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H_AI_R: When the Humans in HR Compete with the Robots
A conversation with Russell Porter on how HR can protect what stays human in the age of AI.
In this episode of Hero to Zero, Russell Porter joins Ken Pearson to explore what happens when HR’s most human qualities—empathy, judgment, and culture—collide with the rise of artificial intelligence. Together they unpack the five levels of AI capability, the limits of human change capacity, and why “designing for dignity” might be the most important skill of all.
As organizations chase efficiency through automation, HR stands at the fault line between progress and purpose. Russell and Ken discuss what happens when algorithms start hiring, managing, and evaluating people—and what leaders can do to preserve trust, fairness, and humanity inside increasingly digital workplaces.
In This Episode
• The five levels of AI and how they’re reshaping human work
• HR’s evolving role: AI for scale, humans for depth
• Change fatigue, empathy, and the emotional side of transformation
• How to “design for dignity” in every stage of AI adoption
• The ethical gap between innovation and accountability
Key Moments
00:00 – Opening: What we choose to keep human
03:00 – The cultural lens on technology
07:00 – The five levels of AI
11:00 – Change fatigue and finite human capacity
17:00 – HR’s role in the age of AI
28:00 – Empathy, authenticity, and accountability
39:00 – The “Jared effect” and AI guardrails
52:00 – Closing: Designing for dignity
Takeaway Quote
“Innovation isn’t the opposite of empathy—it’s a mirror that shows us who we’re becoming.”
Why Listen
This conversation invites HR and business leaders to slow down long enough to ask the right question: as machines get smarter, what will it mean to stay human at work? The answers may redefine how we hire, manage, and measure success in an AI-enabled world.
Credits
Host & Producer: Ken Pearson
Guest: Russell Porter
Production: Hero to Zero
Learn more and join the discussion at HeroToZeroPodcast.com
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