In a recent Gallup survey article by Morgan Meinen and Megan Mulherin entitled: “AI’s Effect on Workplace Culture,” three points were highlighted:
- “50% of CHRO’s in Gallup’s CHRO survey are not confident in manager’s ability to guide employees’ AI use
- Employees with AI-supportive managers are more likely than others to say workplace culture has improved
- 57% of CHRO’s surveyed are providing AI training for people managers
The bottom line of the article, “Leaders clearly see AI transformation as a priority, yet AI adoption alone does not consistently correspond with employees experiencing an improved workplace culture.”
Surprise!! This article underscores a premise we’ve been broadcasting for years here at Crossroads Career: People leave people. The primary reason people leave an organization is that they don’t like the people they work with. AND, most managers are ill-equipped to manage people. Not a great combination of facts, but that is the workplace reality. Has been and probably always will be…because, as Shawn Ryan, a leading podcaster, recently said, “People are just gonna people.”
HR departments everywhere are scrambling to roll out new AI strategies, re-skilling programs, and engagement initiatives. But behind the corporate press releases lies an uncomfortable truth that every professional needs to face: No matter what HR thinks or promises, most leaders simply aren’t very good at supporting their employees’ personal growth and development.
If you rely on your boss, your company’s HR department, or the current job market to hand you a clear path forward—whether adapting to AI or finding your next role—you will end up sidelined. Whether you are currently navigating job loss, feeling unfulfilled in your role, or trying to future-proof your career, you must take 100% accountability for your own growth.
Culture Starts with You, Not the Software
In my book, Your Character Is Your Culture, I emphasize a core premise: culture isn’t a top-down mandate or a software rollout. Your personal character creates the culture around you.
When disruption hits an industry—be it AI automation, remote work whipsaws, restructuring, or economic downturns—the default reaction is fear and passive waiting. We wait for management to explain our new role, or we wait for an interviewer to validate our background.
In previous Crossroads Career blogs, we’ve explored the critical question of whether you are the right fit or not for a position. (Click here for the first blog in the 8-part series) Fit isn’t just about whether a company selects you; it’s about whether you have clarity on who God designed you to be, where your core values align, and where you are actively growing. (Check out our previous blog on a Character Audit here). If you aren’t continually developing your own skill set and character, you yield control of your career path to external circumstances you cannot control.
The Biblical View of Personal Accountability
Taking ownership of your development isn’t just a sound modern career strategy; it is a foundational biblical principle. Scripture is clear that each of us is individually accountable for how we steward the talents, time, and opportunities God entrusts to us.
In Paul’s letter to the Galatians, he writes directly about personal responsibility:
“For each one should carry their own load.” — Galatians 6:5
Similarly, in the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14–30), the servants were not judged by their master’s management style or the tools provided to them; they were judged by their own initiative and stewardship of what they were given.
God does not call us to be passive bystanders in our own lives. He calls us to be proactive stewards of our potential.
Maximizing Your Potential: Step #3 of Our Crossroads Workbook
At Crossroads Career, our mission centers on helping people hear God calling them, land the right job, and maximize their potential.
In our workbook, Created For Good Works (and building on the core foundations of Hear God Calling You), Step #2 focuses heavily on Attitude. Your attitude toward personal growth dictates whether technological shifts like AI become a threat that paralyzes you or a catalyst that prompts you to stretch. Additionally, Step #3 surveys your Aptitude. How did God design and equip you to be the person He wants you to be in the workplace?
Maximizing your potential requires shifting from a consumer mindset (“What is my employer doing for me?”) to a stewardship mindset (“What am I doing to cultivate the gifts God gave me?”). When you take full ownership of your learning curve, you build resilient character that remains unshakable no matter how fast corporate landscapes change.
4 Ways to Take Ownership of Your Growth This Week
Whether you are currently employed, searching for your next opportunity, or sitting in a career gap, here are four practical steps to own your development starting today:
1. Conduct Your Own “Skill & Fit Audit”
Don’t wait for an annual performance review or an interviewer’s feedback. Honestly assess where your skills need upgrading—especially regarding emerging tools like AI—and evaluate whether your current trajectory aligns with your true God-given fit. (Click here for Step #3, Aptitude in our Created For Good Works workbook)
2. Build a Personal Learning Plan
Dedicate 30–45 minutes a day to self-directed growth. Take an online course, read industry literature, or learn a new tool. Take pride in being a self-taught, lifelong learner.
3. Initiate Your Own Mentorship
If your manager isn’t coaching you, seek out guides who will. Connect with a trusted mentor, join a local Crossroads Career group, or work with a Crossroads Guide to keep your accountability high.
4. Anchor Your Worth in Stewardship, Not Status
Remind yourself daily that your value comes from being God’s workmanship (Ephesians 2:10). Your responsibility is to cultivate your talents with excellence, trusting God to open the right doors in His timing.
HR won’t build your career, and AI won’t define your worth. Take ownership of your growth, align your heart with God’s calling, and step forward into the full potential He created you to fulfill.
Dave Sparkman currently serves as the volunteer Crossroads Career board chair and local ministry leader. He is also the founder and managing director of Spark Your Culture, a corporate culture consulting firm. Prior to that he worked at UnitedHealth Group, a Fortune #5 public company, serving in the role of Chief Culture Officer. His unemployment experience came from the implosion of Arthur Andersen, where he served as the West Region Managing Partner, People.
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