In this information-packed (and mind-expanding) episode of Biz-Souls, your ever-curious co-hosts Rona Lewis and Jeffrey Hansler sit down with the visionary Aaron Windrum to unpack the present and future of HR and Artificial Intelligence.

And no, this is not another “AI is coming for your job” doomcast. Aaron flips the script.

While headlines scream layoffs and robots, he sees something different: more jobs. Better jobs. Higher-value jobs.

The twist? They won’t look like the ones you have now.

Organizations today are experimenting, piloting, and integrating. AI is screening resumes, predicting turnover, personalizing learning, automating onboarding, and whispering sweet data-driven insights into the ears of HR leaders.

Translation? The paperwork is shrinking. The people-work is expanding.

Aaron explains how AI is moving HR from compliance cop to culture catalyst. Instead of drowning in forms and spreadsheets, HR professionals are increasingly freed up to focus on coaching, strategy, connection, and leadership development.

The dark side?

Well… that’s the part we’re still negotiating as a society.

Aaron doesn’t sugarcoat it. He discusses both the promise and the peril — and why ethical leadership will matter more than ever.

One of the juiciest conversations? The growing disconnects between traditional education and what organizations actually need.

Degrees alone aren’t the golden ticket anymore. Skills are.

The future belongs to lifelong learners, skill-stackers, and curious minds. Your individual responsibility (and pleasure!) will be continuous learning.

Aaron’s journey alone is worth the listen. He once planned to become a veterinarian. Instead, he became the youngest manager worldwide for KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken). From there? Listen in and find out!

Let’s just say, he’s living proof that careers are rarely straight lines — they’re more like beautifully chaotic scribbles with purpose.

The future of HR isn’t about less humanity — it’s about elevating it.

Listen to More Biz-Souls Episodes:

Episode 206: The Missing Link Between What You Mean and Deliver is Congruency

• https://open.spotify.com/show/5lq9xyzBizSouls

• https://www.youtube.com/@BizSoulsPodcast

Episode 204: The Great Exhaustion

• https://open.spotify.com/show/5lq9xyzBizSouls

• https://www.youtube.com/@BizSoulsPodcast

Episode 202: Persuasion, Negotiation & Sales in a Chaotic World

• https://open.spotify.com/show/5lq9xyzBizSouls

• https://www.youtube.com/@BizSoulsPodcast

If you want to understand where HR is going and how AI is reshaping organizations, this episode is for you.

Listen in. Learn up. Level up. And as always, like, subscribe, share, and comment.

Because even in an AI-driven future, engagement is still very human.

In the newest Biz-Souls deep dive, your dynamic duo, Rona Lewis and Jeffrey Hansler, sit with the one and only Dr. Laura Janusik to unpack one of the most misunderstood and most misused skills in life, leadership, and business.

Listening. Not waiting to talk. Not reloading your opinion. Not speed-scrolling someone’s face while mentally drafting your rebuttal. Actual listening.

While many leaders talk to prove their prowess (and occasionally their PowerPoint prowess), listening changes everything. Why? Because listening is never neutral. It’s cultural. It’s neurological. It’s ego-logical.

In high-context societies like Japan, listeners may wait a full 8 seconds before replying.

In low-context American culture, we wait approximately… half a comma.

This isn’t rudeness — it’s systems at work. Cultural wiring. Conversational choreography. And yes, sometimes caffeinated impatience. The problem? On the global stage, the quick interrupter doesn’t always win. Sometimes they just win the gold medal in Missing the Point.

Human brains are wired for pattern detection and prediction often at the expense of actual listening. We hear three words and decide we know the ending. It’s like binge-watching someone’s sentence and skipping to season finale conclusions.

Social media isn’t helping. It trains attention to broadcast, not receive. We “share our truth” at Olympic speed. Meanwhile, deep listening quietly packs its bags and leaves the chat.

Every hostage negotiator, CEO, teacher, team lead - and frankly, anyone who has ever said “That’s not what I meant” - should study listening like a survival skill. Because ignoring it is like trying to swim with concrete shoes… while giving a TED Talk.

Dr. Laura flips assumptions upside down gently, intelligently, and occasionally with a smile that says, “You thought you were listening, didn’t you?”

She shares with Rona and Jeffrey:

• The cost of “listening and walking away” as a leader (politicians and managers… this one may sting a little).

