Invest in Women – Leadership and the Future of AI in the Workforce: Are You Ready? Event Recap

“Artificial intelligence creates space for what I enjoy doing; it releases time. AI isn’t going to take jobs away—it’s going to change the nature of the job.” Rani Borkar, President of Azure Hardware and Infrastructure at Microsoft and a pioneering leader in the tech industry, shared her thoughts on personal development, leadership, and artificial intelligence at Coldstream’s Invest in Women event on January 29^th, 2026. Hosted in the Seattle area, this remarkable evening brought together female executives, entrepreneurs, community leaders, and future generations to learn from and inspire each other.

Coldstream Team Lead & Wealth Manager Reegan Rae, CPWA®, conducted a fireside chat with Rani, exploring her career journey, how she’s crafted her leadership style, and her insights on how artificial intelligence is changing the nature of work. We’ve summarized a few key takeaways from this incredible interview below.

On personal and career growth

• Rani remarked that many women are reluctant to take opportunities until they feel like they are an expert. She shared the times she was offered opportunities when she wasn’t an expert, but took the opportunity to focus on being a good student. “Doing the things that may be uncomfortable at first is what will help you grow.”
• Every career has lots of twists and turns; the biggest questions are always, “am I happy?” and “is my community happy?” Rani suggested that being passionate about what you are doing is more important than the title or paycheck.
• “Find your strengths and leverage them.” Rani emphasized the importance of having confidence in yourself: “You need to have grit. Don’t let anyone make you feel bad.”
• Mentorship is deeply important: “it is easier to listen to someone else other than oneself.” Anyone can be a mentor for any amount of time from a moment to a span of years, and the wonderful thing about mentorship is that the gift of support expands and compounds. “It’s the power of 2: you mentor two people, those two mentor two more, and the power of two grows.”

“Mission first, people always”: on leadership

• Rani warned about obsessing over results: “while leaders can often make their plans look amazing in writing, it’s the people who will bring the plan to life.” Nurture your team and lead with love.
• People are our biggest assets. “Missions come and go, milestones change, roadmaps change. What endures is the people that go on the journey with you.” Rani stressed the importance of taking care of and building your community.
• “A team is a group of people who work together because they have to. A community is a group of people who work together because they want” Cultivate community.
• The role of a leader is to “drive clarity on the what and the why.” Then, Rani explained, “your team decides the how. Trust them to drive and get out of the way.”
• “When you take away hierarchy, it keeps everyone open to both learning and teaching.”

On artificial intelligence in the workplace

• “Don’t use AI just for the sake of AI.” You will discover how it will give you space to work on other things. While AI can drive automation and workflows, we can apply the human touch and focus on more fun aspects.
• Artificial intelligence will become embedded in the workplace so that over time, many people won’t even realize it is AI. For example, you don’t even notice the lights that are on (until they are turned off).
• We shouldn’t fear that artificial intelligence will take jobs away. There is rescaling that will be done, but it’s not a bad thing. “We will just do things differently.” During the early stages of the internet, people were worried that the internet would take away jobs. “We let the internet work for us, to help us work,” Rani explained. “We need to view AI as the same; let it work for you.”
• “Everyone is on the journey of using AI in the workforce, and everyone is learning at their own pace,” Rani noted.

A few extra words of wisdom from Rani

• “Celebrate small wins, and be sure to celebrate efforts, not just the completion of big projects and objectives.”
• “Write handwritten thank-you notes.”
• Rani recommended two books she has found inspirational: “Now Discover Your Strengths” by Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton and “The Little Engine That Could” by Watty Piper.

Coming to a Close

As the evening wrapped up, Team Lead & Wealth Manager Hilary Clark shared Coldstream’s perspective on AI in her closing remarks. “Like many organizations, we’re excited about the potential to create efficiencies and support our work. At the same time, we remain grounded in the belief that wealth management is, at its core, deeply human and relationship-driven. Our role goes beyond numbers—it’s about understanding complexity, providing peace of mind, and helping clients achieve what matters most.”

We are deeply honored to have been able to host Rani Borkar for this event, and grateful to Coldstream’s Women & Wealth community for showing up and inspiring each other. Thank you to Heather Kessler, CFP®, Chair of Coldstream’s Women & Wealth Committee, for providing the guidance and leadership that made the creation of this amazing space possible, and to all the committee members who were part of making it happen.

Empowering our Women & Wealth Community

At Coldstream, our mission is simple but profound: to enhance people’s lives. One of the ways we strive to do that is by helping women feel confident and empowered in making financial and life decisions. The Invest in Women series, now in its fourth year, continues a tradition of fostering meaningful connections and providing resources and advocacy for our community. We were deeply pleased to have this opportunity to connect, reflect, and be inspired by the remarkable women among us.

We hope that everyone who attended walked away having learned something new, felt inspired, and maybe made a new friend or friends! We are looking forward to continuing to build on this momentum as we plan future Invest in Women events. Our goal is to foster this as a forum for education, connection, inspiration, and empowerment. Please feel free to share your ideas for future topics and speakers. We look forward to seeing you at our next Invest in Women event!

* The Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. owns the certification marks CFP® and Certified Financial Planner™ in the U.S. Investments & Wealth Institute^® (the Institute) is the owner of the certification marks “CPWA,” and “Certified Private Wealth Advisor.” Use of CPWA, and/or Certified Private Wealth Advisor signifies that the user has successfully completed the Institute’s initial and ongoing credentialing requirements for investment management professionals and/or requirements for “wealth advisors”.