HR Voices

HR Voices

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HR Voices episodes

  • Heather Brazik Smith, Chief Human Resources Officer at BrightStar Care

    Care for Caregivers: Bright Star Care’s CXO on Community, Consistency, and AI in Hiring


    Summary

    How do you build connection and consistency for a largely solo, non-desk workforce?

    Heather Bresick-Smith, Chief Experience Officer at Bright Star Care (formerly CHRO), shares how the home healthcare franchisor is reshaping employee experience across 13–14k caregivers through community, clear lanes of ownership, and smart tech.

    Heather breaks down the shift from HR to Experience—employee, client, and soon owner experience—plus formal change management to drive franchisee adoption. She reveals Bright Star’s new employer brand pillars—connection at our core, flexibility that fits your life, and care that starts within—and why the first 90 days are the retention tipping point.

    Heather details a network-wide LMS for consistent onboarding and career paths, an employee mobile app that becomes the “virtual office” for distributed caregivers, and where AI fits: sourcing, screening, scheduling, and predictive signals that prioritize highly motivated candidates with a clean human handoff.

    She closes with how franchisee roundtables turn local wins in recruiting and retention into system-wide standards.


    Timestamps

    [00:45] – From CHRO to CXO: experience “lanes,” client/employee/owner experience, and change management

    [03:17] – Splitting people ops vs. franchisee-facing support to scale impact

    [04:06] – The caregiver challenge: isolation, recruiting vs. retention, and the 90-day stickiness milestone

    [06:39] – Employer brand pillars: connection, flexibility, and “care that starts within”

    [09:03] – The employee mobile app as the virtual office: messaging, recognition, and education on-the-go

    [12:24] – Standardizing learning: network-wide LMS, robust 90-day onboarding, CE, and career paths

    [15:10] – Practical AI in hiring: sourcing/screening/scheduling and predictive signals for candidate prioritization

    [17:30] – The “people leader co-pilot” vision: just-in-time guidance for interviews, feedback, and HR risk

    [19:48] – Stronger together: franchisee collaboration and turning best practices into system norms

    Takeaways

    - Define clear experience lanes (employee, client, owner) and formalize change management to boost adoption across franchises.

    - Design for early retention: build programs that carry caregivers past the 90-day threshold and target candidates who mirror your best performers.

    - Lead with “care that starts within”: make caregiver well-being a visible pillar of your employer brand and day-to-day operations.

    - Create community for distributed workers: use a mobile app for real-time messaging, recognition, and learning—treat it like the office.

    - Standardize a network-wide LMS to deliver consistent onboarding, CE, and career pathways that reduce burnout and turnover.

    - Use AI judiciously: automate sourcing/screening/scheduling, leverage predictive motivation signals, and ensure a warm, timely human handoff.


    Sponsor

    AllVoices brings all your employee relations work together in one place. No more jumping between spreadsheets, emails, and legacy systems just one place to document and manage reports, cases, investigations, and performance conversations. It helps you run a more consistent process, takes busywork off your plate with AI, and makes it easier to spot trends early, so you can work proactively, not just put out fires.

    See a demo at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.allvoices.co/

    21 min
  • David Hanrahan, SVP People Success at Solarwinds

    Scaling Through Change: SolarWinds’ People Leader on Functional HRBPs, Sales Talent, and AI-Driven Performance


    Summary

    What does it take to steer a 25-year-old tech company through going private while raising the performance bar?

    David Hanrahan, SVP of People Success at SolarWinds, shares how his team is navigating culture integration with a data-driven parent company, reorganizing HR for impact, and using AI to modernize performance.

    With 2,100+ employees and deep tenure across the business, SolarWinds is balancing “what’s worked” with a sharper go-to-market focus. David explains why he shifted HRBPs from site-based support to functional teams (GTM, R&D, G&A), how he built trust quickly across global sites, and why HR must solve revenue problems—starting with hiring and retaining top “native sales” talent.

    He also opens up about building an attrition prediction model (and what they learned when v1 missed), plus how AI writing assistants can free managers to be coaches, not scribes.

