Summary
On this episode of The WorkOps Podcast, Jeet sits down with William West, VP People at Wrapbook, to dig into what happens when HR leaders stop trying to do everything in one place. William shares how a 20-plus-hour calibration process became six hours by separating ratings conversations from development conversations entirely. He also makes the case that HR's distinct job in an AI transformation isn't governing tools — it's owning the human argument for why the change matters. And in his closing remarks, he offers a frame on vulnerability that redefines what effective People leadership looks like right now.

Chapters
00:00 William West's path from nonprofit HR to VP People at Wrapbook
04:00 How HR changes across sectors: pace, complexity, and scale
07:30 The calibration problem: 20-plus hours and still unclear
12:30 The fix: reading instead of explaining
16:30 Separating calibration from development, permanently
21:00 AI and human connection: what the technology is actually for
25:00 Who leads AI adoption, and why HR owns the why
29:00 Vulnerability as a change management strategy

Takeaways

1. Calibration and development are two different conversations with different goals — combining them makes both worse.
2. Switching from verbal summaries to a read-and-discuss format cut Wrapbook's calibration from 20-plus hours to around six.
3. HR's distinct role in an AI transformation is owning the why, not governing the tooling; technical teams are better positioned for the what.
4. Late adopters don't move without context-specific reasons; the leader closest to people in each function is best positioned to provide them.
5. Naming openly that you feel behind on AI creates space for others to start learning instead of waiting for certainty.

Connect with the Guest
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/williamcwest/
Website: https://www.wrapbook.com/

Sponsor
This episode is brought to you by Kinfolk, the AI service desk built for HR.

See more at kinfolkhq.com