• How values, high/low-context communication, and social expectations shape the way we hear or hilariously mishear one another.

• Why active listening and psychological safety may have started in therapy, but now belong in boardrooms.

• And why Israelis, New Yorkers, Italians - you name it - interrupt not out of disrespect, but because of centuries of cultural rhythm. In some cultures, overlapping isn’t interruption, it’s enthusiasm with hand gestures.

If you’ve ever finished someone’s sentence incorrectly…

If you’ve ever thought, “That’s not what I said!”

If you’ve ever been in a meeting where everyone nodded and nothing changed…

This episode is your gentle intervention.

Why not start your listening improvement plan immediately by tuning into this episode and reinforcing the message by liking, sharing, following, and subscribing? If nothing else, it gives your jaw and tongue a well-earned rest.

Because sometimes the most powerful voice in the room… is the one that pauses.

Here are a few other popular episodes you’ll enjoy listening to:

• Episode 205 – High Ideals Plus Human Habits Brings on a Hypocrisy Hangover

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5O9pVnMLtrVRHfSrkE3dZn

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0ffpbkA2n8

• Episode 204 – The Great Exhaustion

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/bizsouls-episode-204

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bizsouls204

• Episode 202 – Persuasion, Negotiation & Sales in a Chaotic World

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/bizsouls-episode-202

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bizsouls202

• Episode 201 – Bayes, Brains, and the Internet Illusion

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5EOyx44QYvEkrzE6Fg6fA8 (placeholder)

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@biz-souls3926

• Episode 139 – Play for Better Living!

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5EOyx44QYvEkrzE6Fg6fA8

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdUd8cU1JXg

Our never-say-never, ever-expanding, occasionally echoing hosts Rona Lewis and Jeffrey Hansler are joined by the luminous, luggage-light, lava-dodging force of nature known as Alexis Boyett.

This episode doesn’t travel. It transcends.

Alexis has done something most people threaten to do after a bad Tuesday — she actually stepped off the treadmill of funnels, followers, and forced expansion… and walked straight into the world with a suitcase and a sovereign soul.

Social media? Softened. Marketing metrics? Melted. Expansion strategy? Exhaled.

Instead, she chose:

• Healing children (including the fully-grown ones in business attire)

• Creating a life of desire instead of default

• Watching over “the character of Alexis Boyett” like she’s both actor and audience

And yes… contemplating the noble origins of plastic — once intended to save elephants from becoming billiard balls.

Because on Biz-Souls, we do not avoid paradox. We pack it.

Alexis lives like a modern-day metaphysical nomad — guided by joy, curiosity, and a fierce dedication to her inner child… while also making money and making meaning. Because enlightenment doesn’t have to be broke.

Her enthusiasm is contagious. Her mind? Infinite.

Her stories? If we hadn’t stopped recording, we’d still be mid-sentence somewhere between Bali and a crosswalk full of imaginary lava.

Speaking of lava…

If you see Alexis at an intersection, don’t question it. Step carefully. There may be molten metaphors flowing between the painted lines.

Meanwhile, in the parallel universe of production challenges…

Jeffrey once again attempted technological heroics to raise Rona’s audio level. Buttons were pushed. Cables were questioned. Frequencies were negotiated. The sound, however, remained sovereign.

Rona’s volume: mysteriously metaphysical. Jeffrey’s determination: heroic but humbled.

The lesson? Sometimes the universe mutes you for growth.

This episode is wide-ranging, world-traveling, and wildly alive.

It’s about:

• Inner children and outer journeys

• Financial success without spiritual shrinkage

• Letting the algorithm go

• Becoming the observer of your own becoming

And remembering that life is not a brand strategy.

It’s an adventure. So, like, ensue (yes, ensue), share, subscribe, and bring your suitcase, because this is Biz-Souls with L.E.S.S.

Less noise. Less nonsense. Less narrowing. More living.