    He closes with a research-backed principle: managers who truly understand their team’s work dramatically boost performance, engagement, and retention.


    Timestamps

    [00:45] – SolarWinds overview: going private, observability software, and the change agenda

    [02:17] – Balancing long company history with Turn/River’s speed and data-orientation

    [04:42] – Rewiring HRBPs: from site-based coverage to functional alignment (GTM, R&D, G&A)

    [07:19] – Earning trust fast: global site visits, human updates, and building rapport remotely

    [11:44] – HR as business problem-solver: zeroing in on “native sales” talent to drive bookings

    [14:06] – Attrition prediction model: partnering with IT and learning from first-pass misses

    [15:06] – AI in performance: writing assistants, meeting people where they are, manager as coach

    [22:13] – The performance multiplier: managers who truly understand the work


    Takeaways

    - Align HRBPs by function, not just site, to strengthen partnership with global business priorities.

    - Build trust quickly through intentional face time and human touches—even in remote-first contexts.

    - Aim HR at revenue levers: hire and retain top “native sales” talent to fuel bookings growth.

    - Treat analytics as experiments: iterate on models that miss and learn from actual attrition drivers.

    - Use AI to handle synthesis and writing so managers can coach, set trade-offs, and elevate performance.

    - Make “manager understanding of work” a habit—it doubles high performance and slashes attrition.


    Sponsor

    AllVoices brings all your employee relations work together in one place. No more jumping between spreadsheets, emails, and legacy systems just one place to document and manage reports, cases, investigations, and performance conversations. It helps you run a more consistent process, takes busywork off your plate with AI, and makes it easier to spot trends early, so you can work proactively, not just put out fires.

    See a demo at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.allvoices.co/

    24 min
  • Sunaina Lobo, Chief People Officer at Omnissa

    AI-Native HR: Omnissa’s CPO on Hyper-Personalization, Skills Intelligence, and Human Connection


    Summary

    How can HR lead AI adoption without losing the human core of work?

    Sunaina Lobo, Chief People Officer at Omnissa—an AI-driven digital workforce platform carved out of VMware—shares how she’s building a modern “hire-to-retire” experience just six weeks into the role.

    Sunaina explains why people teams must be change leaders, not just technology adopters, and how AI lets HR leapfrog legacy models like shared services to deliver truly personalized, scalable support.

    She walks through a practical talent development use case—using conversational intelligence to transform career conversations—so managers can focus on relationships while AI captures insights and suggests development paths.

    Sunaina also breaks down personalization in total rewards, the realities of a distributed workforce across 18 countries, the shift from rear-view HR metrics to predictive, insights-driven decision-making, and why engagement depends on hyper-human interaction and purpose-led cultures. If you’re redefining HR’s operating system, this episode offers a clear blueprint.


    Timestamps

    [00:45] – Guest intro: Omnissa’s VMware roots and Sunaina’s “hire-to-retire” mandate

    [02:50] – Why HR must lead AI adoption: change management over tools

    [04:45] – Leapfrogging shared services: AI bots for personalized employee support

    [06:20] – Talent development, reimagined: conversational intelligence for career conversations

    [09:00] – Total rewards in the AI era: from one-size-fits-all to hyper-personalization

    [11:30] – Engagement is human: community, connection, and “putting the H back in HR”

    [15:30] – Five focus areas: hyper-personalization, global talent, insights-driven HR, purpose, skills intelligence

    [18:10] – Aligning product and people: building an AI-native employee experience

    [18:50] – From anecdotes to evidence: using AI to connect HR metrics to business outcomes

    [20:40] – Guardrails: augment with AI, but keep the human conversation central


    Takeaways

    - Lead AI adoption as a change initiative—design for human behavior, not just new tools.

    - Map HR processes end-to-end; automate repeatable steps and reserve managers for high-value conversations.

    - Flip career conversations with conversational intelligence to capture insights and generate development options.

    - Personalize benefits and rewards based on employee life stage and preferences, not averages.

    - Build community and manager capability to counter remote isolation and boost engagement.

