The ERP Organizational Change Journal Podcast | Episode 73

Joanne Griffin • 4 January 2023

The ERP Organizational Change Journal Podcast | Episode 73 | Dr Jack G. Nestell

Nestell & Associates is a strategy and management firm. We can help you take your portfolio companies to the next level by demonstrating how to execute a scalable, methodical, and disciplined approach to digital transformation success. Merger and acquisition ERP digital transformations can be a significant challenge. But a solid framework is built on good practices with proven success. We have a successful track record with integrations, upgrades, mergers, and acquisitions, and we want to share our methods with you. Our leadership experience in organizational change, information technology, ERP, and digital transformation crosses multiple industries.


In this episode, Dr. Jack G. Nestell leads a fun, thought-provoking, and highly relevant discussion regarding business systems and technology in general. This episode dives into a discussion of how rapid technological advances impact the way we work, our personal lives, and society in general.

Episode Highlights Timeline 


04:46 What is “Humology” and what inspired you to write “Humology: How to put humans back at the heart of technology”?


06:27 In describing your book on your site you share that “We need to talk about the future! Technology is advancing faster than we can keep up with. We are no longer living at the speed of humanity. Technology dictates the pace while we battle to keep up.” What are some of the negative consequences we are seeing with technology outpacing the way humans live, think, and work?


07:52 You also share that “We are approaching a tipping point; in order to build better technologies tomorrow, we have to start with new principles today.” So, I would like to share some of those principles with our listeners. In your book you share how to “Build solutions that address real needs”, what do you mean by that exactly, what would that look like?


10:27 You discuss how “in part, in order to minimize disruption and increase adoption” that you need to “Design products that work in harmony with human psychology”. Tell our listeners more about this.


12:55 When is comes to the future of technology and being more in tune with technology, how will “Discovering your purpose, and be grounded in ethics” help? “Humology: How to put humans back at the heart of technology”


17:34 What are some of the emerging technologies that excite you the most and why?


21:04 The Capacity Gap and “Data, data everywhere, but not a minute to think”. Tell me more please. How do we get around this issue?


23:17 “HOW DISRUPTIVE IS YOUR PRODUCT? WHILE THE PACE OF CHANGE INCREASES, OUR HUMAN CAPACITY TO CHANGE REMAINS FINITE. INDIVIDUALS OVERWHELMED BY CHANGE SHUT OUT NEW IDEAS, INCLUDING NEW PRODUCTS.” Can you share with our listeners the Beckhard-Harris Change Formula?


26:52 HUMANS THROUGH 5 I’S. BIASES & HEURISTICS. What are the 5 I’s? “Seeing humans through these 5 I’s provides rich insights for business and product design.”


31:07 You talk about “Change is Hard” Part 2, Chapter 4. What is traditional change management versus Modern Change Management?


32:23 When it comes to changes as a result of technology, why does knowing your stakeholders matter? Can you share the SCARF mole with our listeners?


34:17 You discuss in your book the idea of designing technologies with humans in mind. You discuss for example, designing for cognitive load, consciously unconscious, the role of habit, psychological approaches to change, behavioral science, behavioral economics, why do you spend 5 chapters discussing these ideas? Isn’t it just the functions and features that matter?



36:13 If you were going to give advice to an organization preparing for an ERP implementation, what little golden nugget would you like to leave with our listeners?


