Why AI Fails Without Psychological Safety (and How to Fix It)
In this episode of the HR Leaders Podcast, we sit down with Raj Verma , Chief Culture, Inclusion and Employee Experience Officer at Sanofi , to explore how culture, trust and co-creation became the foundation of one of the most ambitious AI transformations in the industry. Raj breaks down why culture is a verb, not a vibe, and how Sanofi intentionally shaped behaviors and values to support AI at scale.
He explains how Sanofi began its AI journey before the ChatGPT wave, driven by a visionary CEO and a bold ambition to become the first pharma company to use AI at scale. Raj details how recognition, inclusion, and data-driven insights became critical levers for building trust, strengthening decision-making, and ensuring AI adoption across 100,000+ employees worldwide.
The conversation also dives into psychological safety, bias detection, global recognition platforms, and why culture, inclusion and employee experience must be tightly integrated if companies want AI to stick and deliver real transformation.
Watch the full episode by clicking below ⬇️
Culture isn’t a vibe, it’s a verb. If you don’t intentionally shape it, you’ll still have a culture, just not the one you want.
In this episode, Raj discusses:
🔮 What advice Raj has for future HR leaders:
We brought people in right from the start. We were transparent. We said, ‘Let’s experiment together, we don’t have all the answers.’
We don’t design things in an ivory tower. We co-create, test and involve people at the beginning, middle and end.
📚 You might be interested in:
This episode covered so many important topics, here's an additional resource for you to dive a bit deeper:
🙏 We couldn't do it without you!
Thank you Raj Verma for sharing your time, expertise, and vision with our listeners.
Also our episode and series partner, Workhuman and their brilliant team Eric Mosley , Gavin Collins , Daniel Anderson , Lynette Silva Heelan , Clare Moncrieff , KeyAnna Schmiedl , Saima Rashid , Emily Di Cintio , Tom Vitkofsky , Jim O'Dea , Grant Beckett , Tom Libretto , Sarah Whitman , Jonathan Hyland , Steve Cromwell , Katy Ware , Niamh Graham , Jennifer Reimert, CCP , Orlagh Lynch , Kevin Heinzelman , Jesse Harriott , Nicholas Solis and Alyssa Johnson .
None of this would be possible without Lisa Ryzhykova, Shane Kemp, James Elwell, Kenneth Browne, Patryk Pinkowski and the team at HR Leaders for bringing the podcast to life.
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So true Christopher Rainey The real test isn’t the tool, it’s the trust. If people feel unseen, no system will win them back.
Great to see fresh perspectives, such as this, on this important topic.
Nailed it. Tech upgrades are easy compared to building actual trust and buy-in. Culture always sets the ceiling for what's possible with AI. Looking forward to this episode.
A good reminder that AI readiness is never about the tools, it’s about the culture you’re plugging them into. If trust is low, inclusion is uneven, or communication is patchy, AI will only magnify those cracks. The organisations that win with AI will be the ones that co-create with employees, build clarity before automation, and treat adoption as a people exercise, not a technology rollout.
AI only works when people feel included and heard. Without that, even the best systems fall apart.