Employer Listening With Intent: From Feedback to Follow Through
BY Grace Turney February 25, 2026Around 2009, a few years into his career at CarMax, Craig Cronheim had a habit he now describes with a mix of nostalgia and self-awareness. After visiting a store, he’d board a plane home to Richmond with a mental list of every question and suggestion he’d heard from associates that day, and he’d stay up working to resolve each one. “I thought I was the feedback loop,” he said. It worked, for a while. But as his responsibilities grew, Cronheim learned something that has shaped CarMax’s entire approach to employee listening: personal accountability can only scale so far. The infrastructure has to carry the weight.Cronheim, SVP and chief HR officer at CarMax, shared that progression during a fireside chat during From Day One’s Washington, D.C. conference. Moderated by journalist Krissah Thompson, the conversation explored how CarMax has built a disciplined, trust-generating feedback system across a workforce of more than 28,000 associates.Cronheim was careful to make an important distinction: “Listening is the beginning, but not the end,” he said. At CarMax, the process follows three steps: understand, act, and close the loop. Each stage matters, but the third is where trust is either built or broken.“You can collect the feedback. You can actually do something with it. But if your teams don’t know what you’re doing with it, and they don’t know why, you’re really missing out,” Cronheim said. “They’re not going to trust you, because they’re going to see some action, but they’re not going to be able to connect the dots.”A Well-Oiled Feedback MachineTwice a year, CarMax surveys every associate, says Cronheim. The response rate hovers around 90% – a figure Thompson found remarkable for an organization its size. Cronheim credits the consistency of follow-through, rather than traditional incentives. “What we incentivize with is taking action on the feedback,” he said. After each survey cycle, two tracks run in parallel. Managers at all CarMax locations receive their team’s results and are required to submit an action plan. An astounding 87% did so in the most recent cycle, he says. Meanwhile, centralized HR home office teams receive aggregated feedback sorted by topic and develop their enterprise-wide action plan. The whole picture is then packaged into an all-associate communication CarMax calls “Your Feedback in Action,” which outlines major themes of associate feedback, and what the company is doing to respond to it. CarMax has also begun using AI to analyze open-ended survey comments, helping teams identify sentiment patterns across thousands of responses. Cronheim noted the company is deliberate about boundaries: “We’re using AI on feedback that’s already been offered. We’re not using broader AI sensing tools to understand what our teams are doing or saying unless they’re giving us that feedback directly.”Maintaining the Routine in Rough PatchesThompson, who referenced her own experience navigating difficult workforce decisions during her time at the Washington Post, asked how CarMax keeps its feedback commitments when times get hard. Cronheim didn’t sidestep the question. “We’re in a tough stretch right now,” he said, noting the company is between CEOs and has had a couple of difficult sales quarters. “We have a survey going out on March 16, and we will run the same exact play that we do when times are good.” Craig Cronheim, CHRO at CarMax, spoke about "Employer Listening With Intent: From Feedback to Follow Through" at the D.C. conferenceThat consistency, he says, is precisely what protects trust. When the company can’t deliver on what associates ask for, it says so, and explains why. “At least acknowledging that, and saying, ‘You told us this, we can’t do that right now, here’s why, but here’s what we will do’ – that helps build trust even when you’re not able to deliver on the immediate request.”Feedback That Changed the CompanyOne of the clearest examples of the system working came from the shop floor. Store associates had long complained about the time-consuming daily process of scanning inventory—sometimes as many as 400 to 500 cars, and often in extreme weather conditions. CarMax heard the feedback, spent several years researching solutions, and ultimately implemented a GPS-based system that handles real-time inventory tracking automatically. “It’s been one of the most popular things we’ve done in my nearly 19 years at the company,” Cronheim said.The approach to storytelling around that change mattered just as much as the technology itself. Cronheim now uses specific associate suggestions as teaching moments, naming the person and idea when sharing updates with broader groups. “I’m signaling to a much larger audience: we want feedback, we listen to feedback, and we take action,” he said. “That gives a broader group a sense of how important it is, and how it’s the expectation of every last leader.”Other feedback-driven changes at CarMax include the introduction of parental leave, revisions to time-and-attendance policies, and updated uniform guidelines. The expectations employees bring to surveys have shifted too. “It used to be primarily about pay or schedule,” Cronheim said. Increasingly, associates want to know how the organization will support them through personal and community struggles, which has been the impetus for CarMax to expand its benefits and equip managers for a more complex role.For leaders looking to start somewhere, Cronheim’s advice was simple: audit your own listening. “If you’re not actively asking your team, your customers, and your fellow leaders how you and your function can be doing more and better, you’re missing an opportunity.”Grace Turney is a St. Louis-based writer, artist, and former librarian. See more of her work at graceturney17.wixsite.com/mysite.(Photos by Josh Larson for From Day One)
