The AIX Factor – Details, episodes & analysis

Dawn Kovach is VP of Business Development at MeBeBot.com,  an AI-powered assistant that delivers instant, accurate answers to employee and manager questions, improving communication and simplifying processes. MeBeBot is integrated into knowledge-based systems like SharePoint and your communications systems like Slack, MS Teams, and Web Chat, providing 24/7 access for HR, IT, Operational, and Sales Enablement questions, enabling HR and all units of the organization to spend more time focusing on more strategic business objectives. 

As a bonus, we will also talk about Dawn’s parallel life as a writer, with a special interest in  Shakespeare - his work and his life - and how she balances her role with MeBeBot and her writing. We discuss:   

1. The gap in the market that MeBeBot fills; how MeBeBot works, and what it takes to be fully functional within an organization.   
2. As their technology integrates with an organization’s communications systems, how do they address privacy concerns? 
3. The need for HR to adapt to the increasing role of AI in the organization, acknowledging that it may be challenging for HR to embrace this change; why HR must align their needs, concerns, and goals with other departments - IT, operations, and finance - to get buy-in.  
4. What HR leaders need to know to evaluate AI Vendors. 
5. Dawn’s parallel life as a writer: authors she most admires and books she’s written.
   
   

Our conversation with Patrick Sullivan, VP of Strategy and Innovation at A-LIGN, a leading provider of cybersecurity and compliance solutions, was one of the more wide-ranging and provocative ones that we’ve had. Patrick brings over 25 years of experience in the IT security and compliance space, is a TEDx Speaker, a member of the Forbes Technology Council,  and is a self-described AI Ethicist. We discussed: 

• “Systems thinking”:  how AI needs to be thought of in a broader social context in which everything is connected - change one thing and everything is affected, even if those things are not immediately visible. 
• How organizations need to think about - and manage - change: how the four domains in organizational systems - people, process, technology, and the organization itself - need to interconnect;   the ADKAR model for implementing change, which involves creating awareness, desire, knowledge, ability, and reinforcement among employees.  
• Carol Dweck's concept of fixed versus growth mindsets, with Patrick emphasizing the benefits of a growth mindset in business and personal development. 
• Balancing compliance and innovation in the context of AI implementation. 
• AIX is about raising your “AIQ,” which we define as knowing what questions to ask. Patrick discusses the one question he is not asked enough.
• What it means to be an “AI ethicist” and the importance of ensuring that AI systems produce desired behaviors while maintaining individual agency in decision-making. 
• ISO 56001, a structured framework for organizations to think about and consistently approach innovation (we need to have a pod exclusively on this). 
• Patrick’s colorful - and apt! - NBA analogy in describing differences in how Europe views AI regulation and how we view it here in the US. 
• Bag Check: Patrick shares his go-to AI tools, which may surprise you.

This introduces a new feature we’re calling Bag Check, inspired by the Tennis Channel’s recurring segment by the same name, wherein tennis players are asked what they’re carrying in their bag (it’s far more interesting and revealing than it may seem).  The Bag Check segments are excerpted from our longer form AIX Factor interviews - we think you’ll find it strangely fascinating and brimming with great ideas for using AI tools in your work and life.   

On this, our maiden segment, Harold Ford, the Practice Director for the Employer Solutions Practice at Net at Work and a regular AIX Factor co-host, shares his experiences using Chat GPT's operator mode, which can handle tasks such as booking appointments and scheduling haircuts without human interaction. Harold also mentions his use of Grammarly and Writesonic for crafting emails and articles, and how the “humanizer” tool in Writesonic helps him write in a more conversational voice. He also describes how he has used Google's Notebook LM for creating a podcast based on white papers and remarkably life-like YouTube videos. 

Check it out and let us know what you think of our new segment! 

An inspiring and thought-provoking conversation with Faisal Hoque, an award-winning entrepreneur, world-renowned technologist, and tech executive with over three decades of experience working with leadership at companies such as PepsiCo, MasterCard, IBM, Home Depot, and at the US Department of Defense. Faisal is a three-time winner of the Deloitte Technology Fast 50™ and Fast 500™ award…and is the author of the forthcoming book, Transcend: Unlocking Humanity in the Age of AI.  We discuss: 

• His inspiring “journey of gratitude” - arriving here at the age of 19 to study electrical engineering and the various “no's” he encountered - and rose above - along the way.  
• His forthcoming book (his 10th!) on how to use Al to unlock humanity's full potential while protecting what is most precious about the human experience - arguably the biggest challenge AI poses, which goes to the heart of what AIX is all about. 
• What makes him optimistic that AI will be a force for good.    
• Managing “AI personas” in a way that manages the downside risks - how should organizations prepare for this shift? 
• Why “persona management” will become a critical skill in 2025. 
• "What's in Your Bag" - a new AIX segment wherein Faisal discusses his go-to AI tools. 

Faisal has an amazing personal story to tell, and insights to share from his experiences with some of the largest and most complex organizations on earth. 

