5 min read
Cairn Compass Is Now the NZ AI Benchmark
The free AI maturity assessment I built as Cairn Compass has moved to AI New Zealand and been rebuilt around the AI Playbook. Still free.
Blog
AI, Technology and General Insights
Expert AI insights and practical technology guidance for New Zealand businesses.
4 min read
Why I stopped running solo
Cairn has joined AI New Zealand. Here's the part of the story that didn't fit the announcement: what it took to decide, and why a solo founder needs a crew.
10 min read
AI Training in New Zealand: What to Expect in 2026
Most New Zealand employees already use AI at work and fewer than a quarter of us have had any training in it. What AI training costs in New Zealand in 2026, how we compare with the UK, why in person beats online, and what to check before you buy.
6 min read
Findable first: how a Kiwi financial services firm put AI to work
Before you put AI on top of your business, make your information findable, governed and well described. How a Kiwi financial services firm got the basics right and turned AI into real, everyday wins.
9 min read
AI Adoption in New Zealand: The 2026 Data and a Practical Guide
NZ organisations are using AI faster than they’re building the structure around it. First-party 2026 Cairn Compass data, the three adoption traps, and a practical six-step guide to adopting AI in a New Zealand organisation.
7 min read
High Use, Low Trust: What a Trust-Builder Makes of New Zealand's AI Problem
The AI Forum's latest Blueprint calls it high-use, low-trust: New Zealanders use AI constantly and believe in it less than almost anyone. I sat down with Sanel Tomlinson, who's spent thirty years getting people to trust things they can't check for themselves, to work out how trust in AI actually get
5 min read
How do I “do” AI in my business?
The tools are not the hard part anymore. The work around them is. Start there, and the "which AI?" question quietly answers itself down the track.
4 min read
High-use, low-trust: what the new AI Blueprint really means for New Zealand business
Four numbers in the Blueprint every NZ business owner should read twice: 2.7% of our workforce are AI practitioners with embedded workflows. 97% are using AI superficially or not at all. 79% of employers don't know how to train their team. 90% expect to be using AI by 2028. 📡 The gap between "we us
6 min read
The Plausibility Trap: Why AI-Written Strategy Looks Right Until You Try to Use It
"People don't really put the truth on the internet. When you really discover the useful insights is when you actually have conversations with the manager who was implementing that strategy or doing that thing. You'll hear all about the challenges that were faced, what really happened behind the scen
5 min read
Humans First: how 100 managers wrote their own AI principles
At the start of the morning one manager told me he doesn't do AI. Not interested. By midday he'd downloaded ChatGPT and was excited to give it a go. What 100 community services managers taught me about putting people before technology in an AI workshop.
9 min read
There's No Right Way to Do the Wrong Thing: Scott Arrol on Trust, Ecosystem Leadership, and What Digital Health Can Teach Us All
A conversation with Scott Arrol about what it really takes to build trust and collaboration across a complex health ecosystem. Scott's career spans more than two decades across health, disability, community services, and technology. He moved from business ownership into health leadership at Radius H
6 min read
AI Consulting in New Zealand: What to Expect in 2026
AI adoption in Aotearoa has moved fast. By 2025, over 80% of New Zealand organisations reported using AI in some form. That sounds impressive until you look closer. Among businesses with fewer than 200 employees, nearly half have no plans to adopt AI at all. And of those that have started, many are
3 min read
I Built Something That Used to Cost My Clients Thousands. Then I Made It Free.
Cairn Compass is a free AI maturity assessment built specifically for New Zealand organisations. 40 questions, about 15 minutes, and you get a clear picture of where you stand across eight dimensions: strategy, leadership, data, technology, people, process, culture, and governance.
2 min read
Claude Cowork | Disappearing down the well
I picked up Claude Cowork for an hour and lost the weekend to it. What I ended up with runs my mornings, my meeting notes and my CRM from markdown files.
