Fiona Passantino — Why HR Must Lead AI Integration: AI Literacy, Training & the Human-Led Roadmap

I isn't a tool. It's a new kind of employee. And that's exactly why it belongs to HR, not IT. Aidan welcomes Fiona Passantino, award-winning author of comic books for executives on AI and her new book AI-Powered Leader, to discuss why AI integration should be a human-led experience owned by HR rather than delegated to IT. Fiona argues AI is more like a new kind of employee than a classic tool, and failed adoption often comes from lack of training, governance, and leadership support rather than "resistance." She outlines HR's role in measuring an organisation's adoption curve, delivering baseline AI literacy (including EU AI Act requirements), supporting early adopters as a coaching centre of excellence, and bringing analog "hell no" employees over the line without creating a split organisation. The conversation covers phased L&D approaches by department and for desk-less workers, using AI earlier in workflows for bigger impact, and her five-step roadmap from "ostrich" to "eagle," emphasising joyful learning through comics and humour. In this conversation, Fiona reveals: Why AI behaves more like a new employee than a tool — and what that changes about who owns it The "kidneys of the organisation" metaphor for what HR actually does all day Why most AI roll-outs stall as "resistance" — and why that's a leadership failure, not a people problem How the EU AI Act already makes AI literacy and governance a legal requirement The two groups worth extra training: the 1% enthusiasts and the "hell no" analog holdouts Why you must never let your company split into "AI people" and "analog people" The five-stage bird roadmap — ostrich, sandpiper, pelican, sparrowhawk, eagle Why most teams use barely 10% of a tool like Copilot The "desk-less" training built for the 80% of workers who never log into a desktop Why the comics in her book are a deliberate strategy: "if you're laughing, you can't resist" Chapters: 00:00 Podcast Intro 00:15 Meet Fiona Passantino 01:03 Why HR Owns AI 04:16 Leadership And Change 07:05 AI Literacy And Governance 09:04 Early Adopters And Resistors 11:58 L&D Training Phases 16:58 Beyond Tools Mindset 19:36 Roadmap Ostrich To Eagle 21:50 Comics And Joyful AI 24:18 Where To Find Fiona 25:18 Closing Credits   Find Fiona: Book — AI-Powered Leader (available wherever books are sold) https://fionapassantino.com https://www.working-humans.com https://aihumanschool.com   About Inside Learning Inside Learning dives into learning science and the future of work, featuring learning experts from around the world each month. Topics span AI, neurodiversity, creativity, unlearning, leadership, ethics, VR, blended learning, performance, and skills. The podcast is designed to make you think, question and learn. Hosted by author, consultant and coach Aidan McCullen, Inside Learning is produced by Learnovate, the future-of-work and learning research centre based at Trinity College Dublin and funded by Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland.   Subscribe to Inside Learning wherever you listen. 🌐 https://learnovatecentre.org 🎙️ https://learnovatecentre.org/insights/podcasts/ 🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/company/learnovate-centre