AI at work: Maxime Legrand calls for responsibility, clarity and social dialogue
On 22 April 2026, CEC European Managers’ President, Maxime Legrand was invited to the CESI@noon event on artificial intelligence and algorithmic management at work, Maxime Legrand, President of CEC European Managers, delivered a clear message from the managerial perspective: AI is already transforming the workplace, and Europe must ensure that this transformation is built on understanding, responsibility and governance.
Bringing together Members of the European Parliament, trade union representatives and academic experts, the debate focused on how AI and algorithmic systems should be regulated at work.
For CEC European Managers, the issue is no longer whether AI will shape working life. It already does. The real question is under which conditions it can be accepted, trusted, and sustained.
In his intervention, Maxime Legrand explained that Artificial Intelligence and Algorithmic Management are already influencing how decisions are made, how performance is measured, and how teams are managed on a daily basis. From the perspective of European managers, this makes the need for a clear framework all the more urgent.
Maxime Legrand warned that one of the biggest risks today is not AI itself, but the growing gap between the technology and those expected to use it and supervise it.
Managers are increasingly asked to rely on algorithmic systems to allocate tasks, assess performance and support HR decisions, often without being properly trained. As he underlined during the discussion, no manager can be accountable for a decision they do not understand.
CEC European Managers believes that leaders and managers must not become passive executors of algorithmic outputs. They must remain decision-makers, capable of questioning the tools they use and assuming responsibility for their consequences. This requires strong investment in training, technical literacy, ethical awareness and legal responsibility.
Artificial Intelligence will not replace managers, Maxime Legrand argued, but it will raise the level of responsibility expected from them.
Legrand also made clear that the debate should not be reduced to a choice between more regulation and less regulation.
What Europe needs is better regulation. Rules must be strong on principles, but workable in practice.
Maxime Legrand
CEC European Managers
If legislation becomes too complex, it will not be applied. If it is too weak, it will create uncertainty, mistrust, and harmful practices.
In this regard, Maxime Legrand welcomed the work carried out by the European Parliament. He pointed in particular to the importance of the principles highlighted in the report: human control, transparency and the right to contest decisions. These are, in CEC European Managers’ view, essential foundations for a trustworthy use of AI in the workplace.
The next challenge is to make them meaningful inside companies. Transparency must be understandable, not merely formal. Human oversight must be real, not symbolic. Rights must be enforceable in everyday working life.
Maxime Legrand also placed the discussion in a wider international context. Europe is developing its own path between market-driven innovation and state-led technological control.
For CEC European Managers, this can be a real strength, but only if Europe succeeds in combining protection with competitiveness. Regulation should not weaken Europe’s capacity to innovate. It should provide clarity, trust and a level playing field for companies and workers alike.
A particularly important part of his intervention focused on social dialogue. Maxime Legrand insisted that AI cannot be introduced responsibly without involving workers and their representatives from the start.
Social dialogue must have a role in the design, deployment, and monitoring of AI systems. It cannot be limited to reacting after implementation. From a managerial perspective, this is essential for both employers and employees.
This conviction is also behind the new European Project AI Manage project, which CEC European Managers will launch in May 2026 for a period of two years with the support of the European Commission.
As Maxime Legrand explained, the project will create a practical framework for dialogue with employers on how managers can implement AI in a responsible, transparent, and human-centric way in real workplace conditions.
His contribution was widely noted during the conference, particularly for the emphasis placed on the role of managers in implementation. Managers are at the point where law, technology, and workplace reality meet. They are responsible for explaining change, applying rules, and maintaining trust within teams. That is why, for CEC European Managers, any serious reflection on AI at work must include the managerial perspective.
The conference confirmed strong convergence around several priorities: transparency, meaningful human oversight, training, and social dialogue. For CEC European Managers, these are the practical conditions for ensuring that AI improves work rather than undermining it.
At CESI headquarters President Maxime Legrand‘s message was clear: Europe should shape AI at work with ambition, but also with realism. Innovation must be encouraged, but never at the expense of responsibility, fairness or dignity at work. The task now is to turn principles into practice and ensure that the future of work remains centred on people.
The rest of the panel brought together key political and expert voices:
- Andrzej Buła (EPP), Rapporteur on digitalisation, AI and algorithmic management at work
- Marc Angel (S&D), Shadow rapporteur
- Irena Joveva (Renew), Shadow rapporteur
- Carmelo Cennamo, Professor at Copenhagen Business School
- Sara Rinaudo, Deputy Secretary General of Fismic-Confsal and Chair of CESI’s Working Group on the Future of Work
- Moderated by Klaus Heeger, Secretary General of CESI