    - Shift from rear-view reporting to predictive, insights-driven HR and tie people data to business outcomes.

    - Treat skills intelligence as a strategic asset—identify, develop, and deploy skills for competitive advantage.


    Sponsor

    AllVoices brings all your employee relations work together in one place. No more jumping between spreadsheets, emails, and legacy systems just one place to document and manage reports, cases, investigations, and performance conversations. It helps you run a more consistent process, takes busywork off your plate with AI, and makes it easier to spot trends early, so you can work proactively, not just put out fires.

    See a demo at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.allvoices.co/


    22 min
  • Andrea Brunet, Director, Employee Relations at Greystar

    Human-First Employee Relations: Greystar’s Director on Multi-State Investigations, AI, and Trust

    Summary

    How do you lead fair, fast, and human investigations across dozens of jurisdictions—with California in the mix—and still keep people at the center?

    Andrea Brunet, Director of Employee Relations at Greystar, supports 2,400 employees across multiple states for the global real estate leader. She shares how rigorous organization, clear triage, and deep partnership with field leaders power compliant, compassionate employee relations.

    Andrea explains her system for managing time-sensitive cases (think EEOC and wage-and-hour), why rapport lets HR deliver risk-based guidance leaders can hear, and how to handle AI-authored complaints without losing the human story.

    Expect practical insights on turning “small” complaints into root-cause patterns, coaching managers through tough conversations, and preserving dignity in terminations—so HR is seen as a trusted partner, not “Toby.”


    Timestamps

    [00:01] – Role and scope: Greystar’s footprint, multi-state support, and California complexity

    [02:25] – Staying organized: tracking investigations, deadlines, and time-sensitive compliance

    [04:44] – Building trust: collaborating with leaders and giving risk-based recommendations

    [06:52] – AI in ER: the upside, the pitfalls, and why a phone call reveals the real story

    [10:03] – From symptoms to root cause: the “coffee complaint” and pattern-spotting in ER

    [11:39] – HR as connective tissue: first and last impressions and company-wide impact

    [14:19] – Service mindset: triaging requests, team collaboration, and shedding the “Toby” stereotype

    [18:45] – Dignity in terminations: coaching leaders through hard conversations and de-escalation


    Takeaways

    - Build a simple, durable tracking system (spreadsheets or case management) to manage investigations and meet hard deadlines.

    - Earn trust early so leaders accept risk-based guidance—even when it’s not the answer they hoped for.

    - Treat AI-generated complaints as a starting point; connect live to hear the human behind the text.

    - Look beyond surface issues to identify patterns and root causes; small complaints can reveal bigger gaps.

    - Position HR as organizational triage: route quickly, respond personally, and reduce friction across functions.

    - Protect dignity in difficult moments: frame decisions as business-driven, allow pauses, and coach leaders to de-escalate.


    Sponsor

    AllVoices brings all your employee relations work together in one place. No more jumping between spreadsheets, emails, and legacy systems just one place to document and manage reports, cases, investigations, and performance conversations. It helps you run a more consistent process, takes busywork off your plate with AI, and makes it easier to spot trends early, so you can work proactively, not just put out fires.

    See a demo at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.allvoices.co/

    23 min
  • Lisa Meyers Strasman, Chief People Operations Officer at IMG Academy

    Ignite Our Heartbeat: IMG Academy’s CPO on Hybrid Culture, Burnout, and Purpose-Driven HR


    Summary

    When half your workforce is on a Florida campus and half is fully remote, how do you sustain one culture, prevent burnout, and support growth in a world of constant change?

    Lisa Strasman, Chief People Operations Officer at IMG Academy and former President of NCSA (acquired by IMG Academy), shares how the world’s leading sports education brand aligns people, performance, and purpose.

    She outlines IMG Academy’s unique mix—boarding school and elite training in Bradenton, year-round camps, and IMG Academy+ for mental performance, nutrition, and college recruiting guidance—and explains how “athlete DNA” fuels a high-performing team.

    Lisa unpacks the realities of hybrid culture, why careers must be treated as dynamic, and how their engagement surveys directly shape priorities. She also details their 2026 people-first goal—Ignite Our Heartbeat—designed to elevate the employee experience so staff can better serve student-athletes and families.

