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Wiley · Out now
Show AI—Don't Tell ItBuild Buy-In with Visual Storytelling
A leadership playbook, not a tech manual. It shows professionals how to turn AI from buzzword to business value with visual storytelling.
Does this sound familiar?
If any of these is you — this book is for you
We're stuck
Your successful AI pilot is gathering dust while your business and tech teams disagree on the path forward.
Time to amp it up
You're making progress with AI but need to build momentum and turn it into a self-driving innovation engine.
The team is afraid
Your teams see AI as a threat to their jobs instead of a tool to amplify their expertise.
The philosophy that shaped the book
There is no desire greater than to alter someone else's draft.
- 01
The lesson
A beloved teacher taught me that people engage far more with a draft than a finished pitch. That single idea became the foundation of my philosophy.
- 02
Visual Dartboarding™
Early in my career it led me to share rough drafts first, turning passive presentations into active co-creation sessions where others shape the outcome with me.
- 03
The boardroom hologram
In one boardroom we skipped slides and brought a holographic AI agent wearing the client's team jersey, interacting with simulated fans on game day, right in front of them.
Belief was born. Funding was unlocked.
That's the power of showing, not telling.
FROM THE BOOK TO THE TABLE
What showing looks like
These cards come from Decision Rehearsal, a tabletop simulation experience that extends book principles. Chapters become visual challenges that leadership teams explore, debate, and use to make decisions. The drawings are intentionally unfinished. They come to life when teams add their own ideas, perspectives, and handwriting. This is Visual Dartboarding.
CARD 1 OF 5
The dartboard. One leader's draft, then two, then four. What survives has real support.
FROM THE BOOK
The book's central technique. A rough draft invites editing in a way a finished pitch never does, and every hand that edits it takes ownership of the result. The card makes the three drafts visible so a team can watch support form.
Teams work them live, redrawing each card until the plan is theirs.
Inside the book
What you'll learn
A leadership strategy playbook for executives, change agents, and boardroom decision-makers. The proven system for turning potential into performance.
Applied AI Guiding Principles & Flywheel
Apply four guiding principles—Business Value, Speed with Rigor, Simplicity, and Human-Centricity—and build momentum with The AI Performance Flywheel™.
Five AI Success Pillars
Ground strategy in research-backed pillars, from Business Value Creation to Data as Strategic Asset.
Visualization Decision Framework
Master Visual Dartboarding™ and pick the right visual for the right audience: ROI heatmaps for the CFO, workflow diagrams for the team.
1 / 6
Early praise
What leaders are saying
6 endorsements · CIOs, analysts & operators
Her step-by-step methodology is the essential AI guide for driving collaborative, secure innovation, fast.
Critical resource for business leaders — this book fills in all the gaps between LLMs and making money!
Every services partner chasing AI deals needs a blueprint like this for turning strategy into action and pipeline into revenue.
If you want to turn skeptics into champions, show them exactly how AI changes the game for your business.
Finally, a playbook that shows how to unlock AI's power with business leaders, not just engineers, and demystifies the path from vision to real value.
Dr. Lisa delivers the field guide for leaders ready to secure the future by pairing advanced technology with courageous human leadership.
AT THE TABLE
Signed copies for your attendees
Bulk copies at the event, signed after the keynote. Many planners fold the book into the registration kit.
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Who this book is for
Show AI—Don't Tell It is a strategic playbook for leaders across the entire organization who are tasked with turning AI potential into visible, measurable business performance, without needing a PhD in data science:
Executive Leadership & Board Directors
CEOs, CIOs, CFOs, COOs, CHROs, and Chief Revenue/Growth Officers (CROs) who need to align AI strategy with enterprise P&L goals, build a future-ready workforce, drive top-line growth, and maintain board-level risk oversight.
Business Unit Leaders & Middle Managers
Department heads in Operations, Sales, Marketing, HR, Finance, and Legal who must eliminate daily workflow bottlenecks, manage change, and turn employee skepticism into active adoption.
