THANK YOU for joining us for our first newsletter issue! It’s a privilege to continue the conversation in a more thoughtful space.

To kick things off, I wanted to share a perspective that I feel often gets missed: AI at work isn’t just about efficiency.

In this essay, I'll share three surprising ways AI adoption unlocks additional benefits, ranging from deep work to democratizing expertise.

Spoiler: the real transformation happens when people stop asking “how fast?” and start asking “what else is possible?”

--Neil

THE BIG PICTURE

The Hidden Power of AI Adoption: 3 Wins Beyond Efficiency

When I ask our training program applicants why they want to adopt AI, nearly three-quarters say they want it to help them be more efficient.

Specifically, 70% say that ‘gaining operational efficiency’ or ‘automating repetitive tasks’ are the primary reasons they’re interested in learning about AI.

That’s understandable. Efficiency gains are a reasonable starting point to justify AI investment. Its access to a vast swath of human knowledge and tireless nature make it a helpful efficiency booster for many tasks, especially as companies fixate on reducing costs normalized by the “year of efficiency.”

Still, AI tools cost time and money to adopt. Any technology rollout requires change management, upskilling, and redesigning jobs to have an impact at scale. But what if efficiency is just the beginning? What are the benefits of AI adoption beyond “just” efficiency? Is there any more juice worth the squeeze?

Research and firsthand experience training HR professionals in AI skills reveal three overlooked benefits of AI adoption that not only increase how early adopters add value, they also help overcome the real fears of job replacement…

1. The Deep Work Dividend

AI can save time from tedious, repetitive work. For example, platforms such as Paradox and Leena AI make it easier for employees to get answers to their HR-related questions.

But the real value isn’t only in reducing the time spent on answering repetitive questions or writing lengthy email responses; it’s in limiting interruptions that prevent deep work.

With more time set aside for creative problem-solving, workers can focus on the impactful ideas that have been persistently stuck in the backlog.

AI @ WORK BRIEFING

• ​AI and the Employee Experience. Betterworks' comprehensive survey of where the workforce is with AI.
• ​What HR must know about Agentic AI. Decent primer on where agentic AI is taking over in the HR tech industry.
• ​AI in the workplace legislation currently in a holding pattern. HR Brew's breakdown on state and federal AI use regulation.
• ​Workday publishes The Global State of Skills. 41% strongly agree that AI will help to mitigate a skills shortage

PRACTICE CORNER

Assume a persona

AI shines when you stop treating it like a tool, and start treating it like a thinking partner.

Try this prompt during your next 15-minute work session. You’ll learn fast what AI can help with and what it can’t:

Here is an AI conversation starter that will allow you to get a better sense of what type of tasks you can delegate effectively to AI:

Why it works

• Forces clarity on your real goal
• Sharpens the AI's role framing for better responses
• Exposes AI's surprising strengths (and occasional blind spots)
• Trains your intuition about where and how AI adds value

Bonus experiment

Ask it to become a skeptical buyer, a bored stakeholder, or your most values-driven client, and see what gets clearer.