Inside Smartsheet's AI playbook: workflows, shadow AI, security
From internal enablement and training to product features such as MCP and Smart Assist, work management vendor Smartsheet is using AI across its company. Marcus McKay Fleisch, the project management and work collaboration platform’s professional services enablement director, joins TechTarget’s Targeting AI podcast to discuss how his team is moving beyond basic adoption metrics to focus on workflow-level impact, security guardrails, and measurable business outcomes. He dives into how AI is changing daily work for Smartsheet users, why shadow AI shows up when internal tooling is missing, and how IT, product, security, and enablement must work together to make AI useful without introducing new risks. In this episode, we discuss: Smartsheet’s focus on natural language access using MCP (model context protocol) and Smart Assist. The biggest everyday benefit for users is automation inside real workflows, such as checking due tasks, prioritizing work, and completing updates with AI-assisted actions. Enablement at Smartsheet goes beyond training and includes behavior change, tooling access, security review, and close coordination with IT. Smartsheet’s main large language model tools. How Smartsheet is shifting its AI adoption strategy. Shadow AI as a signal that employees need approved tools or capabilities that the company does not yet offer internally. How Smartsheet treats security as a human and organizational problem as much as a technical one, with quarterly security training, threat modeling, and tighter controls around features such as browser and computer use. To dive more into topics about generative AI-driven software, check out TechTarget AI & Emerging Tech , and please subscribe to our newsletter to keep up to date on the most important AI news. To watch video clips from our podcast, subscribe to our YouTube channel, @EyeonTech . References: Build vs. buy: the AI agent landscape for businesses How enterprises should combat the growing shadow AI problem AI changes the ROI equation. Here’s how some have found success