Putting the Human Back in HR: Balancing AI, Culture, and Care in a Time of Change
BY Grace Turney February 23, 2026Six weeks after starting a new job, Katy Theroux got a breast cancer diagnosis. A fireside chat at a From Day One’s Houston conference gave her the opportunity to say it plainly, and to draw a direct line between her experience and her philosophy of HR leadership.“It wasn’t on my bingo card,” said Theroux, CHRO at Westlake, a Fortune 300 specialty chemical and building products company headquartered in Houston. “Nobody puts breast cancer on their bingo card.” She finished treatment just two and a half weeks before the event. The company, she says, had been unwavering in its support; a reflection of the family-owned culture that shapes Westlake even at its considerable scale. The conversation, moderated by Sean McCrory, editor in chief at the Houston Business Journal, covered AI’s role in HR, leadership transitions, and what it really means to build a culture of care.Resilience as a Core HR SkillTheroux arrived in Houston in 2002, just as the Enron and Arthur Andersen scandals were reshaping the city’s business identity. When she returned more than a decade later, the city had changed (the Texas Medical Center had nearly doubled in size), but the underlying dynamic had not. “There’s always so much change in Houston,” she said. “Each company has had its share of ups and downs. Having an HR leader who can handle the highs and help navigate the lows is really, really important.”Katy Theroux, chief HR officer at Westlake, spoke with Sean McCrory, editor in chief of the Houston Business JournalResilience isn’t a personality trait, but a practiced skill, and an especially vital one when companies face leadership transitions, she says. Over 18 years at two organizations before joining Westlake, Theroux navigated five CEO changes. She observed that what makes or breaks those transitions isn’t strategy—it’s honesty. “The most important element of a successful onboarding of a new leader is just real honesty about themselves, their background, and what they’re trying to find out,” she said. “Through that honesty, it really builds trust. And trust is key to long-term success.”AI as an Amplifier, Not a ReplacementAt Westlake, the HR team is experimenting with tools including Microsoft Copilot and an internal GPT system, says Theroux. She frames AI as the latest chapter in a longer story about freeing HR professionals to do more meaningful work.“What we’ve been trying to do for the past 20 to 25 years is take administrative work off our frontline HR leaders so they can spend more time with people,” she said. “I view AI as the next step in that evolution.” One of the most common current uses is drafting job descriptions, by pulling from internal databases, org charts, and historical records to quickly produce relevant drafts. But she was candid about the limits: AI-generated job descriptions are accurate roughly 70-80% of the time, which means careful human review remains essential. “Everyone needs an editor,” McCrory said, “including AI.”Theroux’s broader advice for implementing AI responsibly was to start small. For example, she observed that pilot programs reduce risk, build trust with business partners, and create the kind of joint ownership that allows successful tools to scale naturally. She also emphasized the need to partner closely with technology leadership to ensure any AI use aligns with company policy. “There has to be a real business need,” she stated. “It’s not about replacing people. It’s about doing work better.”Culture, One Person at a TimeWhen asked what Houston’s business leaders should take away to strengthen culture this year, Theroux didn’t reach for a grand framework. Instead, she offered an image: a peony, opening slowly, beautifully, one petal at a time. “My goal with my direct reports is to see them really open and blossom,” she said. “If we can spread that across the organization, that’s really going to change the culture.”The stakes of getting it wrong are real. If companies embrace AI while losing sight of human judgment and care, Theroux says, the casualty won’t be efficiency; it will be trust. “Once you lose trust, it’s really hard to regain that,” she said. “Customers, shareholders, employees, the community at large.”Her closing message was equally grounded. Not everyone needs a stage, she told the audience. The power to shift a culture belongs to anyone willing to meet a colleague where they are: to offer help, or to learn how to accept it.Grace Turney is a St. Louis-based writer, artist, and former librarian. See more of her work at graceturney17.wixsite.com/mysite(Photos by Josh Larson for From Day One)
Don’t Sleep on Your Presentation Discipline: The Underdog Medium CMOs Should Be Leveraging
BY Grace Turney February 16, 2026Allie Wilson once had a job designing movie posters in Los Angeles, and remembers the task as deceptively simple: take a two-hour story arc and distill it into a single image. Years later, as CEO of GhostRanch Communications, she’s doing something remarkably similar for marketing leaders, except now the canvas is a PowerPoint deck and the stakes are significantly higher.