The Modern People Leader: Forward-Thinking HR

In this episode of The Modern People Leader, Sarika Lamont, Chief People Officer at Vidyard, joins us to unpack her non-traditional journey into HR and how AI is reshaping the role of People teams. She shared practical AI use cases from onboarding automation to AI coaching, along with the mindset shifts HR leaders must make to lead change rather than fear it. ----  Downloadable PDF with top takeaways: https://modernpeopleleader.kit.com/episode276Sponsor Links:🔗 Take Clarinet’s AI Readiness Snapshot🔗 Try Viva’s $950 one-month trial at execviva.com/mpl🔗 Try AskChartHop at ChartHop.com/AIMPL Links:🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (08:20) Sarika’s career origin story and non-linear path into People leadership(15:06) Transition from traditional roles into strategic talent leadership(27:14) AI product evolution and challenges of layering AI into existing platforms(29:41) AI change management and leadership mindset shifts(32:01) Grassroots AI adoption and building excitement without fear(36:05) Fear, resistance, and why HR teams struggle with AI adoption(43:07) HR as a strategic driver in AI transformation(46:20) Onboarding as the first AI workflow use case(48:50) Automation outcomes, manager enablement, and measurable impact(52:44) Lessons learned from AI-powered onboarding transformation(54:33) AI coaching as the next frontier in HR---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn---- Past guests on MPL include Brené Brown, Annie Dean (VP of Team Anywhere, Atlassian), Josh Bersin, Katie Burke (Chief People Officer, Harvey), Liz Fosslien, Helen Russell (Chief People Officer, HubSpot), Dave Scott (Chief People Officer, ADT), Melanie Rossenwasser (Chief People Officer, Dropbox), Crystal Boysen (Chief People Officer, Sprout Social), and many more.

Pete Fader, a Wharton marketing professor, and Jessica Zwaan, an HR analytics expert, delve into how customer-based audit methods can revolutionize employee management. They discuss employee lifetime value and the significance of cohort analysis versus simple averages. Fader reveals how context matters more than raw data, while Zwaan emphasizes translating customer metrics into actionable employee insights. Together, they explore the challenges and future potential of implementing audits to enhance company culture and performance.

Kirthi Mani, Chief People Officer at CliftonLarsonAllen, discusses her journey from accounting in India to leading people strategy. She explores how joy fuels performance and drives a people-first approach within organizations. Kirthi emphasizes the importance of balancing joy with financial rigor, while leveraging AI to enhance employee experiences. She paints a vivid picture of a connection center for immersive learning and advocates for upskilling beyond technical skills. Ultimately, Kirthi envisions a future where automation fosters joyful and meaningful work.

Pat Lencioni, founder of The Table Group and bestselling author behind The Five Dysfunctions of a Team and The 6 Types of Working Genius, joined us on The Modern People Leader. We talked about his origin story in organizational health, how Working Genius helps leaders prevent burnout by designing teams around strengths, and how HR leaders can build trust and stay grounded as AI reshapes work.----  Downloadable PDF with top takeaways: https://modernpeopleleader.kit.com/episode273Sponsor Links:🔗 Try Viva’s $950 one-month trial at execviva.com/mpl🔗 Try AskChartHop at ChartHop.com/AIMPL Links:🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (06:30) Pat’s origin story: why he started doing organizational health work(15:06) What Pat has changed his mind on over time (patience vs immediate confrontation)(16:24) Trust + “Five Dysfunctions” discussion (why absence of trust breaks everything)(19:54) What sparked the “6 types of Working Genius” model(24:50) Burnout comes from doing draining work too long, not just “working hard”(29:19) The “Yeti mug vs hole in the cup” analogy (genius, competency, frustration)(39:25) CEO burnout cycle: suffering for others vs martyrdom, and designing coverage for what you don’t have(42:49) Using Working Genius for teams and hiring (cover gaps; hire for needed “genius,” not title)(47:30) Pat’s take on AI: different “types” of AI + the dignity of work and the human touch(52:53) 5–10 year outlook: job disruption, and using Working Genius to stay adaptable across industries (54:09) Trust in an AI era: fear, headcount signals, and how leaders rebuild trust (57:55) Leadership style + authenticity: lead from who you are, name strengths/weaknesses openly---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn---- Past guests on MPL include Brené Brown, Annie Dean (VP of Team Anywhere, Atlassian), Josh Bersin, Katie Burke (Chief People Officer, Harvey), Liz Fosslien, Helen Russell (Chief People Officer, HubSpot), Dave Scott (Chief People Officer, ADT), Melanie Rossenwasser (Chief People Officer, Dropbox), Crystal Boysen (Chief People Officer, Sprout Social), and many more.

