What Go Set a Watchman Taught Me About AI Adoption

I have been on a historical fiction kick lately. I just finished To Kill a Mockingbird and went straight into Go Set a Watchman, both by Harper Lee. Book recommendations are from my middle school and high school kids, they have some amazing picks which I have not read when I was in school, plus it gives me an opportunity to discuss the book with them, it is interesting how much you can learn from your kids.

If you haven’t read them back-to-back, here is what struck me. In the first book, Atticus Finch makes the right argument in court, and the town barely moves. Most of Maycomb isn’t evil. People are comfortable. They worry about what the neighbors will think. They protect the way things have always been.

In the second book, twenty years later, the world around Maycomb is changing fast. And the man who once stood up for what was right is now the one resisting. His world shifted, and he held tight to the version of himself that fit the old one.

I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Because I see the same thing playing out on marketing teams right now, with AI. The tools are ready. The business case is clear. And smart, capable people still dig in.

People resist change when it threatens who they are. For a lot of marketers, AI does exactly that. So if your team is pushing back, it’s worth asking what they’re really protecting.

The Real Problem Isn’t Technology

CMOs are buying AI tools. They’re sending the memo. They’re running lunch-and-learn. And adoption still stalls.

Why?

Listen closely to what your team says. “The output isn’t good enough.” “It takes longer to fix than to write it myself.” Sometimes that’s fair critique. Sometimes it means something else: Where do I fit now?

Your strongest writer built a career on writing. Your best analyst built one on analysis. Now a tool appears to do both in seconds. Of course, that feels personal.

Key Lesson: The fear that “AI will take my job” is a change management problem.

Don’t Drop AI Into a Broken System

Here is something we talk about a lot at Heinz Marketing. AI is an accelerator. It speeds up whatever system you put it in. If ownership is unclear, workflows are messy, and your tools don’t talk to each other, AI won’t fix that. It adds more handoffs, more rework, and more collaboration drag.

That friction confirms your team’s fears. “See? This just makes my job harder.”

Not sure where your foundation stands? Our Marketing Orchestration Self-Audit walks you through 12 real workplace scenarios in about 8 minutes. You’ll see where collaboration, roles, tools, and planning are breaking down, so you know where AI will help and where it’ll just add friction.

Key Lesson: Orchestrate first. Get clear on who owns what and how the work flows. Then add AI where it removes real bottlenecks.

5 Moves CMOs Should Make

1. Let Your People Stay the Hero

Nobody wants to hear their skills are obsolete. So don’t say it, and don’t imply it. Frame AI as the thing that takes the grunt work off their plate, so their judgment matters even more.

Key Lesson: Lead with what your team gets to do more of.

2. Start With Their Pain, Not the Tool

“Look what AI can do” is a demo. “You spend four hours every week pulling this report. What if it took twenty minutes?” is a reason to care.

Key Lesson: Find the highest-friction, highest-volume tasks first. That’s where adoption starts.

3. Build It into the Daily Work

Atticus gave one great speech, and Maycomb stayed the same. One big kickoff or one impressive demo works the same way. Change sticks through small, repeated wins inside the workflows people already use.

Key Lesson: Skip the one-time launch. Put AI inside existing workflows and let the wins stack up.

4. Make Early Adopters Visible

Peers showing peers moves faster than leaders telling. And your champions may surprise you. The people with the most invested in the old way are sometimes the slowest to move.

Key Lesson: Watch what people do and give your early adopters a stage.

5. Leave Room for Doubt

Every team hits a letdown moment. The shine wears off. AI gets something wrong. People feel let down. That’s the moment people stop idealizing the tool and start learning how to use it well.

Key Lesson: Make it safe to say “this isn’t working yet.” Teams that feel heard adopt faster than teams that feel pushed.

What a Growth Mindset Looks Like

A fear mindset says, “AI is coming for my job.” A growth mindset says, “AI frees me up for the work I’m best at.”

You can hear the difference in everyday questions. Fear asks, “What happens to me?” Growth asks, “What could I do with the time back?”

That shift comes from people trying it, getting a real win, and seeing their own value grow.

How We Approach It at Heinz Marketing

Our AI orchestration work starts with the system. We align teams, workflows, and ownership first. Then we find practical, responsible places where AI removes bottlenecks. People and process always come first and then comes the tool.

We assess and train, then test and refine. Change management and AI training are built in from day one. Because the tech is the easy part. Bringing your people with you is the real work.

Your Team’s Scout Moment

In Go Set a Watchman, Scout’s disappointment hurts. But it’s also the moment she starts thinking for herself.

Your team’s first frustration with AI can be the same kind of turning point, if you lead them through it.

How is your team responding to AI right now? And if you’re ready to bring AI into your team’s day-to-day, start with the foundation. Take the Marketing Orchestration Self-Audit. It’s free, it takes about 8 minutes, and you’ll get three quick wins you can act on this week.