The Enigmatic Q Hamirani on Turnarounds, AI, and the CPO Grind

Q Hamirani, the Chief People Officer at Paper, joins Kelli Dragovich and Nolan Church to discuss navigating the CPO seat under immense pressure, the real deal behind Airbnb's remote work policy, how design thinking helps solve people problems, and how the people function should not be left behind by the AI revolution. They also touch on great stories and tactical insights from Q's time as AirBnB s and his current CPO role at edtech company Paper (https://paper.co/).Learn more about Q's AI community for people leaders: https://www.thepeoplegpt.com/HR Heretics is part of the Turpentine podcast network. Learn more: www.turpentine.co--SPONSORS: Lattice | Continuum✅ Discover HR software that drives performance with Lattice: https://www.lattice.com/hrhereticsHigh performance and great culture should never be at odds; they’re better together. With Lattice People Management Platform, companies efficiently run people programs that create enviable cultures where employees want to do their best work. Serving 1000s of customers of all sizes. Learn why companies from Slack to the LA Dodgers choose Lattice. https://www.lattice.com/hrheretics✅ Hire Fractional Executives with Continuum using this link: https://bit.ly/40hlRa9Have you ever had a negative experience hiring executives? Continuum connects executives and senior operators to venture-backed tech companies for fractional and full-time roles. You can post any executive-level role to Continuum’s marketplace and search through our database of world-class, vetted leaders. There is no hidden cost, you only pay the person you hire. And you can cancel at any time. www.Joincontinuum.com–KEEP UP WITH Q, NOLAN, + KELLI ON LINKEDINQ: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hamirani/Nolan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nolan-church/Kelli: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellidragovich/–TIMESTAMPS:00:00) Preview(01:30) Q's wild background(07:40) How the engineer in Q handled the rejection going into HR(09:27) Having a business background(11:37) Balancing the dynamics of design thinking and love for iteration(13:07) Transitioning from Airbnb to Paper(17:27) On avoiding burnout while building your team(19:47) How Airbnb handled layoffs(23:53) Sponsor - Lattice | Continuum(25:37) The Digital Nomad program(31:05) What would Q change in terms of handling comp given the circumstances of today's market?(33:50) The future of work debate with AI(36:38) Getting people back in the office and maintaining morale(41:51) How do you react when things don't go your way?(48:21) AI and the direction of People Ops and recruiting(57:10) Q's favorite interview question(58:10) Q's best hire and why This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hrheretics.substack.com