HR Leaders How to Build a Responsible AI Ecosystem
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Nov 19, 2025 In this discussion, Michiel van Duin, Chief People Technology, Data and Insights Officer at Novartis, shares insights on building a human-centered AI ecosystem. He explains the collaboration between HR, IT, and corporate strategy to ensure AI aligns with business goals. Michiel reveals how Novartis developed the 'Ask Novartis' AI assistant and emphasizes the importance of maintaining a 'human-in-the-loop' approach for sensitive issues. He also discusses the need to upskill HR and build governance frameworks for responsible AI use.
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Align AI Investment With Corporate Strategy
- Novartis aligns AI, IT and people strategy by partnering with corporate strategy to choose where to invest based on competitive differentiation.
- They decide to build proprietary AI only for crown-jewel areas like R&D and manufacturing where data sensitivity and advantage matter.
Own The Problem When Partnering With IT
- Keep ownership of the business problem when partnering with IT and clearly define the desired outcome before handing over requirements.
- Trust IT to propose the right platform but remain accountable for process knowledge and user needs.
Start AI With High-Value Use Cases
- Start AI projects from concrete use cases and work backwards to identify the exact data required and priorities for data quality.
- Begin with high-volume, well-defined HR questions like payroll, leave and policies before expanding the assistant's scope.