Brandon Sammut (Chief People and AI Transformation Officer at Zapier), Jenny Molyneaux (VP of People, Vercel), and Valerie Gobeil (Head of Talent Management, Workleap) joined us for a live session on how HR teams are actually using AI today. We talked about how to get organizations AI-ready, avoid “AI debt,” make smarter build vs buy decisions, and we walked through live demos of AI-powered performance reviews, hiring workflows, interview coaching, engagement insights, and more.----  Downloadable PDF with top takeaways: https://modernpeopleleader.kit.com/episode272Sponsor Links:🔗Try Viva’s $950 one-month trial at execviva.com/mpl🔗Try AskChartHop at ChartHop.com/AIMPL Links:🔗Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (08:46) Brandon on organizational readiness: leadership, talent, and culture as the real prerequisites for AI transformation(11:25) Brandon’s three-part impact framework for AI work: efficiency, quality, and employee experience(12:58) Jenny introduces “AI debt” and the phases of the AI journey from initial adoption to deeper productivity gains(14:41) Building internal AI enablers and “chief vibe coders” on the people team to help others ship and scale AI solutions(17:22) Zooming out to AI tech stacks: build vs buy vs “bot” and how HR should think about existing tools and new platforms(18:29) Valerie on activating AI already inside your HR stack and creating an HR data agent with a custom GPT(23:00) Transition to demo day: exploring what is actually possible with AI in HR right now(24:38) Valerie Demo 1: Using AI to spin up 360 performance review cycles, questions, and value-based sections in minutes(29:31) Valerie Demo 2: AI-assisted manager reviews that aggregate self reviews, peer feedback, goals, recognition, and Slack activity(32:16) Jenny Demo 1: Slack analytics leaderboard to gamify “working in public” and reduce DMs on the people team(35:15) Jenny Demo 2: Interview quality coach that analyzes BrightHire transcripts and slacks structured feedback to interviewers(37:41) Jenny Demo 3: Custom GPT in the CEO’s voice to keep outreach and employer brand messaging on tone across teams(39:11) Brandon Demo 1: AI-powered hiring plans that generate JDs, rubrics, interview guides, and Slack hiring channels via Zapier Canvas(48:25) Brandon Demo 2: Alumni engagement and LinkedIn recommendation agents that keep him connected to former teammates(52:00) Valerie Demo 3: Turning engagement survey comments into themes, actions, and board-ready executive summaries---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn---- Past guests on MPL include Brené Brown, Annie Dean (VP of Team Anywhere, Atlassian), Josh Bersin, Katie Burke (Chief People Officer, Harvey), Liz Fosslien, Helen Russell (Chief People Officer, HubSpot), Dave Scott (Chief People Officer, ADT), Melanie Rossenwasser (Chief People Officer, Dropbox), Crystal Boysen (Chief People Officer, Sprout Social), and many more.

