Hiii,

I’m officially back from being OOO, and my email inbox is the bad place.

Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating a little, but you get what I mean!!

A couple of quick reminders before we dive in!

🤖 On Friday, we’re getting back together (by popular demand) to do some live AI building exercises, because the first one really resonated with the community.

✅ And on June 24th, we’ll be reuniting for this month’s HR Therapy for a necessary mid-year check-in that will keep you synced up with your goals for the rest of 2026. 

☕ And TODAY, we’re discussing how your employees are already using AI at work, even if you haven’t trained them, why L&D problems are usually just leadership and culture problems, and a stat about healthcare denials that probably won’t surprise you.

This week's newsletter has a little something for everyone!   

🗞️ Here's the Tea:Copy anchor linkCopied

👀 Workers turn to social media for AI training as employers lag 

The TL;DR: Employees are already using AI at work…they're just learning how from TikTok instead of their company. Employers are behind on formal training (kinda hard to keep up with things changing so fast!!!), so workers are filling the gap themselves.

The issue is that unvetted, informal AI adoption creates potential compliance and security exposure that most orgs aren't prepared for. And potentially employees resenting HR for not having better training...

My POV: When AI governance falls apart, it will likely fall to People teams to figure out the mess! 

There’s a stat in the article about 56% of workers never being consulted on how AI tools are used at their company, which is wildly telling. 

And... well upskilling and reskilling is kinda in our scope so if we're not thinking about what that looks like due to AI then that's another issue to solve for.

🎙️Mic Drop Moment:Copy anchor linkCopied

"We can really lean into our humanity as our competitive advantage."  Copy anchor linkCopied

On the mic this week: Hanan Harb is a learning strategist and longtime L&D leader with nearly two decades of experience helping orgs build more effective, human-centered learning cultures. She is also the author of Everybody, Be Cool, a practical guide to navigating workplace dynamics and personal growth.

Pin this: 

• Most L&D challenges are actually leadership, culture, communication, or trust challenges in disguise.
• Great L&D teams stop acting as order takers and start acting as strategic partners who ask better questions.
• Trust is built through curiosity, storytelling, transparency, and consistently advocating for employee needs.
• As AI continues to reshape work, human skills like self-awareness, communication, conflict resolution, and empathy become even more valuable.

My H*ly Sh*t Moment: Helping people become more self-aware and emotionally intelligent in a world increasingly optimized by machines will probably be one of the main ways orgs win in the long term. The desire for community and connection is never going away!

▶️ Press Play

📊 Data Is My Love Language:Copy anchor linkCopied

Stat: 1 in 5 U.S. adults denied doctor-recommended care, Commonwealth Fund finds 

My spiral: If there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s probably around the idea that healthcare in the U.S. is overcomplicated into oblivion.

When access requires that much friction, coverage stops meaning anything to some folks.

The system banks on confusion, and guess what? It's working! 😑

🛠️ In Your Toolkit Copy anchor linkCopied

You do a lot for your org, don't you?

And most of the time, you're doing it in rooms full of people who will never fully get what that actually means. 😮‍💨

The Safe Space Summit is trying to fix that!

Oct 13–16 in Huntington Beach, expect 200 HR people and the kind of connection that happens when everyone in the room is dealing with the same stuff you are!

Also...it's totally free, which is kinda a big deal for something like this. 😇

The only catch is that spots are limited and we're being intentional about who's in the room, so you'll need to submit an application if you're interested in joining us!

🗣️ UNMUTE YOURSELF

HR spends a lot of time telling employees to set boundaries, speak up, prioritize their wellbeing, and ask for help. 

Ironically, we can be the worst at applying these ideas to ourselves!

So it had me thinking:

“What's one thing HR told employees to do that HR doesn't actually do itself?”

🛠️ TRY THIS TOMORROW:

Managers are notoriously undertrained, and it should come as no surprise these days.

If they’re not doing more with less, they’re being pulled in a dozen different directions. If you have any upcoming 1:1s, try asking them this:

"What's the hardest part of leading people that no one warned you about?"

👂 OVERHEARD IN SAFE SPACE

I know one thing is for sure…AI could NEVER do this job by itself. I’d like to see it try!

Read what members had to say here.

WE'RE HALF WAY THRU THIS WEEK CAN YOU BELIEVE IT!!