As companies rush to adopt AI, many of the most pressing questions organizations have are focused on people. Should systems be designed to be human-involved or human-driven? How should we address staff anxiety about AI-driven layoffs? How can we enable employees to work seamlessly with AI agents?
One answer is to have an AI and talent strategy that establishes optimal ways of working, but most leaders don’t know where to start. WPP, a Fortune 500 European advertising giant, has responded by creating a role dedicated to solving this vexing problem. Introducing Dr. Laura Weiss, Head of Human AI Strategy and Transformation at WPP.
“I’m really interested in stories about AI,” Weiss says. “Some people say AI will make you lazy or rot your brain, while others claim it will make you smarter. That’s not particularly helpful. It’s like saying eating a spoon will make you fat. Don’t blame the spoon, don’t blame the technology.”
Instead, Weiss argues that we should understand both the strengths and limitations of AI and humans and design jobs accordingly. Here’s her six-step playbook on how to get started.
Integrate AI and workforce strategy
“We need to stop looking at AI and talent in parallel and understand how they intersect,” Weiss says. “Most organizations have a people strategy, and most organizations have an AI technology strategy, but if you don’t connect in a really meaningful and intentional way, you’re not going to get a lot of value out of it.”
Leaders need to think holistically about their employees. This includes human as well as digital agent employees. To remove the silos that make many AI adoption programs difficult, leaders must start from scratch and design an organizational structure that allows each member of this blended workforce to reach their full potential. This also means that all members of the executive team, not just the CHRO, need to oversee talent strategy.
Stop chasing efficiency. does not result in discrimination
Conversations about AI often return to efficiency and how processes can be made faster or cheaper. But Weiss argues that this is the wrong approach.
“When we talk about value, we mostly talk about efficiency and faster results,” she says. “That doesn’t give you a competitive advantage.”
Instead, she says, the focus should be on doing things differently, abandoning the current way of thinking about work, and exploring new opportunities for growth, innovation and revenue generation. “It’s about using AI to create an edge, sharpen that edge, innovate, and improve quality.” When everyone else is focused on doing the same thing at a faster pace, real value comes from thinking differently.
Decide what to do with the space created by AI
There’s no question that AI can save companies time, but Weiss believes that many organizations stumble because they fail to think strategically about how to utilize the time saved.
“AI gives us speed, but more importantly, it gives us space,” she says. “In the ambiguous stage we are in right now, there is a tendency to focus on what can be cut, but the data shows that AI is less suited to compressing jobs than expanding them.”
In Weiss’ view, leaders need to focus on how technology can enable companies to do things they’ve never done before, rather than simply replacing what the company was already doing. To best achieve this, the time saved through the use of AI must be corralled for exploration. “Use that space to think and connect things that weren’t connected before, bring together ideas and people that haven’t come together before,” she says.
Redesign roles around human strengths
While some companies are choosing to reduce headcount in response to AI-driven efficiencies, Weiss advises business leaders to redesign roles rather than eliminate them.
“We need to be clear not only about what AI can do, but also what humans are good at and AI is not good at,” Weiss says. “Leaders need to ask: Where does the judgment, where does the insight, where does the decision making, where does the emotional intelligence sit? These are all strengths that AI does not have.”
This also requires leaders to rethink what counts as “high performance.” One of the risks of AI adoption is what Weiss calls “glorified busyness,” where employees are working faster but not necessarily creating more value. She argues that true high performers aren’t just people who “do a lot of things fast.” Rather, high performers are often “people who can completely rethink things, are creative, bring people together, translate and organize plans, and create consistency.”
AI and talent strategies should explore how to leverage technology to empower high performers to do more of what they do best, whether by removing mundane tasks or giving them the tools and time to explore new ideas.
Modify your team before scaling AI
In addition to rethinking the concept of “high performance,” leaders need to critically examine the structure and functioning of their teams.
“AI is an amplifier,” Weiss says. “AI multiplies its value when you have a team that feels psychologically safe, has a clear decision-making structure, and has the right expertise. Placing AI on top of unhealthy teams, teams that don’t reward critical thinking, and teams that don’t have enough space to pivot under pressure will only create more noise and frustration.”
“When we talk about value, we mostly talk about efficiency and faster results.”
Dr. Laura Weiss, Head of Human AI Strategy and Transformation, WPP
Without a strategy, implementing AI is unlikely to yield positive results. Before deploying new technology, Weiss advises business leaders to establish a workplace culture that respects different types of thinking and tolerates different ways of working.
Be ruthless about things that don’t automate
For AI and talent strategies to be truly successful, leaders must be equally rigorous about where AI should and should not be used. “Be careful not to take away the joy of work,” says Weiss. “Right now, we tend to automate too much, seeking praise rather than relief.”
This means AI is having a disproportionate impact on tasks that are associated with autonomy and creativity and have historically been a source of employee pride, such as writing creative briefs and articles, brainstorming new ideas, and design work.
“The only way to keep people interested and give them a sense of identity is to have a purpose,” Weiss says. When establishing AI-free areas, leaders must ensure that they reflect what they value within their organization.
It’s important for leaders to remember that AI itself is not transformational. Insightful leadership and job redesign make the difference. Leaders who layer technology on top of outdated workforce practices will find that it unlocks no real value or competitive advantage. Weiss believes that the companies that win with AI will not be the first to adopt AI, but the ones that reimagine work the most deeply.