“What I learned along the way is this work can look beautiful and still completely fall flat if the idea is not set up to land,” Wilson said during a thought leadership spotlight at From Day One’s Atlanta marketing conference. That realization, she says, pulled her from product design into the world of presentation design, where strategy and storytelling collide.Her message to chief marketing officers is straightforward but often overlooked: presentations aren’t just a box to check. They’re where strategy either holds together or completely falls apart.The Hidden Cost of Bad DecksThe numbers tell a grim story. Humans create 30 million presentations daily, yet sales and marketing misalignment costs the global economy a trillion dollars annually. That’s roughly 10% less revenue per company that simply evaporates, according to Wilson, who has spent over a decade partnering directly with CMOs across industries.Allie Wilson, CEO of GhostRanch Communications, led the session in AtlantaIn a recent survey of 50 marketing leaders, GhostRanch Communications found that for every presentation delivered externally, five are given internally. “That means there are five times more presentations happening inside your org than outside,” she said. “That’s shaping understanding, alignment and execution long before anything ever hits the market.”The ripple effect matters. When marketing creates a deck and hands it off to sales, product teams, and customer success, that original story multiplies outward to customers, analysts, and investors. If the foundation is weak, the distortion compounds at every handoff.Wilson frames effective presentations around three essential components: story, screen, and stage. “Presentations rarely fail for just one reason,” she said. “Usually it’s not that the story is bad, or that the slides are ugly, or that the presenter isn’t confident. It’s that one leg is weak and the whole thing starts to wobble.”Story: The Power of DistillationDespite CMOs’ deep understanding of narrative, most presentations fail to truly tell one. Instead, they offer what Wilson calls “a real estate tour”—click, feature, click, another feature, another screen. This approach is informative, but it misses the opportunity to show the transformation: what life looks like before your solution exists versus after.The problem is density. Research from the American Press Institute shows that sentences around eight words are remembered nearly 100% of the time. Once you reach 43 words, retention drops essentially to zero. Yet the average PowerPoint slide contains far more text than that. “We see slides that are closer to 100 or 150 words,” Wilson said. “Which means we’re designing slides that are almost impossible to remember and then wondering why our message doesn’t travel.”She points to Steve Jobs as an exemplary distillation master. At Macworld 2003, Jobs used just 20 words across his first 20 slides. His headlines, like “1000 songs in your pocket” and “Apple reinvents the phone,” were short, crisp, and easy to repeat. “He put those headlines on a silver platter for his audience,” Wilson said.Screen: Visual Storytelling That SticksThe second component addresses how strategy shows up visually. When slides are cluttered or inconsistent, focus drifts and trust erodes. But when visuals do their job, they dramatically increase retention. Research cited by John Medina in Brain Rules found that people remembered about 10% of a purely verbal message after a short period. When paired with relevant visuals, retention jumped to 65%.Wilson emphasizes that design isn’t about beauty; it’s about bridging the gap between what you mean and what people understand. “You should be able to feel the contrast between a problem and a solution,” she said. “The before and after shouldn’t be subtle.”She warns CMOs about brand erosion, particularly with the rise of AI-generated imagery. While these tools can save time, they can also lead to inconsistency if not guided carefully. “Throwing imagery creation entirely to the bots can be a really big shortcoming,” Wilson cautioned, sharing examples of AI-generated images that botched specific brand assets.Stage: The Personalization GapThe final component is delivery, which breaks down when messages aren’t tailored to audiences. While B2B marketers excel at personalization in emails, ads, and landing pages, that discipline often disappears in presentations and enablement assets. Over half of B2B buyers say they will switch brands if communication doesn’t feel personalized.Wilson shared the cautionary tale of Nike allegedly losing basketball star Steph Curry to Under Armour due to a presentation that wasn’t personalized and reportedly left someone else’s name in it. “That’s a $14 billion mistake,” she said, “because the story didn’t feel like it was for the person in the room.”Treating Presentations as a DisciplineWilson’s core argument is that presentations deserve the same strategic rigor as any other marketing function. When story, screen, and stage work together across the entire ecosystem, strategy holds together longer, teams align faster, and sellers show up with confidence.“This isn’t about better templates,” Wilson emphasized. “It’s not about prettier slides, and it’s definitely not about being the font police. This is about treating presentations as a discipline, one that helps you differentiate, create alignment and build momentum across your org.”For CMOs navigating constant complexity (setting strategy only to watch it dilute as it moves through the organization, fighting inconsistent messaging, dealing with sellers who go rogue, etc.), presentations are both the problem and the solution. They’re where all that complexity shows up, but they’re also the lever for fixing it.The challenge isn’t perfection. It’s reducing distortion as strategy moves from leadership to execution to customer. When the message is clear, intentional, and well-built, what ripples outward actually holds together.Editor’s note: From Day One thanks our partner, GhostRanch, for sponsoring this thought leadership spotlight. Grace Turney is a St. Louis-based writer, artist, and former librarian. See more of her work at graceturney17.wixsite.com/mysite.(Photos by Josh Larson for From Day One)
How the Georgia Aquarium Cares for Its People
