Today, as AI changes how we work and think, I keep asking - how do we keep critical thinking alive?

If you work with learning, teams, or transformation, I'd love to hear how you see "games" shaping awareness or dealing with making leadership real.

More visuals from this journey are on my FB Page, LinkedIn Page, YouTube and Instagram - game_based_aapproach. Links are in the first comment

reddit.com
u/S_Shiralkar — 8 days ago
▲ 2 r/LeadershipDevelopment+1 crossposts

From 'Chinese Whispers' to 'Simon Says' games ...now 'Cognitive Debt'

In the recent posts, I shared how I used simple games to get participants learn on working with AI:

  • What happens in the Chinese Whispers game when the context disappears and meaning becomes distorted?
  • Simon Says: how much does the quality of an AI response depend on how well we frame the task?

But there’s a more uncomfortable question:

What happens when we stop doing enough of the thinking ourselves?

That’s the idea behind Cognitive Debt.

AI can make us faster, more productive, and better at getting to an answer.

But if we routinely outsource the difficult parts of thinking; questioning, reasoning, challenging assumptions, making sense of ambiguity.

Are we also reducing opportunities to develop those capabilities?

And here’s the leadership challenge:

How do we use AI to increase capability without accidentally replacing the very thinking we are trying to develop?

I explore this idea in a short video: Cognitive Debt: The Price of Easy Answers

One practical experiment for leaders:

Next time you use AI to solve a problem, don’t just ask “What’s the answer?”

Ask:

  • What thinking should I still do myself?
  • What assumptions should I challenge?
  • What would I want a less experienced colleague to learn from this process?
  • Where should AI assist and where should it deliberately stay out of the way?

Maybe the goal isn’t to keep AI from thinking for us.

Maybe it’s to become more deliberate about which thinking we choose to keep human.

Curious how others are approaching this with their teams:

Where do you draw the line between using AI to augment someone’s thinking and using it to replace the thinking they need to develop?

u/S_Shiralkar — 9 days ago
▲ 1 r/LeadershipDevelopment

A childhood game "Simon Says": Teaches Prompt Types & Design

Most of us remember the thrill of playing Simon Says as children, a game that seemed simple but carried hidden depth. The rule was clear: act only when the command began with “Simon says.”

Years later, I found myself revisiting that childhood game, not for nostalgia but for adopting it to facilitate a workshop on prompt design.

In Simon Says, success depends on clarity and sequence. A precise instruction sparks the right action; a vague one breeds confusion. The same principle governs how we craft prompts — the phrasing shapes the quality of the output, further it also has impact on use of Tokens.

When I used Simon Says in teaching, participants don’t just hear about prompt types; they experience their impact.

Each round turns abstract theory into lived experience, leaving a deeper comprehension of how "structure & intent" of the prompt drives outcome.

I would be curious to know, how you are engaging on helping such topics that are key to Hybrid Intelligence Era.

Pasted below is the exact text, I used for the activity;

Prompt Type Exact Prompt Text Impact on Time Impact on Token Usage Confidentiality Considerations
Chained Treasure Hunt Step 1: Begin with the idea that AI accelerates execution but does not replace judgment. Step 2: Consider that leaders now need rehearsal environments to build decision-making skill under ambiguity. Step 3: Consider that games and simulations are increasingly used as that rehearsal environment. Final Step: Name the book, published November 2025, that discusses the Hybrid Intelligence Era and proposes using games as a strategy for building human skill and advantage. (Respond in exactly this format and nothing else: Title: Author: Publisher/Publication month: Amazon Strategy & Competition rank (as of [state the date/time you retrieved this]): Justification (1 sentence, ≤25 words): If no book meets the stated criteria, write "No qualifying book found" in the Title field and leave the remaining fields blank. Do not suggest alternative or substitute titles.) Slower — requires sequential execution of multiple steps. Higher — each step adds tokens, making the prompt longer. Transparent reasoning; low confidentiality risk since steps are explicit.
Prompt Type Exact Prompt Text Impact on Time Impact on Token Usage Confidentiality Considerations
Direct Instruction I am looking for a specific book published in November 2025 that discusses the Hybrid Intelligence Era and advocates for using games or experiential learning as a strategy to develop human skills and advantage. Search Amazon for this title.   (Respond in exactly this format and nothing else:  Title: Author: Publisher/Publication month: Amazon Strategy & Competition rank (as of [state the date/time you retrieved this]): Justification (1 sentence, ≤25 words): If no book meets the stated criteria, write "No qualifying book found" in the Title field and leave the remaining fields blank. Do not suggest alternative or substitute titles.) Fastest — one query, one execution. Lower — concise, single instruction. Efficient but less transparent; confidentiality depends on clarity of request.
Prompt Type Exact Prompt Text Impact on Time Impact on Token Usage Confidentiality Considerations
Persona Prompt Act as a strategy consultant researching thought-leadership content in the Hybrid Intelligence Era. Identify the book published on Amazon in November 2025 that explains how games can be used to build human advantage. Do not offer consulting commentary, comparisons, or recommendations beyond identifying this single book. (Respond in exactly this format and nothing else: Title: Author: Publisher/Publication month: Amazon Strategy & Competition rank (as of [state the date/time you retrieved this]): Justification (1 sentence, ≤25 words): If no book meets the stated criteria, write "No qualifying book found" in the Title field and leave the remaining fields blank. Do not suggest alternative or substitute titles.) Moderate — adds stylistic framing but still direct. Moderate — persona framing adds tokens but not excessive. Persona framing may introduce stylistic bias; confidentiality impact minimal.
Prompt Type Exact Prompt Text Impact on Time Impact on Token Usage Confidentiality Considerations
Conditional Prompt Search Amazon for books published in November 2025 about the Hybrid Intelligence Era. Check whether any explicitly focus on games for skill development or leadership rehearsal as their central thesis (not a passing mention). Report only a book that meets this criterion exactly.   (Respond in exactly this format and nothing else: Title: Author: Publisher/Publication month: Amazon Strategy & Competition rank (as of [state the date/time you retrieved this]): Justification (1 sentence, ≤25 words): If no book meets the stated criteria, write "No qualifying book found" in the Title field and leave the remaining fields blank. Do not suggest alternative or substitute titles.) Moderate — branching logic requires evaluation of conditions. Moderate–High — conditional clauses add length. Strong transparency; confidentiality impact low since fallback is explicit.
u/S_Shiralkar — 14 days ago
▲ 2 r/LeadershipDevelopment

A simple game helps learn: Hallucination, Guardrails & prompt poisoning

In a recent workshop, I used the Chinese Whisper game to demonstrate how hallucination erodes trust in AI.

Blindfolds and paper pipes became metaphors for AI guardrails < limiting distortion>.

Once removed, external influences amplified distortion exponentially, and a deliberate distraction mirrored the peril of prompt poisoning.

Games don’t just engage; they immerse learners in the dynamics of trust, cognition, and AI.

Keen to know, what and how do you explain abstract topics, most effectively without a relatable experience in your teaching or leadership development practice?

reddit.com
u/S_Shiralkar — 17 days ago