Infoblox's CPO on turning HR programs into products
From The WorkOps Podcast · 34:07
Show by by Kinfolk
SummaryAnuradha Mayer, EVP & Chief People Officer at Infoblox, joins Jeet Mukerji on The WorkOps Podcast to explain why People teams need to stop thinking only in HR programs and start operating like product teams. For Anuradha, the shift means treating business leaders and employees as customers, building practical solutions to their problems, and getting feedback before anything feels finished.She takes Jeet Mukerji inside Infoblox's AI transformation: a leadership exercise where HR teams built AI prototypes for internal customers and pitched them for a buy-or-pass decision; an AI Trailblazer Award that rewards scaled impact and sharing unfinished work; and routine HR letters automated to save 87% of the time previously spent. The conversation follows the company's staged rollout of Bloxmate, its internal employee-support assistant, the capabilities-and-speed tradeoff behind build-versus-buy decisions, and a joint HR–IT roadmap that spans both workforce transformation and the hire-to-retire lifecycle.Anuradha also discusses why teams will increasingly manage AI agents, why employees have AI performance and development goals, why leaders must combine AI fluency with human connection, and why AI output without original thought becomes more work for everyone. For CHROs, People Ops executives, HR technology leaders, and anyone deciding how to turn AI usage into measurable business impact.Chapters00:00 AI Fluency and Human Connection01:15 Meet Anuradha Mayer03:55 Moving from HR Programs to Products06:07 Rewarding AI Experimentation and Sharing09:09 Automating HR Tasks and Saving 87% of the Time10:04 Introducing Bloxmate: AI-Powered Employee Support11:28 Build vs. Buy: Capabilities and Speed13:41 HR Transformation Roadmaps and Managing AI Agents18:31 AI Engineers and the Future of HR Teams22:49 AI Performance Goals and Employee Adoption25:54 Balancing AI Fluency with Human Connection27:41 Avoiding AI Slop and Preserving Critical Thinking29:57 Why AI Is the Biggest Technology Wave Yet31:54 Advice for HR Professionals and LeadersTakeaways- Move from programs to products: start with a real business problem, test the solution with internal customers, and measure whether it helps.- Make unfinished work visible. Anuradha encourages her team to share work even when it is only 50% complete, because early feedback accelerates learning.- Automate the routine to create space for meaningful work. At Infoblox, automating employee letters saved approximately 87% of the time spent on that workflow.- Decide whether to build or buy based on the capabilities you need, how fast you can deliver them, and whether your content and processes are ready to support trustworthy AI answers.- AI transformation is also a leadership responsibility. Employees need accessible learning, clear goals, human connection, and guidance on where AI can have an impact.- Keep original thinking in the driver's seat: use LLMs as critical thought partners instead of shipping unexamined AI-generated material.Connect with the GuestAnuradha Mayer: EVP & Chief People Officer, InfobloxLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anuradhamayer/Company Website: https://www.infoblox.com/SponsorThis episode is brought to you by Kinfolk, the AI service desk built for HR.Learn more at kinfolkhq.com.
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