BY Grace Turney February 10, 2026When a beluga trainer at Georgia Aquarium took on the challenge of managing recognition programs, she gained project management skills far beyond her role of caring for marine mammals. That sort of cross-functional development opportunity is the perfect example of how the popular Atlanta attraction is breaking down silos among its 700-person workforce; a team that ranges from life support operators who maintain precise water conditions to hospitality staff welcoming millions of guests every year.During a thought leadership spotlight at From Day One’s Atlanta, Angela Bryant, manager of employee engagement at the Georgia Aquarium, shared how the organization is leveraging its core values to improve retention and build connections across vastly different roles. Speaking with Alexandra Powell, director of client cultural insights at Reward Gateway, Bryant shared a strategic approach that turns abstract corporate values into tangible daily experiences.Quarterly Values in ActionRather than treating values as static wall art, the Georgia Aquarium selects one value each quarter and brings it to life through targeted initiatives. The first quarter focused on inclusion and Bryant’s team found creative ways to enhance it. “We chose inclusion, which is a strength for us,” Bryant said. “Our engagement surveys have said across the years that we’re scoring high on this; we’re very welcoming.”The second quarter tackles the value of excellence by reimagining existing events. Georgia Aquarium’s annual barbecue will become a platform for teams to showcase work they’re proud of, even when it lacks the glamour of headline achievements, says Bryant.“There are teams that might have been working on something that is not as glorious, but really the team is proud about,” Bryant said. “We want to make sure that we’re communicating what is excellent from their perspective.”The approach extends to World Oceans Day in June. While the aquarium typically focuses external messaging toward guests, this year will include internal celebrations recognizing staff commitment to ocean conservation and animal care.The Engagement Committee as a Development EngineA 30-person employee engagement committee drives much of this work, but Bryant has structured it as a leadership development program rather than just a volunteer group. The team requires both creative thinking and execution skills, with tenure averaging one to five years.Alexandra Powell, director of client cultural insights at Reward Gateway, the event's title sponsor, spoke with Angela Bryant, manager of employee engagement at the Georgia AquariumThe beluga trainer who now independently manages the organization’s highest-tier recognition luncheon represents the committee’s developmental impact. “She took on the role of our recognition tiers,” Bryant said. “It’s growing her project management skills. It’s helping her think of the organization as a whole, not just her role within her department.”Since 2017, the committee has operated through an application process requiring manager approval. This shift from departmental representation to selecting individuals with the right personality mix has improved retention and engagement on the committee itself.Technology and Tools Supporting RecognitionReward Gateway’s platform, internally branded as “the reef,” provides infrastructure for the aquarium’s recognition efforts. With 85% of employees accessing the platform and 46% actively sending recognition, the system has generated more than 10,000 recognitions and 1,400 rewards in 12 months, says Bryant. The platform solved practical challenges, including replacing a manual scratch-off “sand dollar” program that didn’t have tracking capabilities. “We couldn’t really track how many were being given out, and just the metrics behind the recognition we didn’t have,” Bryant said. Custom e-cards let staff participate in initiatives like Valentine’s week or appreciation days for specific roles. An open submission process invites employees to design cards, with committee advisors reviewing selections. The personalization even extends to artwork from staff children, making recognition feel distinctly and genuinely connected to the organization’s culture.Beyond improved engagement scores and net promoter scores from guests, from the partnership, Bryant observes noticeable changes in the workplace atmosphere. “People are a lot more chatty. They’re more willing to have conversations, or even just smile and say hi as you’re passing by,” she said.Guest reviews increasingly name individual employees, even during challenging busy weekends; evidence that the internal culture does translate into external experiences.The Georgia Aquarium’s approach demonstrates that values become meaningful when organizations translate them into specific behaviors, create structured opportunities for cross-functional connection, and measure both quantitative metrics and qualitative cultural shifts. For workplaces navigating diverse teams with different priorities, the aquarium’s quarterly focus model offers a blueprint for making abstract principles real and tangible.Editor’s note: From Day One thanks our partner, Reward Gateway, for sponsoring this thought leadership spotlight. Grace Turney is a St. Louis-based writer, artist, and former librarian. See more of her work at graceturney17.wixsite.com/mysite.(Photos by Josh Larson for From Day One)
Solving the Healthcare Cost Crisis: Reducing Spend Without Cutting Benefits