    Expect practical guidance on closing the communication loop, reducing burnout (especially for remote employees), and connecting daily work to a mission that matters.


    Timestamps

    [00:45] – IMG Academy overview: campus, camps, and IMG Academy+ (mental performance, nutrition, recruiting)

    [02:48] – CPO scope: 2,200 employees split between Bradenton campus and fully remote

    [03:56] – Hybrid culture in practice: pace of change, bridging onsite and virtual teams

    [05:26] – Nonlinear careers: growth without rigid ladders and HR’s role in transparency

    [07:12] – Engagement survey insights: burnout, work-life balance, development, and communication

    [08:45] – From insights to action: 2026 goals and “Ignite Our Heartbeat”

    [10:51] – Role evolution: from President/COO to CPO and integrating acquired cultures

    [13:04] – Athlete DNA at work: hiring for coachability, resilience, and teamwork

    [15:02] – Closing advice: connect everyday work to a mission that matters


    Takeaways

    - Anchor culture to a clear mission and consistently spotlight real impact stories.

    - Listen with regular engagement surveys—and close the loop by tying programs to what employees said.

    - Build hybrid rituals that serve both onsite and remote teams; make communication inclusive and repeat key messages.

    - Treat careers as dynamic; offer development that builds confidence without rigid paths.

    - Tackle burnout proactively—especially for remote staff—through workload norms, energy checks, and manager enablement.

    - Align people priorities with business outcomes; make people-first goals (like “Ignite Our Heartbeat”) visible, measurable, and owned across the org.


    Sponsor

    AllVoices brings all your employee relations work together in one place. No more jumping between spreadsheets, emails, and legacy systems just one place to document and manage reports, cases, investigations, and performance conversations. It helps you run a more consistent process, takes busywork off your plate with AI, and makes it easier to spot trends early, so you can work proactively, not just put out fires.

    See a demo at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.allvoices.co/

    18 min
  • Deboleena Bose, CHRO at CoBank

    Intentional Culture at CoBank: CHRO Debulina Bose on Mission-First HR and AI with Empathy


    Summary

    How do you unify a national, largely exempt workforce while navigating AI and rapid growth?


    Debulina Bose, Chief Human Resources Officer at CoBank, shares how a mission-first approach—serving rural America and strengthening food security—drives hiring, development, and culture across 1,400 associates. As a cooperative, CoBank makes long-term people decisions, not quarter-by-quarter tradeoffs.

    Debulina details how her team uses Gallup StrengthsFinder to build diverse-by-thinking teams, why empathy, listening, and judgment will differentiate talent in an AI-enabled workplace, and where AI fits today—from HR chat assistants for FAQs to Copilot for tone and productivity. With 40% of employees new in the last three years, she outlines CoBank’s 2026 priority: building an intentional, co-created culture that matches the mission and the moment.

    Expect practical ideas for hiring for purpose, applying the “five whys,” and using AI as a thought partner—while keeping humans firmly in the loop.


    Timestamps

    [00:45] – Guest intro: CoBank’s mission to serve rural America and Debulina’s remit as CHRO

    [01:54] – Workforce snapshot: 1,400 associates, HQ in Denver, national footprint, largely exempt

    [03:02] – Unifying a distributed culture: hiring and promoting for mission alignment

    [04:34] – The cooperative advantage: long-term lens for talent and development

    [05:33] – StrengthsFinder in action: diversity of perspectives and team assimilations

    [08:03] – AI anxiety to clarity: empathy, listening, and judgment as differentiators

    [11:36] – Practical AI: HR knowledge assistant for FAQs; Copilot to refine difficult messages

    [17:43] – 2026 focus: “intentional culture” with 40% new hires—engagement over edicts


    Takeaways

    - Hire for purpose: prioritize mission alignment to unify distributed teams and decisions.

    - Anchor people strategy in the long term—especially in a cooperative or stakeholder model.

    - Use StrengthsFinder to design teams with diverse thinking styles and run effective assimilations.

