This week I had a variety of meetings with companies and looked at some new research on the impact of AI in the workplace. Despite all the positive things going on in the economy, a strong signal came back about fear. A large percentage of workers are fearful for their jobs and the impact of AI, so I unpacked the topic this week.

(Note: this podcast was recorded on a long walk so it’s slightly warbly but I cleaned it up pretty well.)

I know you’re all going through change and AI transformation work right now, so let us know if we can help – the issues in this podcast are important ones to deal with as you reorganize, push, and encourage people to move faster in the direction of AI.

Some Interesting Reading

From “The Information” this week, discussing Meta’s AI team.

“In his essay, Blankevoort wrote that “Meta has a culture of fear,” created in part by its performance review system and rolling layoffs. Meta in February laid off 5% of its staff, or about 3,600 people, and said those cuts were based on performance. The company also said at the time that it might use future performance reviews to cut low performers as well.”

“Instead of being motivated by our mission, or an aspiration to build something great, many people I’ve talked to are motivated by the fear of getting fired,” Blankevoort wrote. “This attitude runs through the company like a metastatic cancer.” It has led to a culture of “every person for themselves,” as well as “land-grabbing, project-sniping, stealing work,” he added.

Prompting is Programming: We’re All Software Engineers Now!

One of the most explosive changes in our new world of AI is this: every one of us can now “program” our AI assistants as if we were engineers. In other words, the “prompts” we conceive and use as queries are actually instructions, so we, as non-engineers (I am an engineer, but long ago), can now “program” and direct our AI friends to do what we want.

Not only is this an enormous shift in empowerment (yes, you’re a Superworker), it also lets us create, innovate, and share our “creations” with others.

It’s not unlike the amazing birth of spreadsheets and macros that started in 1981 with spreadsheets. You, as a business person, can “create things” that solve problems, improve productivity, and ultimately become complex systems for your team.

For AI vendors, this shift means you’re no longer just building applications, you’re also building tools – tools for your customers to “fall in love with the problem” and extend your product to meet their personal needs.

Galileo®, our AI platform for HR, is fueled with 300+ “prompts” which are essentially mini apps. You can use these prompts to build and extend Galileo to do more and more for your job and your company. The opportunities are endless, and this is just beginning!

Additional Information

Galileo®, the AI Platform for HR (visit the Success Center for videos)

OpenAI’s Prompt Engineering guidelines

Google’s Prompt Engineering guidelines

Max Legardez Coquin is one of the most fascinating entrepreneurs I’ve met. His new company, Maki People, is likely to revolutionize talent acquisition, and then revolutionize much of talent management. In this interview I ask Max to explain his fascinating background and how he sees AI Agents revolutionizing the entire process of screening, assessment, and talent management.

Maki People uses a whole new science, which I’d call “conversational skills assessment,” to screen and assess candidates at a scale and accuracy I’ve never seen before. His clients include H&M, Foundever, BNP Paribas, Deloitte, Cap Gemini, Nestle (Nespresso), and many more.

In this conversation I ask Max to explain the vision and secrets to his pioneering success, and his view of the new AI Architecture I discussed last week. You should NOT miss this episode.

Additional Information

How WPP, The World’s Leading Ad Agency, Is Transforming Itself With AI (pod)

AI Harm To Jobs and Humanity are Vastly Over-Hyped

AI Pacesetters: Six Secrets of The Superworker Company

Get Galileo, The AI Agent Designed Exclusively for HR and Leadership

In this episode I discuss our findings on AI systems architectures, and how they are going to completely change our HR Technology stack. As you’ll hear, I’m not predicting a quick disruption of $50+ billion in corporate software, but over the next decade we will see a quantum shift. (Quantum meaning “from A to B” not a gradual transformation.)

Listen in and you’ll see how relevant this is to your own HR Tech and systems decisions, your AI adoption and transformation strategy, and your vendor analysis as you look for tools and platforms. And for those of you driving AI transformation in HR, you’ll hear about how to think of AI as a “creator platform” not just a new set of apps and agents.

I also discuss the upcoming Venus release of Galileo and how it supports this architecture and extends our AI leadership into management development and leadership support.

Takeaways

• AI is fundamentally changing how we interact with technology.
• The cloud has enabled rapid application deployment and integration.
• AI eliminates the need for traditional user interfaces.
• New AI architectures allow for decentralized processing.
• Professionals are now empowered to build their own applications.
• AI tools will become ubiquitous in the workplace, driving an internal creator economy.
• Learning management will evolve with AI integration.
• The next generation of AI companies will emerge from current disruptions.