BY Grace Turney January 13, 2026When Liz Hill joined Advance Auto Parts as director of benefits two and a half years ago, she faced a challenge many HR leaders are familiar with: healthcare costs were increasing faster than wages, and employees were questioning the value of their medical plans. For a workforce of 60,000, around 70% male, with an average age of 46, and spread across 4,300 locations, the situation was especially dire. “I’ll never forget the first conversation I had with a frontline manager,” Hill said during a From Day One webinar. “I asked what he wanted me to know about the medical plan. He said, ‘Oh, the medical plan, that’s for our older, more mature workforce.’” Hill saw that perception as a red flag. Younger employees were opting out entirely, viewing the high deductibles as too risky when they felt healthy. In 2025, Advance Auto Parts faced healthcare trend increases of 13%, which was well above the industry average of 9%. Hill knew she needed a new approach, and one that wouldn’t shift costs to employees or disrupt their existing coverage. The Provider Quality Problem The solution came from an overlooked option: helping employees choose better doctors. Research shows that the single biggest factor in a patient’s health outcomes and total cost of care is the individual provider they see. Yet most employees choose doctors by word of mouth or checking online reviews, and neither method necessarily correlates with cost efficiency or high-quality care. Lauren Chucko, the SVP of account management at Garner Health, spoke during the session (company photo)Lauren Chucko, senior vice president of account management at Garner Health, illustrated this with a striking example. Two spine surgeons, who were both quite popular among employees, had dramatically different outcomes. The first had patients who frequently experienced complications and needed revision surgeries. The second surgeon used minimally invasive techniques, had lower complication rates, and his patients spent significantly less—$69,000 in total claims versus $172,000, with zero out-of-pocket costs for members. Traditional provider evaluation methods, which merely average the previous year’s costs, had ranked the first doctor higher. But Garner’s database of 300 million patients, applying 550 different clinical metrics, revealed that the second doctor was actually superior across multiple measures: fewer unnecessary surgeries, lower complication rates, and more appropriate use of outpatient procedures.A Multi-Pronged Strategy Hill approached this challenge systematically, using what she called a “multi-pronged strategy.” This included operational improvements like carving out subrogation, pharmacy changes, and tightening leave of absence processes. But the largest opportunity was in value-based care. Rather than switching to a narrow network or committing to a specific carrier, Hill chose Garner’s plan-agnostic approach. The company maintained its full Anthem Blue Cross network but added a powerful incentive: employees who used Garner’s top-rated providers would have their out-of-pocket costs reimbursed up to $2,000 for individuals and $4,000 for families. “For a highly price-sensitive population like mine, that’s substantial,” Hill said. The plan was intentionally placed on Advance Auto Parts’ middle-tier option, which increased the deductible from $1,500 to $2,500 but offered the Garner reimbursement. The message was clear: use better doctors, save money. These innovative, outside-the-box solutions are exactly what’s needed to reduce spending while cutting costs in healthcare, without compromising the quality of care. The Importance of CommunicationHill’s team knew the success of these policy adjustments hinged on communication. They didn’t just announce the change; they orchestrated what one colleague called a “communication wheel” that kept turning through multiple phases. Before open enrollment, they trained the entire HR team, not just benefits specialists. During enrollment, they made creating a Garner account part of the required enrollment process in their benefits administration system. This was a crucial step that Hill credits with high adoption. They mailed customized materials to all 4,300 store locations, and ran content on TVs in stores and distribution centers. They also made a crucial naming decision: the plan became the “Anthem Silver Plus Garner Money Plan.” As Hill noted, “When you ask employees what medical plan they’re in, they often don’t know. So let’s call the plan what it is.” The approach worked. Despite having a passive enrollment system where employees could simply stay in their existing plan, 44% of the workforce enrolled in the Garner plan. More impressively, 53% of those enrolled created Garner accounts, well above the 30% benchmark. Hill’s advice for other benefits leaders is straightforward: dig into the data to build confidence in the methodology, communicate relentlessly through every available channel, and don’t be afraid to push vendors to customize solutions for your unique workforce. Most importantly, she emphasized, “When you make this decision, you’ve got to be all in from a communications perspective.” Editor's note: From Day One thanks our partner, Garner Health, for sponsoring this webinar. Grace Turney is a St. Louis-based writer, artist, and former librarian. See more of her work at graceturney17.wixsite.com/mysite.(Photo by MonthiraYodtiwong/iStock)
Humility in AI: Partnering With Technology That Assists, Not Overrides