DJ Casto joined us on The Modern People Leader to share how Synchrony is co-designing the future of work with employees.We talked about active listening at scale, building trust by being great not perfect, rethinking leadership for a flexible workforce, and why treating the employee experience like a product creates real business impact.---- Downloadable PDF with top takeaways: https://modernpeopleleader.kit.com/episode271Sponsor Links:🔗 Try Viva’s $950 one-month trial at execviva.com/mpl MPL Links:🔗 Buy your ticket for MPL Live Austin.🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (06:16) DJ’s Origin Story: From First-Gen College Student to CHRO at Synchrony(11:19) What Synchrony Does: Credit Access, Health & Wellness, and Major Retail Partners(14:12) Co-Designing the Future of Work & Adopting an MVP Mindset in HR(18:27) Active Listening as the Operating System for People Programs(29:10) Scaling Listening: Pulse Surveys, Roundtables, ERGs, Wellness Coaches and On-Site Therapists(35:14) Avoiding the “Send One Email” Trap and Communicating 20 Different Ways(38:48) Great, Not Perfect: Building Trust, Prioritizing Requests, and Saying No Openly(44:51) Synchrony’s Hybrid “Way of Working” and Redesigning Leadership for Flexibility(51:48) Rethinking Performance, Onboarding, and Culture Centers in a Hybrid World---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn---- Past guests on MPL include Brené Brown, Annie Dean (VP of Team Anywhere, Atlassian), Josh Bersin, Katie Burke (Chief People Officer, Harvey), Liz Fosslien, Helen Russell (Chief People Officer, HubSpot), Dave Scott (Chief People Officer, ADT), Melanie Rossenwasser (Chief People Officer, Dropbox), Crystal Boysen (Chief People Officer, Sprout Social), and many more.

Taylor and Melanie joined The Modern People Leader to unpack how HR teams can get out from under compliance chaos and admin overload to focus on business impact.---- Downloadable PDF with top takeaways: https://modernpeopleleader.kit.com/episode270Sponsor Links:🔗 Try Viva’s $950 one-month trial at execviva.com/mpl.MPL Links:🔗 Buy your ticket for MPL Live Austin.🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (06:00) — The problem statement: HR buried in admin, Q4 pressure, need for practical fixes(07:25)— Taylor on leave management as the high-stakes admin vortex and why great leave drives retention(10:18) — Melanie on overwork vs impact: earn respect through outcomes, not hours(14:08) — Reframing service: self-service, business-first questions, and saying “look it up” kindly(20:32) — Horror Story 1: Mexico-beach FMLA backfire and what the law actually allows(22:19) — Horror Story 2: CEO’s mis-sent inappropriate email and culture trust fallout(24:56) — Horror Story 3: Walk-by performance ratings in open cubes(27:42) — Taylor’s fix: design for simplicity in leave policies and automate approvals(28:57) — Melanie’s fix: make time your asset; test-outs, policy bots, AI course builder(33:47) — Q&A: “Minimum training hours” requirements and assigning only what’s legally needed(37:04) — Feeling “behind on AI”: why most teams are weeks, not years, behind(39:07) — Q&A---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn---- Past guests on MPL include Brené Brown, Annie Dean (VP of Team Anywhere, Atlassian), Josh Bersin, Katie Burke (Chief People Officer, Harvey), Liz Fosslien, Helen Russell (Chief People Officer, HubSpot), Dave Scott (Chief People Officer, ADT), Melanie Rossenwasser (Chief People Officer, Dropbox), Crystal Boysen (Chief People Officer, Sprout Social), and many more.

Jessica Swank, Chief People Officer at Box, shares insights on integrating AI into organizational strategies. She discusses building an 'org brain' and the necessity for managers to lead hybrid teams of humans and agents. Jessica outlines Box's three pillars for AI: Optimize, Elevate, Amplify, emphasizing the importance of rethinking job roles and skills for an AI-driven future. She also addresses managing agent performance, avoiding tech debt, and encouraging HR leaders to experiment with AI personally to stay ahead in the evolving landscape.

Kit Krugman, SVP of People & Culture at Foursquare, shares her innovative journey from education to HR transformation. She discusses the reasons behind rebranding HR to 'People' and outlines Foursquare's North Stars of vibrancy and velocity. Kit elaborates on applying design thinking to enhance the employee experience and implementing team-based performance models. She reveals the power of organizational network analysis, measures success with a notable 43% increase in perceived velocity, and offers valuable advice for overwhelmed people leaders.

Shannon Hobbs, Chief People Officer at BNY, is leading a culture-first transformation in banking, focusing on early-career talent and innovative AI integration. She shares insights on scaling the analyst program from 500 to 2,000 members and emphasizes the importance of flattening organizational structures for cross-functional collaboration. Shannon introduces Eliza, BNY's in-house AI hub, highlighting its impressive stats: over 15,000 agents trained. Her practical advice for HR leaders centers on inclusive education and tying AI to talent development.