Welcome to 2025. Today I give you a sneak preview of Galileo as a voice assistant, powered by our upcoming mobile app. And I give you a preview of your enormous 2025 role in embracing, adopting, and optimizing the use of AI in your company.

I highlight three major themes for the year. First, the use of intelligent agents in your own work throughout HR; second, the new world of “productivity-based job design,” which will create enormous changes in job titles, roles, structures, and skills; third, the exciting new dynamic cultural shifts required in organizations to facilitate this transformation.

Throughout this conversation I discuss many of the “100 Use Cases for Galileo in HR” which details many of the exciting innovations you can bring to your company this year.

And at the end I share a brief conversation I had with Galileo, the AI-Powered Assistant for Everything HR.

Additional Resources

How AI Will Revolutionize The HR Department, In Detail. E205 (Podcast)

Digital Twins, Digital Employees, And Agents Everywhere

Introducing The AI Trailblazers! HR Technology Outlook 2025.

Can AI Do Performance Reviews? Rippling Says Yes.

AI in HR: Certificate Program in The Josh Bersin Academy

Galileo Professional, The Essential AI Assistant for Everything HR

In this discussion I reflect on the significant events and trends of 2024, highlighting the impact of global conflicts, economic change, labor market dynamics, and the transformative role of AI in organizations.

What has changed? I discuss the evolving nature of DEI, the new model of leadership which emerged, and the transformation of HR into a more integrated and essential function within businesses.

I also describe the two-edged labor market, with severe labor shortages in hourly and blue collar work yet a lack of opportunities in white collar jobs. In fact I argue that our employment situation is not as happy as one may believe: the hyper low unemployment at the low end is masking unemployment fears among white collar workers. And as I discuss, 77% of employees are now fearful that AI could negatively impact their jobs and careers.

I also point out the enormous opportunity for AI-driven change in 2025, which will not be easy or simple for companies to adopt. And I celebrate the central role of HR, moving to the Systemic HR© model ahead.

To all our listeners: stay tuned for our major report on “The Rise of the Superworker” coming in January, an in-depth discussion about the 15 imperatives for change and AI transformation in 2025.

This groundbreaking report and related tools will be available to Galileo users and our corporate members. Sign up for Galileo today.

Key Points

• 2024 was marked by global conflicts affecting employees around the world
• Economic growth has been uneven, despite inflation’s impact
• Labor shortages continue, particularly in hourly jobs, while white-collar jobs are hard to find
• The low unemployment rate is misleading: many workers cannot find jobs
• AI is barely beginning to revolutionize work processes and organizational structures.
• DEI initiatives are being reframed as business priorities rather than social agendas.
• Leadership has become a responsibility for every employee, not just management.
• HR is evolving from a support function to a strategic partner in business.
• Organizations must focus on data management and governance as AI grows.
• Well-being in the workplace has plummeted, yet it remains essential for business success.
• HR is now taking on a very different role in our companies.

Chapters

Additional Resources

100 Amazing Use-Cases for Galileo, The AI-Powered Assistant For Everything HR

AI in HR: Certificate Program in The Josh Bersin Academy

The Road to AI-Powered Productivity: Four Stages of Transformation

Digital Twins, Digital Employees, And Agents Everywhere

Adecco: Adapting to an AI-Driven World of Work

How has Deel grown from zero to 4,500 employees in 100 countries in less than five years? It’s an amazing story of hyperscale growth and passionate customer focus. In today’s podcast Alex Bouaziz, CEO of Deel, talks with Kathi Enderes about his own journey from environmental engineer to founder of an HR tech company.

Alex explains how he started Deel as an EOR (Employer of Record) company, and how the company has expanded into HCM and payroll around the world. He explains the EOR market and what global employment providers do, and also discusses their AI assistant, Deel AI, which can help answer any question by pulling from Deel’s knowledge base.

Additional Information

EOR Provider Deel Expands into HCM

HR Tech Workshop Certificate Program | Josh Bersin Academy

AI HR Tech Trailblazers, 2025 HR Tech Outlook

In this conversation I share insights from my recent trip to Europe, focusing on the Workday Rising event, the current state of talent acquisition, and the evolving role of CHROs in strategic workforce planning.

I discuss the importance of systemic talent acquisition, the emergence of “Precision Talent Acquisition” and the entire redefinition of this function. And I also explain why the term “Hiring Manager” is such a terrible concept.

Finally I share my amazing conversation with one of the most high-powered, inspiring CHROs I’ve ever met.

