Looking for a fresh approach to leadership development in hospitality? When I wanted our ops leaders to really vibe with their CliftonStrengths, I turned to an unexpected combination: AI and superhero mythology.
As a training professional in a rapidly growing restaurant group, I’m always searching for ways to make leadership concepts connect deeply with our teams. What started as a creative experiment with AI evolved into something that transformed how our leaders see themselves and support each other.
From a rock-climbing RESTORATIVE to a Vespa-riding RESPONSIBILITY, these personalized superhero versions of our leaders’ strengths sparked conversations and connections that continue months later.
Want to see how blending emerging technology with traditional development tools can create lasting impact in hospitality leadership?
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What happens when you combine AI-generated superheroes with the CliftonStrengths of more than a dozen ops leaders in a growing restaurant group? You get The League of Extraordinary Operators—a unique approach to celebrating the individuals making it happen!
As a certified CliftonStrengths Coach who’s led more than a dozen four-hour, internal workshops for our GMs, Directors of Ops, and Base Camp (home office), I’m always looking for fresh ways to help our teams keep their strength insights alive in their day to day.
The Genesis:
Gallup talks formally about leaning into your dominant themes or strengths, but informally they portray top strengths as superpowers—natural talents that people can leverage to create significant impact in everything they do. And to be an effective DO or VP of Ops, using every inch of your superpowers is the clearest path to success.
Intrigued, and gears turning, I thought:
- I’d love to celebrate our Ops Team and create artistically satisfying superheroes that tap into their strengths
- How would I approach this?
- Can I partner with DALL-E to do the art for me?
- Is it possible to use multiple superhero and comic-book styles to differentiate and personalize each piece, and make them look really cool?
- Could this project serve as a holiday gift, show thanks and appreciation, and also tie in to some meaningful CliftonStrengths work?
Then I thought: I might be biting off more than I can chew!
Using my #1 strength, Maximizer, I ran tests combining different comic book/superhero styles with key phrases from my strengths report. The results were visually arresting and custom— capturing the essence of my dominant strength in compelling ways….and it felt fresh. Mind blown, this just might be the creative approach I was looking for to celebrate and leverage the top strengths of our leadership team!
Here are some of the early test images using my #1 strength and phrases adapted from my 34 report: “Always evolving, always enhancing” and “Getting Better Every Day!”
What started as a simple appreciation project quickly morphed into much more. Before I could say Shazam, I found myself diving into something unexpected at this stage of my career— creating AI-generated superheroes that celebrated both CliftonStrengths and personal leadership details—with an enthusiasm bordering on giddy obsession!
DALL-E exceeded expectations, delivering slick, professional images that showed this project’s potential. No outside hires, consultants, or budget approvals needed—just me and AI partnering to create superhero styles that would make our leadership smile while triggering insights about how their strengths show up at work every day.
I experimented with some minimalist and watercolor approaches, but they just weren’t living up to the energy I envisioned for the project. Knowing these softer styles might disappoint, I stuck with a stable of more reliable, dynamic styles that delivered both variety and impact.
The Covert Mission:
Daunted but up for the challenge, it was time to create 13 CliftonStrengths superheroes. First though, I needed specific details to make each one personal—while keeping it on the downlow! I created a cryptic “covert mission” that let me transparently ask for exactly what I needed while maintaining secrecy. A big tease, you could say.
The “mission” asked leaders to identify their most-used strength from their top five, provide 1- 2 rallying cries, and share a favorite hobby or sport for context. They completed it quickly, having no idea what was coming, but I had my marching orders.
A big tease, indeed! But soon, it was time for the reveal. Would these AI-generated superheroes resonate with the leaders—or just be a quirky holiday experiment? With 13 unique personas ready and the Superman theme cued up, I was about to discover whether combining artificial intelligence with leadership development would create something meaningful… or just be another tech novelty.
Hang tight for Part 2: The League of Extraordinary Operators: When the Human Transcended the Tech
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