Additional Information

The L&D Revolution: Docebo Goes AI-Native, Sana Expands, What Do You Do?

The Workday Economy – As AI Disrupts, A New Strategy Emerges

Yes, HR Organizations Will (Partially) Be Replaced by AI, And That’s Good

This week we finished a series of events in Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai and met with more than 100 company HR leaders. In today’s podcast I discuss the business and HR issues these companies face and more significantly give perspectives on the management culture in these fast-growing companies.

We discuss AI transformation in detail and I also explain why the “mass layoffs” idea around AI is misleading and incorrect, and give you my perspective on why Human Intelligence is and will always be far more sophisticated and advanced than AI. This was a continuous point of discussion and you’ll hear my explanation.

I think it’s important to understand the richness and purposeful nature of business and economic growth in these countries, so listen this to get a perspective on the exciting positive things going on in the region.

Two important research studies to read: The Revolution in L&D, and our new Pacesetters in the AI Era: Secrets of Superworker Companies.

Note: the US attack on Iran actually took place just as I was flying home, so these perspectives focus on the peaceful economic activities of Saudi Arabia and the UAE, not the political issues between US, Israel, and Iran.

Chapters:

00:00 Exploring the Middle East’s Economic Growth 06:28 Cultural Insights and Relationship Dynamics 09:16 AI’s Role in Workforce Transformation 12:47 The Future of Learning and Development 15:40 AI’s Impact on HR and Organizational Structure 21:23 The Evolution of Technology in HR 22:44 The Resilience of the Human Spirit

Additional Resources

No, Entry Level Jobs Are Not Going Away.

Yes, HR Organizations Will (Partially) Be Replaced by AI, And That’s Good

Galileo Learn – A Revolutionary Approach To Corporate Learning

It’s Time for an L&D Revolution: The AI Era Arrives (Essential research)

New research shows a level of pessimism we haven’t seen in a long time. While there are many reasons for this (politics, climate, economy, AI fears), we all need to do something about it.

In this podcast I share the research and give you five important steps you can take to avoid, reduce, and eliminate pessimism at work. (Optimism, certainty, growth, citizenship, and empathy.)

This framework will give you sound information for your own life at work, your role as a leader, and your investments in leadership development and management coaching. I also talk about our research on Trust, and the role trust plays in employee optimism.

I also discuss “The Unquenchable Power of The Human Spirit,” an idea I discuss in Irresistible, which will help you move into an optimistic view of life, work, and business.

Takeaways

• The rise of pessimism is a significant trend in the workforce. (64% on average)
• Realistic optimism is possible in any situation.
• We can reduce uncertainty through sound leadership.
• It’s ok to accept things that you cannot change.
• Citizenship as a company and individual creates positive energy.
• Growth and development is fuel for positive thinking and engagement.
• Health, sleep, exercise, nature, and relationships are your personal fuel.
• Why optimism is central to HR’s role and our job.

Research on Pessimism and Employee Engagement

MeQuilibrium State of Workforce, Summer 2025

U.S. Employee Engagement Sinks to 10-Year Low (Gallup)

Citizenship At Work: Dealing With Politics Inside and Outside The Company (podcast)

Corporate Citizenship Redefined: Trust, Inclusion, and Responsibility

Suzanne McGovern, CHRO of Ipsy, has many years of experience in consulting, HR, DEI, and business growth (PwC, IBM, Splunk) and now leads HR for a billion dollar beauty company.

In this thought-proving interview, Suzanne explains how the CHRO role has now become an “outside-in” C-level role and how complex and “mission-centric” the CHRO role can be. Suzanne also believes and explains how consulting experience is so important in the CHRO position, the importance of recruitment, hybrid work, and her perspectives on the role of AI.

Additional Information

The CHRO Insights Initiative

Why Is It So Hard To Be A Chief HR Officer (CHRO)?

Learn about Galileo, the World’s AI Expert Assistant for HR

Special Josh Bersin Academy Course: AI in HR (highly acclaimed)

This week I summarize my Irresistible Keynote and explain the five keys to building an AI-powered Superworker company. And as you’ll hear, they revolve around the value of people, not the value of technology. It’s funny how we think AI is “different” and we personify it. It’s basically a tech platform, and if you think about it that way you’ll be much better off.

Additional Information

No, Entry Level Jobs Are Not Going Away

Why AI Is A Job Creator, Not A Job Destroyer

Reinvent your Career: Galileo Learn, the AI Learning Academy for HR

The Revolution in L&D