As use of artificial intelligence moves beyond experimentation, are organisations starting to see real value – or struggling to turn promise into impact? As AI experimentation gives way to scaled adoption, the pressure is on to achieve tangible returns while managing new risks for people, jobs and organisational culture.

Join Nigel Cassidy and this month’s guests – Graeme Burns, AI People and Communications Leader at Nationwide Building Society; Ben Redshaw, Director and Founder at Orchard Tree Consulting; and Hayfa Mohdzaini, Senior Policy and Practice Adviser - Technology at CIPD – as they explore what AI maturity looks like in practice, where organisations are getting stuck and the critical role people professionals play in embedding AI responsibly and effectively.

In this episode, we explore:

• What AI maturity means in practice and the common components of AI maturity
• How can organisations realistically and meaningfully assess their current level of AI maturity
• What role can people professionals play in helping build the culture, capabilities and organisational readiness needed to scale AI effectively.

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Explore content supported by the Innovate UK BridgeAI programme

Guide: How people professionals can develop, deploy and use AI in an ethical, legal and sustainable way

HR People Pod - Ep43: Inside Davos - AI, work and the future of identity - with Allyn Bailey

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Why are HR professionals still feeling forced to hide their disabilities just to get hired? Could an AI version of your CEO really replace human leadership — and what happens when technology starts delivering the messages people most need to hear from a real person? And when engagement is falling and productivity remains stubbornly low, are organisations solving the wrong problems altogether?

CIPD Director of Profession David D’Souza is joined by Clair Staines, Chief People Officer at POWWR, David Balls, Principal Consultant at Helix People Solutions, and Cheryl Samuels, People and Culture Director in the NHS and co-founder of #InclusiveHR.

Recorded: 17 April 2026

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CIPD announces Neil Carberry as new Chief Executive

Guide: Recruiting, managing and developing people with a disability or health condition

Resources: AI in the workplace

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How do you take culture from something leaders instinctively talk about to something they can genuinely understand, measure and act on? What can one of the largest behavioural studies of its kind tell us about the link between culture and business outcomes? And if traditional measures like engagement only tell part of the story where should people professionals look for a clearer view on what’s really driving performance?

CIPD Director of Profession David D’Souza is joined by Hani Nabeel, Chief Behavioural Scientist at iPsychTec and author of Culture Analytics: An evidence-based approach to company culture, to explore the evidence behind culture and performance.

Recorded: 20 February 2026

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Book: Culture Analytics: An evidence-based approach to company culture – Hani Nabeel

Your next listen:

CIPD Podcast 220: Do leaders establish culture, or are they a product of it?

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HR People Pod – Ep37: Leading under pressure – with Professor Kevin Fong

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