    - Deploy AI where it scales routine work (FAQ chatbots) and boosts clarity (tone refinement), not where empathy is required.

    - Teach human skills that AI can’t replicate: deep listening, judgment, critical thinking, and the “five whys.”

    - Co-create culture during periods of heavy hiring—engage employees broadly instead of issuing top-down values.


    Sponsor

    AllVoices brings all your employee relations work together in one place. No more jumping between spreadsheets, emails, and legacy systems just one place to document and manage reports, cases, investigations, and performance conversations. It helps you run a more consistent process, takes busywork off your plate with AI, and makes it easier to spot trends early, so you can work proactively, not just put out fires.

    See a demo at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.allvoices.co/

    22 min
  • Deane Ilukowicz, CPO at TPI Composites

    Steady in the Storm: TPI’s CPO on Leading HR Through Chapter 11 with Transparency and Trust


    Summary

    When your company files Chapter 11, HR becomes the steady hand the business needs.

    Deane Ilukowicz, Chief People Officer at TPI Composites—the world’s largest industrial manufacturer of wind turbine blades—shares how she’s guided a nearly 10,000-person, global workforce through restructuring with clarity and care.

    From saying “I don’t know” the right way to co-owning tough conversations with leaders, Deane breaks down the practices that build trust under intense uncertainty. She explains why protecting your HR team’s emotional health is non-negotiable, how resilience and psychological safety actually show up day to day, and why “policies as guardrails” beats rigid rulebooks.

    Deane also offers a simple, repeatable framework for continuous performance feedback and closes with a charge to every HR pro: be a business leader first.

    Expect concrete guidance on communicating when you can’t share everything, keeping operations running while showing empathy, and earning—then keeping—your strategic seat at the table.


    Timestamps

    [00:45] – Guest intro: TPI’s footprint, scale, and manufacturing context

    [02:15] – Chapter 11 realities for HR and leading with transparent context

    [04:27] – Protecting the HR team: humane reductions and co-delivering hard news

    [05:41] – Resilience and psychological safety: giving HR safe space to process

    [08:21] – Truthful performance: using PIPs well to drive clarity and engagement

    [11:48] – Continuous feedback in practice: the “one thing” framework

    [15:21] – Presence, empathy, and grace; policies as guardrails while staying flexible

    [21:02] – Business-first HR: understand how the company makes money to keep your seat


    Takeaways

    - Lead with transparent context—state what you know, what you don’t, and when you’ll update.

    - Protect your HR team’s well-being; co-own difficult conversations with leaders and allow space to decompress.

    - Build resilience and psychological safety by normalizing pauses, resets, and candid check-ins.

    - Make feedback continuous: one thing that went well, one to improve, and one to do differently.

    - Use PIPs as development tools grounded in clear expectations, not as a step toward termination.

    - Earn strategic influence by mastering your business model, value drivers, and risks.


    Sponsor

    AllVoices brings all your employee relations work together in one place. No more jumping between spreadsheets, emails, and legacy systems just one place to document and manage reports, cases, investigations, and performance conversations. It helps you run a more consistent process, takes busywork off your plate with AI, and makes it easier to spot trends early, so you can work proactively, not just put out fires.

    See a demo at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.allvoices.co/

    23 min
  • Jason Desentz, CHRO at Toshiba USA

    Reinventing a 150‑Year‑Old Startup: Toshiba’s CHRO on Influence, COEs, and AI


    Summary

    How do you modernize a century-old manufacturer under private equity—while unifying fragmented HR teams and systems?

    Jason Richard Desentz, Chief Human Resources Officer for Toshiba in the Americas, breaks down what it really takes to lead transformation at scale. With roots in Detroit automotive and training in Lean Six Sigma, plus an MBA and DBA, Jason explains why today’s CHRO must think like a business operator first.

    He shares a simple but powerful career framework—rotating between HR centers of excellence and field roles (“work on” vs. “work in” the process)—that builds credibility and speed. Jason also unpacks the politics of change: how to socialize ideas early, tailor the pitch, and win stakeholder buy-in. He frames AI as an enhancement, not a replacement, and makes the case for cultures that embrace smart risk-taking and fast learning from mistakes.

