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AI at Work: Smart Tool or Motivation Killer?
Why technology boosts productivity… but can quietly destroy motivation, ownership and performance
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AI is rapidly transforming the workplace. Tasks are automated, decisions are supported, and productivity is increasing at unprecedented speed. But something else is happening beneath the surface. As AI takes over more thinking, structuring and decision-making, a crucial question emerges: what happens to human motivation?
Because performance doesn’t come from efficiency alone. It comes from people who want to think, contribute and take ownership.
This keynote challenges the dominant narrative around AI as purely a productivity tool, and explores its often overlooked impact on motivation, engagement and behavior at work.
What this keynote is about
Most organizations approach AI from a functional perspective: how can we work faster? Cheaper? More efficiently? But motivation science shows a different reality. People don’t perform at their best when they are controlled, replaced or reduced to execution. They perform when three fundamental needs are met:
autonomy
competence
connection
This is the foundation of what is known as high-quality motivation. When these needs are supported, people take ownership, think along and go beyond what is expected. When they are frustrated, performance drops, stress increases and engagement disappears. AI can do both.
The hidden risk of AI in organizations
AI doesn’t just change what we do. It changes how we feel about our work.
When AI takes over thinking → people lose a sense of competence
When decisions are automated → autonomy decreases
When interaction is reduced → connection weakens
And that’s where the real risk lies. Because you can have a highly efficient organization… with completely disengaged people.
What leaders often get wrong
When motivation drops, organizations tend to react with more control, more targets, more incentives. But research shows that pressure and control only work temporarily and often backfire. The result? Less initiative, less ownership and more burnout.
Not because people don’t want to perform. But because the quality of their motivation is off.
What this keynote delivers
This keynote helps leaders and organizations rethink AI beyond efficiency, and reconnect it to human motivation.
Participants will gain:
A clear understanding of how AI impacts motivation and behavior
Insight into the difference between low-quality and high-quality motivation
Practical ways to integrate AI without undermining autonomy, competence and connection
A new perspective on leadership in an AI-driven workplace
Hermina Van Coillie, Ph.D. in Psychology, is an esteemed motivation expert, keynote speaker, lecturer in various HRM postgraduate courses, author, senior consultant, and business manager at Flourish. In April 2021, she debuted her first book, co-authored with Prof. Dr. Anja van den Broeck, titled "Motivating Without Control: Getting Started with Self-Determination Theory in the Workplace!" published by Die Keure.
Renowned for her captivating presentations, Hermina is in high demand, delivering keynotes, inspiration sessions, masterclasses, workshops, and training sessions to diverse audiences, including business leaders, HR directors, managers, executives, prevention advisors, and coaching teams. Her unique approach brings to life the profound insights of self-determination theory, offering practical applications not only in the workplace but also in personal and recreational settings.
With her charismatic presence, authenticity, and expertise, Hermina engages her audience, delivering new and practical insights grounded in years of dedicated research. Eschewing excessive theories, she empowers individuals by unveiling the innate motivations within them. Her interactive sessions, filled with thought-provoking questions, humorous anecdotes, and relatable situations, resonate with audiences across various backgrounds, leaving them with actionable insights ready for immediate implementation.
Hermina's expertise extends beyond mere motivation, encompassing a wide array of HR themes such as burnout, well-being, leadership, remote and flexible working, performance management, work-life balance, and more. Through her presentations, she illustrates how high-quality motivation serves as a catalyst for peak performance and personal flourishing, ultimately transforming individuals into high performers across all facets of life.
Hermina Van Coillie, Dr. in psychology, is a motivation expert, keynote speaker, author, senior consultant and business manager at Flourish
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