When AI can do the work, what should managers still decide?

1 Consider a leave request that passes through several people before it reaches a manager. Much of that work consists of checking records and applying a policy.

2 An agent with authorised access can perform those checks. Once the process is reliable, routine steps can proceed within the authority already agreed.

3 Even an unusual request can follow a rule. If the policy defines when additional leave is allowed, the exception does not automatically need a manager’s judgement.

4 Two requests now qualify under that policy, but approving both would leave a critical service unstaffed. The policy provides no adequate way to resolve the conflict.

5 The manager must decide how to maintain cover while responding to the requests. This requires judgement because guidance cannot settle the choice, and getting it wrong has serious consequences.

6 The manager remains accountable while the agent handles the agreed routine work. Staffing and reporting lines can now be examined against the volume of human work that remains.