10 min read
Stop Dabbling: The AI Muscle Gap Holding Back New Zealand Organisations
New Zealand's AI journey is not primarily a technology story. It is a maturity story, and an increasingly urgent one. The tools are racing ahead. Most organisations are not. Across hundreds of conversations with individuals and businesses throughout the country, and informed by recent research into
3 min read
Planning for 2026: Why the Holiday Season is the Best Time to Think About AI and Technology Strategy
Business slows over the holidays, which makes it the one stretch of the year you can think properly about your AI and technology plans for 2026.
1 min read
Human Leadership in the Age of AI: Story Intelligence with Gabrielle Dolan
An authentic exploration of human leadership and communication in a world awash with AI-generated content. Gabrielle Dolan ("Ral") brings decades of global experience in strategic storytelling to challenge how leaders and teams stay real, build trust, and use new technology to enhance, not erode the
1 min read
“The Cairn” - Podcast, Episode 1
The Cairn brings you real conversations with people navigating real challenges. From digital transformation in tertiary education to AI strategy to digital health. We sit down with those steering their industries forward. Each episode explores how leaders think about the future, how AI and technol
1 min read
AI is Transforming the Workplace: Are you Ready? - The PDF
Curious about how artificial intelligence is changing the way we work? In our recent webinar, “AI is Transforming the Workplace – Are You Ready?”, Ben had a conversation with HR and Leadership expert Shaun Sheldrake to explore the opportunity that AI presents for HR, training, and leadership in Ne
6 min read
Apple's Secret Reliance on Google for Siri's Future
Apple's preparing to launch a completely rebuilt Siri in spring 2026 with iOS 26.4, and the technology powering it represents a fascinating shift in how the company approaches artificial intelligence.
1 min read
LinkedIn's AI Data Collection: What You Need to Know
If you haven't checked your LinkedIn settings lately, there's something important you should know. LinkedIn has started using member data to train AI models for itself and Microsoft.
1 min read
Microsoft Copilot: Basic through Advanced at Business South
Three awesome sessions complete at Business South today. I worked with 24 people over the day with everyone taking away some valuable [Microsoft Copilot](https://www.linkedin.com/company/microso
1 min read
Every time you take a mis-step, you dull your blade. And a dull blade becomes increasingly hard to sharpen.
When I was twelve, a teacher shared a story I've never forgotten. At the time, I was likely misbehaving, perhaps for the second or third time. He pulled me aside and said: "Every time you take a mis-step, you dull your blade. And a dull blade becomes increasingly hard to sharpen."
1 min read
Webinar – AI is transforming the workplace – are you ready?
Discover how AI is reshaping the workplace. Learn about the real impacts of AI on jobs, recruitment, and HR, and get tips on how to safely adopt new technologies. The fantastic discussion covers leadership, culture, and the skills needed to thrive alongside AI—helping you and your organisation sta
2 min read
Microsoft Releases Copilot App Builder and Workflows | October 29th 2025
Microsoft Copilot App Builder and Workflows are now available, turning natural language conversations into working apps, automated workflows, and intelligent agents. No coding. No database setup. Just describe what you need.
3 min read
The Latest Microsoft Copilot Updates | October 13th 2025
It’s been another busy week in the world of Microsoft Copilot, with several exciting updates rolling out that are set to make your workday smoother and more connected than ever.
1 min read
Sometimes expertise trumps enthusiasm.
What started as a "quick fix" became a several-hour project over months, multiple trips, and a small collection of unused plumbing parts. The lesson? Sometimes expertise trumps enthusiasm.
1 min read
Vibe working in Excel
The era of "vibe working" has officially begun. Excel mastery is no longer reserved for formula experts. It's now accessible to everyone.
1 min read
AI Is Transforming the Workplace – Are You Ready?
Shaun Sheldrake and I ran a session on AI at work. It came down to leadership to champion it, governance to manage risk, and training to build skills.
4 min read
Stepping Off the Map
What happens when you chase a goal so big it scares you? I’m about to find out at the Great Naseby Water Race, where I’ve signed up for the 200-mile event.
6 min read
Northburn 100 - 2025
Faces in the rocky landscape and voices in the scrub were the subtle and somewhat strangely welcome hallucinations that greeted me as I ran the last few kilometres toward the Northburn 100 mile race finish line.