AI and Automation: Sheilin Herrick of SHL On How To Effectively Harness AI Technology In People Operations
An Interview with Rachel Kline
Seize the upskilling opportunity. Building on the first point, we are at a key moment that reminds me a lot of when I started my career. There’s new technology, and everyone is using it, and it will change how we find information, do our jobs, make decisions, and much more. This is an upskilling opportunity that employees will seize on their own — let them.
With technological advancements, particularly in the AI space, an increasing number of tasks can be either fully or partially automated. In this series, we are talking to People experts about how they’re utilizing new technologies to make their jobs easier and provide greater strategic value. As a part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Sheilin Herrick.
Sheilin Herrick is the Global Solution Director at SHL, emphasizing the use of new technologies and equity in hiring for technical roles. She has worked in technology for 15 years and spent the past several years researching and improving hiring processes for the world’s leading software-driven companies. Sheilin’s experience includes ethical AI in HCM, go-to-market strategy for Technical Talent Acquisition solutions, and the economics of technical hiring.
Thank you so much for your time! I know that you are a very busy person. Before we drive in, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your ‘backstory’ and how you got started?
In high school, my dad handed me a Costco magazine and pointed out an article about search engine optimization (SEO). He said, “You should learn this.” It wasn’t so much of a suggestion as a directive since I’d resisted the idea of getting a Computer Science degree. He knew I could code and was building websites regularly. Naturally, I wanted people to be able to find them. So, I learned the nuts and bolts of SEO and how search engines work. As my career continued, I used this knowledge to hire the right people, make the right investments, and solve the right problems. Understanding the mechanics of how we find information was a major stepping stone in my career.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful for who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?
Two of my colleagues at Karat changed my view of my capabilities. Lus Mendel and Shannon Hogue convinced me I could offer more than strategic marketing. Lus and Shannon started their careers as software engineers, and by working with them on content strategy, ops strategy, pre-sales and post-sales enablement, and speaking opportunities, I learned how to think more like an engineer, see the world from that point of view, and of course get more familiar with building solutions for technical teams.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“Without experimentation, a willingness to ask questions and try new things, we shall surely become static, repetitive, and moribund.” That’s from Anthony Bourdain. I am a person who likes to dive into the unknown. This is a trait I have to balance with strategic and objective thinking carefully. When I get it right, it reliably moves me forward to personal and professional growth.
Thinking back on your own career, what would you tell your younger self?
Remember that Computer Science degree I didn’t get? Dad was right. But I want to dash any concerns about coding jobs disappearing due to the proliferation of generative AI. I would still invest my time and energy into software engineering as a profession because it will change, and it will change for the better. It will become more strategic at the individual contributor level and allow developers to shine in other ways.
Let’s now move to the central part of our interview. How have recent technological advancements such as AI made your job easier?
On the one hand, it’s made the day-to-day easier. I use ChatGPT to edit emails, improve my communication, and as a bit of an idea generation partner. Big picture, access to generative AI and other AI-related tools have provided pathways toward more meaningful strategic thinking and product development. There are faster (and better) ways to analyze data, make decisions, and reduce the cognitive load for candidates and talent teams that use our products.
In which processes do you utilize automation the most?
We’re playing with a lot of new approaches. So I’ll speak to something widely used in our products today. Right now, a core capability of our coding simulation product is AI-driven scoring of candidate code. It reduces false negatives by scoring code with tiny errors, like an extra space of an apostrophe in the wrong place. These are minor and forgivable mistakes. So, we score that code anyway with results that are a 0.8 correlation coefficient to that of a human. As a result, as many as 45% more candidates can stay in the funnel and get a shot at a great job.
What should people bear in mind when automating processes?
Balance the risk you’re willing to take with the amount of human intervention you want to remove. That is to say, let humans be the gatekeepers. We’re not in a place where automation or AI should be a decision-maker, but it can be a helper or, as IBM puts it, “a digital assistant.”
What are your “Top Five Tips For Harnessing AI Technology to Propel People Operations”? Please share a story or an example for each.
1 . Play with purpose and without fear. Not all new technologies are as accessible as generative AI. Leaders should encourage easy usage to the point that it does not introduce undue risk. Restricting access to safe technologies can often cause fear — and that can reduce innovation.
2 . Start with “why” and then ask “is it ethical?” When ChatGPT first launched, one of my colleagues came across an HR manager who had posted online that they wanted to use AI to identify which team members might be at risk for mental health issues. That crosses a line and doesn’t help anyone. Consider the level of humanity and empathy required in the situation and the impact it can have.
3 . Test before you transform. Using generative AI to automate or support certain functions can be great. However, testing is necessary to ensure that it reaches its KPIs and can add the necessary value. For example, does reviewing copywriting done by ChatGPT take longer than having a team member write from scratch? It might, but you’ll only know if you’re tracking that time spent.
4 . Tech needs a manager. I’ve seen countless new technologies, notably marketing and HR tech, get deployed, then left unmanaged and the KPIs for their success forgotten and ignored. Soon, the data it contains is useless and the company is now wasting money on a bloated tech stack. It wasn’t that the application was bad; it just wasn’t managed.
5 . Seize the upskilling opportunity. Building on the first point, we are at a key moment that reminds me a lot of when I started my career. There’s new technology, and everyone is using it, and it will change how we find information, do our jobs, make decisions, and much more. This is an upskilling opportunity that employees will seize on their own — let them.
What are your favorite “I couldn’t live without these” tools?
Podcasts. This is less of a tool and more of a medium. I love learning about history, innovations, ways of thinking — you name it. Without podcasts, I’d be lost.
How do you see technology impacting the HR space in the future?
There are signs that we’re entering a phase where teams aim to simplify their HR tech stack. This is primarily due to budgetary pressures. We will see more technology make accurate and strategic use of large data lakes, like assessment data.
We are very blessed to have some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have a private lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this.
Allie K. Miller. Her LinkedIn posts always have genuinely actionable and valuable information about advancements in AI. I love her energy, her excitement for all things new, and the real-world experience she brings from having built some innovations we all know and love.
How can our readers further follow your work?
Follow me on LinkedIn at linkedin/in/sheilinh.
Thank you so much for sharing these important insights. We wish you continued success and good health!