Monely CEO sits in office chair, surrounded by robots.
by Joanne Griffin 17 November 2025
Our ability to create has exploded, but our ability to feel meaning in what we create has collapsed. Billionaires tell us AI will free us from work, but they still show up to the office. That’s the clue we’re ignoring. The danger isn’t job loss, it’s loss of purpose.
The integration of technology and humans
by Joanne Griffin 7 November 2025
“Is technology evil?” a podcast host asked me recently. I paused. Not once, but every time they asked. Because the answer isn’t straightforward — it’s layered, nuanced, and deeply contextual. I love technology. I love the possibility of it all. But I’m uncomfortable with the business models that reward what I’ve come
Birds flying in formation, resembling a human figure, against a cloudy sky.
by Joanne Griffin 7 November 2025
The online world amplifies a deep human paradox: we want to fit in and stand out at the same time. Algorithms reward polish, not practice. Visibility, not depth. The antidote is in reclaiming the messy middle where originality is formed, and letting technology be collaborators, not replacements.
The Cognitive Devolution
by Joanne Griffin 7 November 2025
Our relationship with AI has all the markers of a cinematic love story: fascination, dependency, and a creeping loss of self. Like the Joker and Harley Quinn, we think we’re in control — clever enough to play with chaos without being consumed by it. But love stories built on illusion always end the same way.
by Joanne Griffin 6 May 2025
🤖 Who’s influencing who? We like to think of AI as our co-pilot. But its most powerful move isn't that it’s taking over. It’s that it’s making us think its ideas were ours all along. In a recent (and ethically questionable) study, researchers injected AI-generated comments into Reddit threads to see if they could change people’s opinions. They did. The AI didn’t argue harder. It just mirrored tone, tapped emotional resonance, and let source ambiguity do the rest. This isn’t just persuasion. It’s persuasion that feels like your own reflection.
An infinite loop
by Joanne Griffin 1 March 2025
In 1965, Time magazine declared that by 2000, Americans would work just 20 hours a week, retiring at 50 with ‘a guaranteed income for life.’ “Many scientists hope that in time the computer will allow man to return to the Hellenic concept of leisure, in which the Greeks had time to cultivate their minds and improve their environment while slaves did all the labor,” the article continued. The slaves, in modern Hellenism, would be the computers. Yet here we are, a quarter century after that prediction, grinding through intense work weeks while doomscrolling through other people’s vacations and wellness rituals. Here’s the uncomfortable truth: Every time technology offers to save us time, we invent new ways to stay busy . Email was supposed to kill paperwork. Instead, we send 300 billion emails a year. Slack was supposed to kill email. Instead, we send 1.5bn messages per week. History is littered with predictions about technology freeing us from work: 💡Aristotle (350 BCE): ‘ If every tool could perform its own work, slavery would be unnecessary .’ 💡John Maynard Keynes (1930): ‘ Our grandchildren will work three hours a day .’ 💡 Fei-Fei Li, Professor of Computer Science at Stanford University (2020s): ‘ I imagine a world in which AI is going to make us work more productively, live longer, and have cleaner energy .’ These visionaries agreed on one thing: Technology should serve humans. But history shows we’d rather serve technology. With every technological leap forward we tend to follow Amara’s Law : we overestimate liberation, underestimate adaptation. We don’t eliminate work; we upgrade it.
Brain overwhelmed with technology
by Joanne Griffin 27 January 2025
Creativity doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It’s built on cognitive skills like working memory, critical thinking, and deep focus. It’s the mental exercise of connecting ideas, questioning assumptions, and immersing ourselves in problems to come up with novel solutions. But when we let AI handle these cognitive tasks — whether brainstorming, writing, or problem-solving — our brains lose the practice needed to maintain those essential skills.
by Joanne Griffin 13 June 2024
Dublin Tech Summit: 29th May 2024 This thought-provoking session examines the evolving dynamics between AI technology and human interaction. From UNICEF's innovative approaches to Humalogy's human-centric solutions, gain insights into how AI is reshaping our world. With perspectives from Logitech's CIO, delve into the opportunities and challenges presented by AI integration.
A picture of an eye surrounded by the words Impatience, Inattention, Impressionability, Irrationalit
by Joanne Griffin 13 June 2024
The symbiotic dance between humans and technology has delicately unfolded over millenia: an intricate choreography that reflects our relentess pursuit of progress, of innovation, and of connection. At times we take the lead, and sometimes we follow. And as this timeless dance continues, it weaves the threads of our shared story. To truly understand our relationship with technology, we must look inward, to better understand ourselves. When we better understand ourselves — our desires, our vulnerabilities, our motivations — we can unlock profound insights into how we are shaping the world around us, and how we are adapting to the changes we have put in motion.
More posts