    Expect practical guidance on consolidating legacy orgs, avoiding complacency, and bringing Gen Z voices to the table—all while keeping the business, people, and process aligned.


    Timestamps

    [00:45] – CHRO scope at Toshiba: PE-backed reinvention and consolidating standalone units

    [03:23] – From legacy to reinvention: “a 150-year-old startup” mindset to refresh processes and culture

    [06:45] – The modern CHRO: business acumen, P&L fluency, and Lean roots

    [07:32] – COEs vs. field HR: “work on” vs. “work in” the process and career pathing

    [09:49] – Influence over edict: politics, context, and stakeholder buy-in

    [12:11] – AI as enhancement, not replacement; right- vs. left-brain leadership

    [14:03] – Normalize mistakes: psychological safety, coaching, and the 5% rule

    [19:02] – Closing playbook: persistence, calibration, and learning from Gen Z/Alpha


    Takeaways

    - Audit legacy processes with a startup lens to align with future culture and strategy.

    - Sharpen business fluency—P&L, operations, and Lean—to elevate HR’s strategic impact.

    - Rotate between COE and field roles; volunteer for cross-functional projects to accelerate learning.

    - Socialize early and sell smart: build context, coalition, and influence before implementation.

    - Treat AI as an enhancement: blend left-brain data with right-brain values; calibrate tools to your org.

    - Create psychological safety for calculated risk-taking; learn fast from mistakes and move on.


    Sponsor

    AllVoices brings all your employee relations work together in one place. No more jumping between spreadsheets, emails, and legacy systems just one place to document and manage reports, cases, investigations, and performance conversations. It helps you run a more consistent process, takes busywork off your plate with AI, and makes it easier to spot trends early, so you can work proactively, not just put out fires.

    See a demo at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.allvoices.co/

    22 min
  • Vanessa Brulotte, Employee Relations Partner at BambooHR

    Catch It at a Simmer: BambooHR’s Vanessa Brulotte on Employee Relations, Clear Communication, and AI in HR


    Summary

    When employees only reach HR at “eruption,” it’s already too late.

    Vanessa Brulotte, Employee Relations Partner at BambooHR, shares how to build a trusted, centralized ER function that catches issues at a simmer—so leaders and employees can collaborate toward resolution instead of crisis.

    With nine years at BambooHR across TA, HR, and ER, Vanessa brings practical frameworks for fairness and consistency, from creating visible “safe spaces” in a hybrid environment to setting shared expectations and alignment before projects go off the rails.

    She unpacks why communication fails even with good intent, how to avoid ruinous empathy, and simple habits—like recap notes—that prevent misinterpretation (cue the Amelia Bedelia lesson).

    Vanessa also dives into AI’s role in HR today: use it to scale clarity and prep tough conversations (think SBI-F talk tracks), ask it to push back, and put guardrails in place—never as legal counsel. The episode closes with a reminder many HR pros need: protect your own wellbeing, set boundaries, and show up with calm when it matters most.


    Timestamps

    [00:45] – Vanessa’s path at BambooHR and why she built a centralized ER function

    [02:22] – Fairness, consistency, and creating a trusted “safe space” for employees

    [05:20] – Hybrid visibility: why showing up onsite builds access and credibility

    [07:58] – The real reason communication fails—and how to catch issues at a simmer

    [08:27] – Alignment before action: roles, decisions, contributors, and deadlines

    [11:00] – High vs. low context communication (and the Amelia Bedelia effect)

    [12:37] – Recap to prevent rework: simple practices that keep teams aligned

    [14:12] – AI in HR: scaling clarity, SBI-F talk tracks, and asking for pushback

    [16:09] – Guardrails, not legal advice: using AI responsibly

    [19:30] – HR wellbeing: boundaries, mental health, and showing up with calm


    Takeaways

    - Build trust early so issues surface at a simmer—long before crisis and escalation.

    - Drive clarity: align on who decides, who is responsible, who contributes, and by when.