BY Grace Turney December 19, 2025Paul Pavlou, PhD, the dean of the Miami Herbert Business School, doesn’t sugarcoat the future of work. While many leaders tiptoe around AI, Pavlou offers a direct assessment: AI will indeed replace many jobs, but that transformation represents only half the equation. The other half–how AI can elevate human potential in ways we’ve barely begun to imagine–demands the same attention.During a fireside chat at From Day One’s Miami conference, Pavlou shared insights from his extensive research on AI, decision-making, and organizational transformation. The conversation, moderated by Steve Koepp, From Day One co-founder and editor-in-chief, explored how business leaders and educators are grappling with a technology that Pavlou describes as being “an order of magnitude” even more significant than previous breakthroughs like electricity or the internet.Redefining What Technology Can DoUnlike tools that simply automate tasks, Pavlou says that AI represents something fundamentally different: a technology designed to overcome human limitations rather than merely extend or mimic human capabilities. “It thinks like us, or more like us, and better than us,” he said. This important distinction changes the conversation from what AI can do for us to what it tells us about our own abilities.The implications become stark when examining certain professions. Take radiology, for example, Pavlou points out that machines can analyze scans faster and more accurately than physicians. With that in mind, what is his advice for prospective students? Don’t become a radiologist if your job security depends on regulations requiring a human to perform tasks a machine handles better.Yet he emphasizes this isn’t necessarily bad news for society. Better, faster diagnostic capabilities mean earlier disease detection and improved patient outcomes, even if it means fewer radiologists.The Autonomy ParadoxPavlou’s research on consumer decision-making revealed an intriguing paradox: people usually prefer to make their own choices, even when they know an algorithm would (theoretically) recommend something better. In studies examining how shoppers choose clothing, the researchers found that shoppers (particularly women) would rather make the final decision instead of accepting AI’s recommendation.Paul A. Pavlou, dean & professor at the Miami Herbert Business School, University of Miami, shared his research on AI during the session This desire for autonomy extends beyond retail. Whether you’re a physician, an HR manager, or an executive, professionals want to understand why AI recommends specific actions rather than blindly accepting its output. “I want to have the last word,” Pavlou said to describe how people want to remain empowered to make their own decisions.This insight packs profound implications for how organizations use AI systems. The technology works best not as a replacement for human judgment, but as a tool that enhances it, with humans maintaining ultimate control—and accountability.Preparing Students for an Accelerated TimelineAt Miami Herbert Business School, Pavlou faces a concrete challenge: employers increasingly want candidates with two to four years of experience, yet the school’s primary mission involves preparing entry-level graduates. His solution leverages AI itself. By using technology to personalize education and provide real-world project experience, students can graduate with the equivalent of several years of workplace experience compressed into their undergraduate years, he says. The school has launched AI majors and minors while transforming existing programs to incorporate AI across disciplines, from HR to finance to accounting. “It’s not just about teaching students to use AI,” Pavlou said, “but using AI ourselves” to personalize the entire educational experience. The goal: graduates who are “job ready on day one” with capabilities that would have taken years to develop in previous generations.Beyond Individual Jobs to Lifelong LearningAccording to Pavlou, there has to be a shift in how organizations think about workforce development. AI’s rapid advancement means upskilling and reskilling can no longer be confined to early career stages. Companies increasingly approach Miami Herbert for guidance on what their employees, whether they have 20, 2,000, or 200,000 workers, need to know about AI.This demand has shifted executive education, elevating it from a secondary offering to a strategic priority. Organizations need different training at different levels: foundational skills for entry-level employees, experimental mindsets for middle managers, and strategic frameworks for C-suite executives who must create organizational cultures open to AI adoption while establishing appropriate guardrails.The Compassionate MachinePerhaps the most provocative element of Pavlou’s research involves what he calls “compassionate AI.” The premise challenges common assumptions: if human beings often lack empathy and compassion in decision-making, can AI actually serve as a corrective force rather than an amplification of our flaws?“The baseline is human beings,” Pavlou said. “They’re not very compassionate.” He offers the example of self-driving vehicles: while humans kill tens of thousands of people in car accidents every year, a single death caused by a driverless car causes widespread outcry and regulatory backlash. This double standard, he suggests, reflects our reluctance to acknowledge our own limited capabilities.Pavlou expressed skepticism about companies that announce mass layoffs blamed on AI adoption. The real opportunity is not eliminating positions, but creating better jobs and generating more value. Organizations should focus on how AI allows for better decision-making, reduces errors, and improves outcomes rather than simply trying to cut costs through workforce reduction.He advocates for comprehensive training as the foundation of responsible AI adoption, implemented at individual, team, and organizational levels. This training should address both effective use of the technology and ethical considerations. Only after organizations understand what the technology can do should they establish guardrails and policies, rather than creating restrictions for capabilities they don’t yet fully grasp.The conversation concluded with a reminder that reflects Pavlou’s central point: AI doesn’t exist in a vacuum. “We created them to serve us and augment what we actually do,” he said. The question isn’t whether humans or machines are superior, but how we can work together to overcome limitations and elevate capabilities that neither could achieve alone. For business leaders navigating this transformation, that perspective offers a more productive framework than the binary thinking that has dominated much of the AI debate.Grace Turney is a St. Louis-based writer, artist, and former librarian. See more of her work at graceturney17.wixsite.com/mysite.(Photos by Josh Larson for From Day One)
