Disrupting and Facilitating: The Dual Role of Generative AI in Reshaping Power, Engagement, and Collaboration Within Organizations

Author

Zain Khalid Baz Haddadin, CUNY Bernard M Baruch CollegeFollow

Date of Award

Spring 5-19-2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Program of Study

Communication - Corporate Communication

Language

English

First Advisor

Minna Logemann

Second Advisor

Sarah Bishop

Abstract

This study explores how Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) is reshaping power, trust, engagement, and collaboration in communication-focused workplaces. Guided by a constructivist lens and informed by change management theory, it draws on eight semi-structured interviews and a survey of 40 professionals across agency, corporate, and academic roles. Findings reveal that GenAI does not fully flatten hierarchies, it subtly thins them, enabling junior staff to contribute to strategic conversations earlier while decision rights remain centralized. Trust is highly contextual, shaped by task sensitivity, prompt clarity, and user confidence. GenAI’s impact on engagement was mixed: some participants felt energized; others described increased pace without added meaning. When integrated transparently, GenAI enhanced collaboration by acting as a shared ideation partner and workflow catalyst. Rather than replacing work, GenAI is emerging as a co-participant in how work is imagined, distributed, and valued, signaling a deeper shift that calls for intentional, human-centered change management.

Recommended Citation

Haddadin, Zain Khalid Baz, "Disrupting and Facilitating: The Dual Role of Generative AI in Reshaping Power, Engagement, and Collaboration Within Organizations" (2025). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/bb_etds/213