 Harold G. Ford III is the Practice Director for the Employer Solutions Practice at Net at Work and an Eagles fan. Harold joins us periodically to answer the question: How should organizations re-think their day-to-day HR, IT, and Business processes and all the associated organizational challenges, in the age of AI? We discuss: 

• the upcoming Super Bowl, why it’s the Eagles’ turn to beat the Chiefs, and why more football coaches should consider using AI in game situations. 
• the recent news about DeepSeek, the open source LLM from China, and its implications for AI, Agentic AI and the Future of Work.
• "What’s in Your Bag,” a new segment inspired by the Tennis Channel’s segment of the same name, in which Harold discusses his go-to AI tools and the one’s he’s experimenting with. 

We don't know anyone better than Harold at lucidly explaining the implications and practical uses of AI in improving the employee experience...a must listen for any HR pro looking for guidance in navigating this new world of AI-augmented work.  

We're joined by Hernan Chiosso, Technology Director at the National Human Resources Association and Founder of ProductizeHR. Hernan curates insights on HR Tech, AI, and agility, offering consultancy and resources to address challenges in people, processes, and products. He also mentors HRTech startups and writes on human behavior and talent development.   Key Takeaways from this episode:

• Reimagining HR as a Product: transforming HR by designing processes and programs that delight employees and managers, aligning HR with business goals, delivering faster, and adopting agile practices.
• Delighting Employees: what it means to delight employees, recognize its impact on engagement and performance.
• Improving HR Tech: we explore AI’s role in enhancing user experiences while addressing potential risks.
• HR in AI Strategy: how HR can lead AI discussions, developing technical acumen to shape the future of work.
• AI and “Bullshit Jobs”: AI’s potential to create or eliminate redundant roles.
• Lessons from Kodak and Xerox: how market/tech leadership can stifle innovation. 

Thanks to our conversation with Hernan, we now have a new goal in these podcasts: to delight our listeners. A high, possibly unreachable bar for a podcast on AI and HR, but as they say, it's all about the journey.   

Mark Vickers, HR.com’s Chief Research Analyst & Data Wrangler, joins us to talk about their new report, the Future of AI and Recruitment Technologies 2024-25. Mark was last on the pod in August to discuss “AI’s Bumpy Ascent in HR” - we asked him if the ascent has gotten any less bumpy since (spoiler alert: a little), then homed in on the findings of their latest blockbuster report: 

• the increasing use of AI in recruitment functions (automating job descriptions, candidate communication, resume filtering, interview scheduling, and candidate discovery)
• the positive correlation between the use of effective recruitment technologies and higher quality of hires
• how technology is being used to improve candidate experiences, efficiency, and access to the entire pipeline of candidates.
• concerns about AI usage (depersonalization and vulnerability to bias)

We also discussed the underutilization of mobile tech in recruiting and why this is such an unforced error. Mark closes by providing us with a sneak preview of exciting research projects he and his team have in the works for the coming year,and background on HR.com's new AI for HR Academy (https://tinyurl.com/4uvty3yh).   

We're joined by I/O psychologist, technologist and author Steve Hunt, whose roots in AI go back to his dad, a psychology professor who did pioneering AI work in his field in the late 50s/early 60s.  While wide-ranging, our conversation focused on the one critical thing that we can do that AI can’t: care.  “Caring…is (defined as) a human giving their time and attention to another human…it is literally an organic process. AI can simulate it, it can act like it. A key part of counseling or coaching is knowing that someone cares about you…and AI can’t do that.”  

Steve and I discuss caring from multiple perspectives: its historic role in facilitating work, its unmeasured value to the economy, what it looks like in today’s workforce, how to measure and monetize it. Other topics we discussed include: 

• the importance of using the right data in machine learning and the limitations of AI in predicting job performance based on pre-hire data. 
• concerns about over-reliance on AI (Steve draws an analogy to processed food and AI's potential negative impact on human health and social interaction).
• the need to rethink the role of work, particularly in service jobs, and to value the skills of those who provide caring services. He pointed out that the quality of services is likely to suffer as technology eliminates people from work. 
• the potential for a new category of jobs for care workers due to the shift in work dynamics. 

Combining a rare psychology and tech/AI background, Steve brings a valuable perspective to the challenges of navigating today's world of AI-augmented work.  

This is an excerpt from a fascinating conversation I recently had with I/O psychologist, technologist and author Steve Hunt, whose roots in AI go back to his dad, a psychology professor who did pioneering work with it in his field.  The excerpt focuses on a topic we discuss at length on the podcast: the one critical thing that we can do that AI can’t: care.  “Caring…is (defined as) a human giving their time and attention to another human…it is literally an organic process. AI can simulate it, it can act like it. A key part of counseling or coaching is knowing that someone cares about you…and AI can’t do that.”  

On the podcast, Steve and I discuss caring from multiple perspectives: its historic role in facilitating work, its unmeasured value to the economy, what it looks like in today’s workforce, how to measure and monetize it. Coming soon! 

We have the two founders of CogniTrainer on to find out (spoiler alert: it can). CogniTrainer uses AI to create a simulated training environment for students and mental health professionals, ensuring that they’re prepared for real-world clinical encounters.  Michael Glowik, Emile Rutherford and I discussed: 

• The gaps in mental health training and education CogniTrainer fills
• The challenges in mental health education they believe have been overlooked by conventional programs
• How their AI chatbot/avatar technology so effectively replicates the nuances of real-life therapy sessions 
• Ethical considerations - bias, etc.  
• How the technology will be used in police training 
• Where they see their technology evolving and the future of online learning. 

 Check it out!