Global Hiring and Emerging HR Tech: A New Path to Solving the Talent Shortage
BY Grace Turney December 17, 2025Noelle Pittock, senior director of onboarding and business operations at Remote, remembers the first time her team completed what was previously a six-to-eight-week performance review cycle in just 48 hours. The drastic change wasn’t only about speed; it ultimately saved 7,000 hours of work and achieved 95% completion rates. This breakthrough came from rethinking how technology could actually make work processes smoother instead of more complex.The talent crisis has reached a tipping point. According to research from Remote surveying nearly 4,000 business and HR leaders worldwide, 72% of companies missed a key business goal or deadline in the past year due to talent shortages. These weren’t product failures, they were people problems. Teams simply couldn’t find and onboard the right talent fast enough to meet critical deadlines.“The bottleneck isn’t that great candidates don’t exist. It’s that we’re looking in too narrow a place,” Pittock said during a thought leadership spotlight at From Day One’s December virtual conference. Opening Borders, Not Just Job PostingsThe data reveals an intriguing paradox: 74% of HR leaders say finding qualified local talent is more difficult than a year ago, yet 79% would hire more international candidates if it were as easy as hiring domestically. The willingness exists, but the infrastructure just isn’t there.Many companies are currently expanding their geographic reach, says Pittock. Some business leaders expect more than half of their 2026 new hires to come from outside their primary country. This isn’t a fringe strategy anymore; it’s becoming standard practice for businesses struggling with shallow local talent pools.Noelle, a senior director of onboarding & business operations at Remote, led the virtual session (company photo)Remote itself operates as proof of concept. The fully distributed company receives 30,000 to 35,000 applications per month across 90-plus countries, employing nearly 2,000 people without a physical office. “We haven’t faced a talent shortage by taking this globalized strategy,” Pittock said.What’s held companies back isn’t desire, but clarity. Nebulous local regulations and compliance concerns make the risks seemingly outweigh the rewards. Modern HR technology is trying to change that perception through global-first sourcing tools, AI-assisted screening, location-based compensation planning, and legal hiring mechanisms like employer of record services that handle compliance complexity.But finding talent is only half the challenge. HR teams also face an operational crisis managing the sheer volume of work across disconnected platforms. The average HR leader juggles 3.6 tools, with some using four to seven systems just for basic processes. These tools rarely communicate with each other, ultimately multiplying workload instead of reducing it. “When HR teams say they don’t have enough time, that’s not an exaggeration,” Pittock said. “That’s reality.”Automation That Actually Reduces WorkThe most effective teams aren’t just adopting new tools; they’re completely rethinking workflows. Remote’s approach offers a framework: simplify processes before automating them, consolidate platforms to eliminate data silos, and create automated workflows that don’t rely on institutional memory.In hiring, AI screening now helps teams navigate increased application volume. Candidates can use AI to tailor resumes quickly, flooding recruiters with applications. One in five talent acquisition professionals report seeing AI-generated applications with misleading information, says Pittock. Remote’s pilot program used AI to extract skills, summarize resumes, and generate consistent screening questions, allowing recruiters to focus on qualified candidates rather than sorting through virtual piles of paperwork.Onboarding presents another opportunity for automation. Remote onboards talent in over 100 countries by breaking the process into clear workflows with integrated systems, she says. Personal data automatically generates employment agreements in seconds and compliance checks verify identity remotely. By integrating AI directly into workflow platforms, Remote compressed reviews from six weeks to just two days. Managers complete reviews on day one using preliminary information and structured data. Leaders calibrate and finalize decisions on day two. The system achieved 85% employee satisfaction while completing reviews 15 times faster. “AI isn’t replacing judgment,” Pittock said. “It’s supporting it by handling drafting, summarizing, and formatting so managers can focus on substance.”Starting Small and Scaling StrategicallyFor HR teams ready to simplify their workload while increasing productivity, Pittock recommends four immediate steps: remove one manual task you touch often, consolidate data into fewer platforms, pilot global hiring for a single role where widening the search meaningfully improves your candidate pool, and add one lightweight automation ritual like weekly check-in reminders.The key is identifying what matters most to your team. “Take a pulse check with your HR leaders,” Pittock said. “What’s the one most annoying thing they do every day that, if it disappeared overnight, would change how they work? Start there.”These changes require minimal investment but create foundations for sustainable, high-performing organizations that remain people-centric even as they automate. The goal isn’t replacing any of the human elements in HR’s, it’s about freeing professionals to focus on what actually requires their judgment, creativity, and care.Editor’s note: From Day One thanks our partner, Remote, for sponsoring this thought leadership spotlight. Grace Turney is a St. Louis-based writer, artist, and former librarian. See more of her work at graceturney17.wixsite.com/mysite.(Photo by dem10/iStock)
