AI x HR: Director's Cut*

I can almost see the eyes rolling, not another article about the disruption and excitement that AI is generating in the workplace. Bear with me or scroll away, there is an abundance of content on this topic. I've been buzzing with excitement since I listened to Dr. Robert Collins 's masterclass on AI, part of a recent design thinking for HR bootcamp. Rob's conclusion was that HR is very well positioned to potentially orchestrate this overwhelming wave of AI transformation. As a big movie fan, I chose the "directing" theme to unpack my reasons in support of this conclusion. It's awards season after all.

(*a version of a film which realises the artistic aims of the director more fully than the original version according to Collins Dictionary, no connection to Rob Collins)

The future of work isn’t just knocking on the door anymore—it’s barging in, powered by AI copilots, chatbots, and tools that are transforming tasks, teams, and even entire industries. As a Venture Partner at Emerge VC I have the privilege to meet exciting start-ups that surf this wave and improve/disrupt work in the way that I was only dreaming of in my last CHRO gig back in… 2022!?

HR has finally got the “seat” and not just at the executive table, but rather the director’s chair of a blockbuster production starring humans and AI working side by side (expect CGI, emotional scenes and plot twists). Hopefully, the script is not the result of several amateur chat GPT prompts, instead it’s a shiny example of human creativity and critical thinking with a dash of AI-editing.

There are some exciting jobs to be done while sitting in these seats, and thankfully HR case administration is not one of them:

1. Designer of Hum-Bot Collaboration

It’s Monday morning at Siemens, and an engineer named Clara logs into her system to troubleshoot a factory issue (Clara is a fictional but plausible character). But instead of spending hours sifting through data, she asks her AI copilot—powered by Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service—for insights. Within seconds, she has a detailed analysis and actionable solutions. Clara has time to read an article on LinkedIn? because what used to take her hours now takes minutes.? Siemens is using AI to reduce downtime and address labor shortages by automating repetitive tasks and enhancing decision-making. For HR, this means rethinking job roles entirely: What does an engineer do when their “copilot” takes over the grunt work? The answer: they focus on solving bigger problems, or simply have more time to get a coffee with a mentor.

But this shift requires HR to step in as the designer of collaboration:

• Upskilling employees: Clara didn’t just wake up one day knowing how to use an AI copilot. The Siemens L&D team must have built some brilliant AI learning paths, including some sort of lab environment for Clara to apply the new skills.
• Redefining work: with AI handling routine tasks, job and org design need a makeover. I am still to hear about groundbreaking work in org redesign, would love to be contradicted in the comments.

2. HR as the Champion of Productivity (and Sanity)

Let’s hop over to Michelin, the manufacturer of tires for anything that moves on or off road, from space shuttles, aircrafts, cars or bicycles, not to mention their guide for the most mind blowing culinary experiences . According to Microsoft, Michelin built ?an authentic in-house chatbot fed by the Group's data and numerous LLMs (Large Language Models). For their employees, this meant a ten fold boost of productivity.

Simon Brown ???? , the global CLO of EY talked about how AI can give employees the gift of time, the most precious gift of ‘em all, by improving the quality of the hours that people spend at work through learning and interacting with their peers. At EY they don’t just use AI to automate simple tasks, but also to empower employees to drive more value and innovation to client solutions.

• Boosting Employee Experience (EX): by implementing tools like Copilot, HR can help employees reclaim their time for meaningful work and acquiring new skills. Think of it as giving everyone a personal assistant—minus the awkward coffee orders.
• Preventing burnout: when employees spend less time on mundane tasks, they’re less likely to feel overwhelmed or disengaged. When was the last time that HR was mentioned in employee surveys as the department that reduces stress and makes work more enjoyable? Chief Wellbeing Officer was a trend, but I’m not hearing much on the topic lately.

3. HR as the Guardian of Trust (and Skepticism)

Now let’s visit Raiffeisen Bank, where 70% of employees are already using Microsoft Copilot to streamline everyday tasks, an impressive adoption rate given the financial sector’s risk profile. Sounds amazing... but not everyone is thrilled about AI entering the workplace. Gartner warns that by 2025, 75% of organisations will struggle with employee trust in AI systems. After all, no one wants to feel like they’re being micromanaged by an algorithm — we hardly enjoyed the human version!

This is where HR’s storytelling skills come into play:

• Building transparency: employees need to know why AI is being implemented and how it will benefit them. Add what skills they need to acquire now to future-proof their earning potential. I do feel that we should drop the "future-proof" term as it sounds rather noncommittal, instead refer to a 2-5 year time window in the context of reskilling.
• Addressing fears: AI?can be intimidating and full-on scary, especially to the majority non-tech part of the workforce, exposed to an unprecedented media coverage and lots of fake or unfounded news on the matter. HR should create forums for open dialogue where employees can voice concerns and get honest answers. Speaking of media coverage,? Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, was quoted recently, in a conversation with Adam Grant: “We are living through this once in human history transition where humans go from being the smartest thing on planet earth to not the smartest thing on planet earth.”

4. HR as the Catalyst for Big-Picture Change

Finally, let’s look at Virgin Atlantic, my airline of choice in terms of customer service (there are other airlines available). They’ve adopted Microsoft 365 Copilot and GitHub Copilot across their workforce—and they’re not just seeing productivity gains; they’re redefining how teams collaborate globally. Or consider ABB Group, which integrated Azure OpenAI Service into its Genix Copilot platform to help customers achieve up to 30% savings in operations costs while reducing service calls by 80%.

These aren’t just efficiency hacks—they’re game-changers for entire industries. And HR is at the centre of it all:

• Aligning talent strategy with business goals (yes, that old thing!): custom AI tools are helping employees search terabytes of data with 95% accuracy. HR must ensure learning and knowledge management strategies align with these new capabilities.
• Leading change management: introducing AI into the workforce is like introducing a bombshell to Love Island — it shakes things up. HR needs to guide teams through these transitions with empathy and clarity. Years of digital transformation should have helped us train this muscle, but another good read of Peter Senge’s Dance of Change would do us no harm.

My good friend Alastair Gill , a kindred design thinking enthusiast, pointed me to Dart Lindsley’s article on redesigning work as if it was a product.? I would like to see HR embracing this approach as the new “guidebook”? in the new hum-bot context and becoming comfortable in the director’s seat.?

That's all Folks (at least for now).