    - Over-communicate with intent—use recap notes, confirm “what good looks like,” and avoid ruinous empathy.

    - Prepare difficult conversations with the SBI-F framework; practice and plan language in advance.

    - Use AI as a thought partner to draft talk tracks and challenge your thinking—ask it to play devil’s advocate.

    - Set and socialize AI guardrails; never treat AI outputs as legal counsel.

    - Protect your own capacity: limit doomscrolling, set boundaries, and create pauses to bring calm to charged moments.


    Sponsor

    AllVoices brings all your employee relations work together in one place. No more jumping between spreadsheets, emails, and legacy systems just one place to document and manage reports, cases, investigations, and performance conversations. It helps you run a more consistent process, takes busywork off your plate with AI, and makes it easier to spot trends early, so you can work proactively, not just put out fires.

    See a demo at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.allvoices.co/

    21 min
  • Kristin Gaarder, Chief People Officer at Perforce Software

    Empathy at Scale: Perforce’s CPO on AI, Authentic Hiring, and Leading Individuals


    Summary

    When change is constant and AI is rewriting work, how do you create clarity, safety, and performance for a global workforce?

    Kristin Gaarder, Chief People Officer at Perforce Software (2,000 employees across 30+ countries), shares how her team supports technologists navigating rapid transformation, geopolitical uncertainty, and change fatigue—without losing the human thread.

    She unpacks the real risks AI introduces to talent acquisition (think synthetic candidates and system infiltration) and why Perforce is reintroducing in-person touchpoints to validate skills and character.

    Kristin details a company-wide leadership learning journey: from building high-performing teams on trust and healthy conflict to leading each individual with empathy and precision.

    She also breaks down Perforce’s listening architecture—small group sessions, town halls, pulse and engagement surveys, CEO surveys, and always-on feedback forms—to replace “hallway chatter” in distributed teams and rebuild trust through action.

    Expect practical ways to teach curiosity and critical thinking, normalize not having all the answers, and anchor change in empathy, stability, and clarity.


    Timestamps

    [00:45] – Guest intro: Perforce’s global footprint and technical workforce

    [01:37] – The pace and volume of change: AI’s impact, global uncertainty, and employee anxiety

    [04:10] – Skills for the next decade: curiosity, critical thinking, and discerning AI outputs

    [06:21] – Talent acquisition in an AI era: preventing “synthetic candidates” and bot infiltration

    [07:55] – Back to basics: why in-person interviews may return—and what to look for in humans

    [09:24] – Leading without all the answers: humility, listening widely, and pivoting fast

    [10:35] – Replacing hallway feedback: listening sessions, surveys, and building trust remotely

    [13:08] – Perforce’s leadership journey: high-performing teams to individualized leadership

    [15:36] – Development in practice: better feedback, personalized plans, and AI as a tool

    [17:22] – Closing principles: meeting people with empathy, stability, and clarity


    Takeaways

    - Fortify talent acquisition against AI risks—verify identity, add human touchpoints, and assess learnability, not perfection.

    - Build a multi-channel listening system (small groups, pulse/engagement/CEO surveys, town halls) and act visibly on feedback.

    - Coach leaders to run high-performing teams grounded in trust, healthy conflict, and clear results.

    - Shift from team-only leadership to individualized leadership—meet each person where they are, when they need it.

    - Teach curiosity and critical thinking so employees can evaluate AI outputs and navigate ambiguity.

    - Anchor change in empathy, stability, and clarity to create psychological safety and enable faster, better decisions.


    Sponsor

    AllVoices brings all your employee relations work together in one place. No more jumping between spreadsheets, emails, and legacy systems just one place to document and manage reports, cases, investigations, and performance conversations. It helps you run a more consistent process, takes busywork off your plate with AI, and makes it easier to spot trends early, so you can work proactively, not just put out fires.

    See a demo at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.allvoices.co/

    18 min

About HR Voices

From the publisher's feed

HR Voices is a scenario-based podcast for People Leaders who’ve actually had to make the call. Each episode brings experienced HR and People leaders into realistic, anonymized workplace…