The Biggest Challenges (and Chances) for HR Leaders in 2026 and Beyond
BY Grace Turney November 25, 2025Ruth Ferguson, EVP and head of HR for consumer, small & business banking at Wells Fargo uses ChatGPT multiple times a day in her personal life, for everything from planning vacations to finding recipes, and other everyday tasks. This experimentation with AI outside the office, she says, is exactly what employees need to do to overcome their fears about AI. “It’s sort of like conquering all your fears,” Ferguson said during a fireside chat at From Day One’s Midtown Manhattan conference. “The more you use the prompts, the more you use your creative mindset on how to ask questions or challenge it. It’s so empowering to see the capacity that it frees up.” The conversation, moderated by Cadie Thompson, executive editor at Business Insider, explored how Wells Fargo is navigating AI adoption, generational workforce changes, and employee engagement during a time of rapid change. Embracing AI as an Enabler, Not a Threat The fear of AI is natural and rooted in historical precedent, says Ferguson. “A hundred years ago, we were a farming and manufacturing economy, and here we are, 100 years later, and those jobs have changed,” she said. But the key, she says, is developing skills and mindsets that AI cannot replicate. While AI excels at repetitive tasks and data amalgamation, humans bring critical reasoning, empathy, and nuanced decision-making to complex problems. “Some problems have multiple answers,” Ferguson said. “How you balance and prioritize on the spectrum of what’s important— that’s where the human mind comes in.” Leaders play a crucial role in helping employees understand that AI is a tool to assist them, not their replacement. When used properly, AI creates room for employees to use their higher-level thinking. Her advice for getting friendly with AI? Just start using it. At Wells Fargo, leaders encourage employees to practice with AI tools both at work and in their personal lives, embracing a “fail fast” mentality that builds comfort through experimentation. The Entry-Level Talent Advantage Despite efficiency pressures leading many companies to cap headcount and reduce middle management, Ferguson sees entry-level hiring as critical to Wells Fargo’s future. She serves on the board of Dickinson College in Pennsylvania, and recently witnessed students envisioning how AI could propel society forward in healthcare and beyond. “This generation graduating college and university, they’ve never known life without a cell phone or the internet,” Ferguson said. “We can learn from this generation.” Their native fluency with technology and optimistic view of AI’s potential position them to lead companies in creative problem-solving, which ultimately serves customers more effectively. However, this generation also presents distinct challenges. Ferguson identified focus and prioritization as the biggest hurdles. “We have raised a generation who are brilliant multitaskers,” she observed, describing young workers juggling multiple apps, learning TikTok dances, and scanning news simultaneously. “How do we focus? Because in corporate America, and in particular in banking, I need to be focused on my customer and client.” Redefining Workplace Loyalty The conversation turned to whether workplace loyalty still exists in an era of performance metrics and job-hopping. Ferguson’s answer: loyalty exists, but it is different. “Loyalty, spending 25, 30, 35 years at a company, doesn’t happen as much anymore,” she said. Instead, Wells Fargo defines loyalty through “mutual accountability and mutual success,” ensuring employees believe their individual success is tied to company outcomes, and vice versa. Ferguson of Wells Fargo was interviewed by Cadie Thompson, executive editor at Business Insider“If we approach loyalty from a purely timeframe perspective, the risk we run is people who are quiet quitters,” Ferguson said, describing employees who simply clock in and out without contributing meaningfully. In other words: workplace loyalty is not about time spent at a company, it’s about personal investment in it.This philosophy has helped Wells Fargo rebuild its culture. Ferguson, who joined in 2021, described how CEO Charlie Scharf’s unwavering commitment to building a culture of risk management and customer focus has unified the workforce. When the Federal Reserve’s asset cap was lifted earlier in the year, employees felt genuine pride in their collective accomplishment. Supporting Managers in a Changing WorkplaceFerguson’s biggest current challenge? Empowering burnt-out managers navigating unprecedented uncertainty. “Being a manager now doesn’t simply mean just getting the job done, but it does mean motivating a workforce,” she said. “Some of them are really tired, and they themselves are struggling.” Her remedy includes consistent appreciation, clear skill development pathways, and executive visibility. “If we don’t spend the time empowering our managers and training our managers, we will fall behind,” she said. Sometimes, she says, addressing the challenge is as simple as saying thank you and being present with teams, putting phones down, making eye contact, and truly listening to what’s on people’s minds. And that is exactly the type of human connection that AI cannot replace. Grace Turney is a St. Louis-based writer, artist, and former librarian. See more of her work at graceturney17.wixsite.com/mysite.(Photos by Josh Larson for From Day One)