AI Translators & Innovation Leaders
AI Strategy Analysts, product leads, and IT architects responsible for bridging the gap between technical data science teams and real-world business objectives.
Frontline Champions & Process Owners
Domain experts and subject matter experts (SMEs) who want to harness AI to amplify their expertise, reclaim manual hours, and co-create future workflows.
No code. No engineering degree. Just a visual toolkit and a new way to lead.
Book FAQ
What is the title of the book and who wrote it?
Show AI—Don't Tell It: Build Buy-In with Visual Storytelling, by Dr. Lisa Palmer, published by Wiley.
Who is the book for?
It is a strategic playbook for leaders across the entire organization who are tasked with turning AI potential into visible, measurable business performance, without needing a PhD in data science. That includes executive leadership and board directors aligning AI strategy with enterprise P&L goals; business unit leaders and middle managers in Operations, Sales, Marketing, HR, Finance, and Legal; AI translators and innovation leaders bridging technical data science teams and real-world business objectives; and frontline champions and process owners who want to amplify their expertise and reclaim manual hours.
What is the main purpose of the book?
It equips executives with a pragmatic, proven system for turning AI initiatives into measurable business outcomes. It is a leadership playbook rooted in real-world experience, grounded in the belief that transformation happens only when people feel, see, and trust AI: how to align teams, secure funding, gain traction, and scale impact.
What is the core framework introduced in the book?
The Bold AI Leadership Model™, built on three components: Mindset (the four Applied AI Guiding Principles), Strategy (the five research-backed AI Success Pillars), and Action (visualization tools for strategic, iterative execution).
What is the "Show, Don't Tell" approach?
It is the key to making AI real inside the enterprise: a leadership approach that uses visualization to translate strategy into business language, demonstrate ROI through early wins, turn resistance into momentum, and align technical and non-technical teams. You demonstrate AI's value visibly rather than explaining technical details.
What is the Bold AI Leadership Mindset?
The foundational layer of the model, built on four guiding principles: Business Value (tangible, measurable results from pragmatic innovation), Speed with Rigor (agility plus structure), Simplicity (making AI approachable and understandable so trust and adoption follow), and Human-Centricity (AI augments people rather than replacing them).
What are the Five AI Success Pillars?
The Five AI Success Pillars are the Strategy layer of the Bold AI Leadership Model, validated in the doctoral research: Business Value Creation, Customer-Centricity, Collaborative Teams, Cultural Shifts, and Data as Strategic Asset. Full definitions live at neurocollective.ai/faqs.
How do the Mindset principles and the Success Pillars work together?
The Mindset introduces the beliefs and behaviors required for strategic AI leadership. The Pillars provide the strategic map — a structured foundation that keeps AI initiatives focused, aligned to business priorities, and able to scale instead of stalling.
What is the AI Performance Flywheel™?
The AI Performance Flywheel is the Action layer of the Bold AI Leadership Model: four phases of compounding momentum — Foundation Momentum, Execution Momentum, Scale Momentum, and Innovation Momentum. Full definitions live at neurocollective.ai/faqs.
Why is visualization critical to Bold AI Leadership?
Visualization is the catalyst for change. Leaders must show, not tell, AI's value to secure buy-in, because visuals turn abstract concepts into tangible experiences that teams can see, relate to, and trust. It breaks down complexity and fuels every momentum phase of the AI Performance Flywheel™.
What is Visual Dartboarding™?
A technique for accelerating decisions and stakeholder alignment: create a visual draft of a plan, model, or concept and invite stakeholders to react to it and refine it. An imperfect sketch beats a blank page, and reacting to a draft turns abstract discussion into co-ownership.
How does the book address resistance to AI adoption?
Through Execution Momentum: leaders dismantle barriers with stakeholder-specific visualization strategies. Executives, IT teams, and frontline staff each need tailored visuals and messaging that speak to their concerns, from ROI skepticism to fear of job displacement.
Board presentation, pilot launch, or full transformation