Seniority carries experience, responsibility, and an understanding of consequences that younger colleagues may not yet possess. It deserves respect.
But position does not guarantee that the best idea will come from the highest level. AI may now help junior employees see patterns, build prototypes, or reach knowledge that once belonged mainly to specialists and senior management. In hierarchical organisations, this can feel uncomfortable.
I have learned that strong leadership protects respect for experience while keeping ideas open to examination. The response is not to weaken authority, but to separate the authority to decide from the freedom to contribute.
A leader remains accountable for the outcome. That accountability should make them more willing, not less, to hear the strongest idea available.
Seniority may carry the responsibility to decide, but it should never carry the exclusive right to be right.