Brief
Lumen CEO urges CEOs to rely on external partners amid AI‑driven uncertainty
At the Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit, Kate Johnson highlighted the need for executive collaborations to navigate rapid AI change.
By Felo News Desk · Published
At the Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit in Santa Barbara on Tuesday, Lumen Technologies chief executive Kate Johnson told Fortune’s Diane Brady that today’s market forces CEOs to look beyond their own boardrooms for decision‑making support.
What happened
Johnson said companies can no longer rely solely on internal leadership to make tough calls. She described a shift toward building a "machine" for decision‑making that incorporates hypotheses, external signals and expertise from partners. Johnson added that she receives signals daily and pivots accordingly, allocating capital to the most promising opportunities.
What the reports add
Fortune noted that IBM’s 2026 CEO Study found more than 80% of CEOs of AI‑first firms are now engaging external or specialized networks to discuss risk and leverage strengths. The same report said rapid AI adoption is compressing decision cycles and breaking down traditional boundaries. A Boston Consulting Group survey cited by Fortune indicated that 60% of business leaders expect joint ventures and partnerships to outweigh mergers and acquisitions over the next three to five years.
What was said
"This notion of the boardroom and the conference room that I grew up in—we were rewarded for being right," Johnson told Brady. "My job is to get a grant and to allocate the capital accordingly, and you have to have a bench of partners that you can go to to deliver those outcomes," she said.
How it came about
Johnson’s partnership with EY began when she approached EY CEO Janet Truncale at a Business Roundtable breakfast a few years earlier, asking, "Will you be my best friend?" Truncale later recalled, "And I was happy to oblige," and said she now tries to pay that forward with new CEOs.
Key facts
- Lumen CEO Kate Johnson said CEOs must rely on external partners for decision‑making. (fortune.com)
- IBM’s 2026 CEO Study reports over 80% of AI‑first CEOs engage external networks. (fortune.com)
- Boston Consulting Group found 60% of leaders expect partnerships to outpace M&A in 3‑5 years. (fortune.com)
Sources
- [1] fortune.com — originally reported as “Boardrooms are no longer rewarded for being right, Lumen CEO says, and it means executive partnerships are more important than ever”