Takeaways

• Workday is integrating its products into a cohesive solution.
• The hiring cycle is slowing down due to economic factors.
• AI is increasing the value of existing workers, creating ‘super workers’
• Talent acquisition should be viewed as a growth function.
• Precision in hiring is essential in a tight labor market.
• Cultural fit is as important as technical skills in hiring.
• Strategic workforce planning should align with business goals.
• The role of CHRO is evolving to include strategic planning, not “workforce planning” alone.

Additional Information

Klarna CEO Explains How AI-Driven Headcount Reduction Fuels Superworkers and Growth

How To Make Productivity Soar: Four Stages of AI Transformation

How AI Will Revolutionize The HR Department, In Detail.

Galileo Professional, The Essential AI Assistant for Everything HR

AI in HR Certificate Program: The Josh Bersin Academy

Irresistible 2025: Sign Up Early

I know most of you have used ChatGPT, Galileo, or other AI tools in your job, but you haven’t seen anything yet.

In this podcast I walk through a complete end-to-end scenario to show you precisely how AI agents will automate, scale, integrate, and vastly improve the process of hiring, onboarding, performance management, internal mobility, and more.

As you’ll hear in this scenario, AI agents are going to revolutionize the talent process. Recruiters, HR Business Partners, and CHROs watch out.

And this is just the beginning.

Our upcoming “100 Use-Cases for Galileo in HR” will explain this in greater detail (Galileo is designed for all these use-cases and more.)

Every HR professional should listen to this podcast to see the future of HR. Join our certificate program to learn more!

Additional Information

Become an AI Expert: AI in HR Certificate in The Josh Bersin Academy

How To Make Productivity Soar: Four Stages of AI Transformation

Digital Twins, Digital Employees, And Agents Everywhere

Introducing The AI Trailblazers! HR Technology Outlook 2025.

Galileo Professional, The Essential AI Assistant for Everything HR

What do we do about the American Dream? This week I discuss the explosion of employee and citizen activation (NYC UHG CEO, for example) and how the US economy has not been delivering for 2/3 of the workforce.

And in that discussion I challenge HR and business leaders to re-engineer jobs and work around what we call Superworkers, all with a goal of using AI to increase customer service, scale, quality, and value. I try to warn and give examples of what happens when companies use technologies like AI to eliminate jobs and simply reduce labor costs.

• Employees will give you feedback, they can “rage quit.”
• Automation to reduce labor can backfire.
• Our job as leaders is to help build a company of Superworkers.

Additional Research and Reading

Donald Trump Will Do Nothing to Bring Back Our Dying American Dream (NYT research column)

What Gives Poor Kids a Shot at Better Lives? Economists Find an Unexpected Answer (Raj Chetty’s research on lack of upward mobility in the US)

How To Make Productivity Soar: Four Stages of AI Transformation

Digital Twins, Digital Employees, And Agents Everywhere

Galileo Professional, The Essential AI Assistant for Everything HR

Linda Kirchhevel, Director, Talent & Leadership Development at Sanford Health talks with Kathi Enderes about their leadership development program. Linda discusses how the organization’s frequent mergers caused them to prioritize creating a unique leadership framework centered around the mission of the organization. (Sanford Health is the largest rural healthcare provider in the United States.)

The Sanford Leader Framework (“The Sanford Leader”) is applicable to anybody in the organization, focused on developing behaviors and capabilities at scale for all 45,000 employees. Built in collaboration with FranklinCovey, the leadership development model, assessment, orientation, and development plan delivers a customized leadership program at all levels. (Leading self, leading others, leading mission.)

As Linda explains, this program has driven a 13 point increase in employee engagement measured through NetPromoter. And the program continues to drive high levels of employee engagement, retention, and alignment during a series of acquisitions. It exemplifies the “Irresistible Leadership” model we highlight in our research.

Additional Information

Human-Centered Leadership, Certificate Program in The Josh Bersin Academy (Join today!)

Why Are Some Companies More Dynamic Than Others?

The Surprising Facts About Leadership Development (podcast)

AI tools are rapidly sweeping across our companies in every job function, and most of us see them as “productivity tools.” Well, that’s a very limited view of the future. While AI may make you 15-20% more productive, the big payoff comes when we rethink work entirely and let AI systems take over as “autonomous agents,” albeit with our support.

In this podcast I discuss the four levels of AI adoption, and help you think about the important job-redesign work we’ll do in 2025. And I would argue that “doing existing work faster” is going to become a commodity quickly. And at levels 3 and 4 we will be re-engineering jobs and work, developing new skills, improving pay, and empowering people to do more!

You can read more about this in our upcoming 2025 Predictions report, but the best next step is get your hands on Galileo, the AI Expert Assistant for Everything HR. (And Join the Josh Bersin Academy!)