The pressure on talent functions right now is intense. Budgets are tight, teams are stretched, and the mandate to do more with less has pushed many organizations to automate at speed without stopping to redesign what they were automating. These automated decisions are attracting real legal and regulatory attention. Actions previously seen as simple process steps are now potentially being viewed from a legal perspective as consequential decisions.

At the same time, there's a growing recognition that AI could be truly catalytic, forcing the kind of fundamental change that talent functions have needed for years.

So how do leaders navigate the constraints while seizing that opportunity?

My guest this week is Kyle Lagunas, Founder of Kyle and Co. In our conversation, Kyle unpacks what defensibility really means in practice, why talent teams need to shift from risk avoidance to risk readiness, and how AI is catalyzing long-overdue transformation.

In the interview, we discuss:

Credibility under constraint

Risk averse or risk avoidance?

What does defensibility look like?

The AI balance between execution and judgement

Human-in-the-loop needs to be designed, not assumed.

Are we holding machines to a higher standard than we hold humans to?

The importance of rigour in pilot programs

Building AI literacy

What does the future look like?

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