Your organization is investing in AI. People are experimenting, training is happening, productivity tools are everywhere.
But is any of it actually making work better?
That’s the question at the centre of this episode of foHRsight, as Mark Edgar speaks with Dessalen “Dess” Wood about moving beyond AI activity and toward meaningful AI enablement.
Dess argues that the first phase of workplace AI was inevitably messy: organizations were handed transformative technology without a clear playbook for what transformation was supposed to look like. Now, the opportunity is to become much more disciplined.
If AI saves someone five hours a week, what should happen in those five hours? Which capabilities does everyone genuinely need? Who actually needs to become a builder? And which parts of HR work should be automated because nobody particularly values the human delivery, versus the moments where human presence is precisely what makes the experience valuable?
The conversation offers a practical framework for thinking about AI fluency at different levels, why learning should be grounded in the tools and experiences employees actually encounter, and why HR does not need to turn every employee into an AI expert.
Most importantly, it challenges People leaders to get much clearer about the work only humans can add meaningful value to, so they can stop defending work that simply keeps the lights on.
About Our Guest
Dessalen “Dess” Wood is a global Chief People Officer at Syntax, where she has played a key role in advancing AI enablement across the organization. After spending much of her career in retail and service environments before moving into technology, she brings a cross-industry perspective on what actually drives human performance, learning and organizational change.
Resources Referenced
- Syntax — the global technology company where Dess is Chief People Officer and where much of the AI enablement work discussed in the episode is taking place. syntax.com
- Reclaim the Plot: How Leaders Rewrite the Story When AI Rewrites Work by Dr. Kelly Monahan — Mark references Kelly Monahan and her recent work while asking whether AI is actually making organizations better. Reclaim the Plot
- Cognitive dissonance — the behavioural concept Dess references when explaining why action can precede attitude change, particularly around mandatory AI learning and adoption. Learn more about cognitive dissonance
- Dessalyn Wood on LinkedIn — Dess specifically invites listeners to connect with her there at the end of the episode.
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