Other Biz-Souls Episodes:

Episode 206: The Missing Link Between What You Mean and Deliver is Congruency

• https://open.spotify.com/show/bizsouls-episode-206

• https://youtube.com/watch?v=bizsouls206

Episode 205: Hypocrisy Hunted Hilariously

• https://open.spotify.com/show/bizsouls-episode-205

• https://youtube.com/watch?v=bizsouls205

Episode 204: The Great Exhaustion

• https://open.spotify.com/show/bizsouls-episode-204

• https://youtube.com/watch?v=bizsouls204

Episode 202: In Today’s Chaotic World – Persuasion, Negotiation & Sales Still Win

• https://open.spotify.com/show/bizsouls-episode-202

• https://youtube.com/watch?v=bizsouls202

Our dynamic duo, Rona Lewis and Jeffrey Hansler, are back — and this time they’re tackling the slippery, sneaky, side-eye subject of incongruency.

Fresh off their episode on hypocrisy, they double down and drill deep into what happens when leaders say one thing… and their body language, bonus structure, or boardroom behavior says another.

If you’ve ever taken a body language class, you’ve likely seen the now-legendary clip of President Clinton saying, “I did not have sexual relations with that woman.” It’s practically Body Language 101. Experts love dissecting micro-expressions, eye movements, and vocal tone from that moment.

Why? Because incongruency is detectable.

When words and physiology don’t match, trust erodes faster than a corporate mission statement during layoffs. And that’s where Rona expertly yanks the conversation back to business.

The duo explores real-world organizational congruency, including Sears, once a retail titan and now reduced to five remaining retail locations. Next, they move on to the pseudo-partnership between Vistage, a global CEO advisory organization built around peer accountability and leadership development, and the National Speakers Association, a professional association built on elevating the speaking industry.

What happens when brands losses alignment between innovation, leadership decisions, and marketplace reality? Congruency matters. Nostalgia doesn’t pay the rent.

When incongruency isn’t dealt with, it becomes a contagion affecting everyone in the organization. How do your values, credibility, and performance standards align? Your business is your message and incongruency is especially expensive.

Once you become familiar with the signs of incongruency in organizations and in leadership, spotting Incongruency is as easy as spotting a red wine stain on a white suit.

While Rona reminds us that leadership is about alignment and not perfect posture, she quickly moves on to her favorite topics of play, leadership, and living your values.

Congruency isn’t a PR strategy, it’s a performance strategy.

This episode matters in a world of corporate virtue signaling and social media over-messaging, because leaders who workshop their authenticity with congruency create a competitive advantage. When your words, actions, incentives, and culture match people feel it. When they don’t people feel that even faster.

And as always, Rona and Jeffrey don’t just talk about what’s right and wrong in business, they demonstrate it live complete with quick pivots, playful tension, and the occasional “Wait… what did you just say?”

Other Biz-Souls Episodes You’ll Enjoy:

Episode 204: The Great Exhaustion

• https://open.spotify.com/show/bizsouls-episode-204

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bizsouls204

Episode 203: Hypocrisy Hunted Hilariously

• https://open.spotify.com/show/bizsouls-episode-203

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bizsouls203

Episode 202: Persuasion, Negotiation & Sales in a Chaotic World

• https://open.spotify.com/show/bizsouls-episode-202

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bizsouls202

Episode 201: Critical Thinking Collapse

• https://open.spotify.com/show/bizsouls-episode-201

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bizsouls201

If you’ve ever sat through a leadership meeting where “transparency” felt foggy or heard a CEO say “people first” while cutting development budgets or watched someone deny something their eyebrows already confessed, this episode is for you.

Jump in. Follow. Subscribe. Become part of the Biz-Souls family — where congruency isn’t just discussed… It’s practiced (most of the time).

Our hyper-handy hosts, Rona Lewis and Jeffrey Hansler, are officially harried by hypocrisy—and instead of hiding it, hedging it, or pretending they’re holier-than-thou, they do the most Biz-Souls thing possible…

They hit record.

In this episode, hypocrisy haunts the halls of business, leadership, culture, and the occasional hotel hallway of a conference center. From policies that preach one thing and practice another, to leaders who high-road in theory but hair-pin turn in reality, hypocrisy is everywhere—habitual, hardwired, and horrifyingly human.

And here’s the hitch:

Hypocrisy isn’t just a hiccup.

It’s a habit.

A high-friction, highly sticky, culturally-handed-down habit.

So rather than hurl stones from a glass headquarters, Rona and Jeffrey hold up the mirror—and yes, they spot a few of their own historical, hypothetical, and highly-possible future hypocrisies along the way. Because the minute they claim they’re done being hypocritical…

Boom. Hypocrisy, redux.

This episode is a head-tilting, heart-tugging, occasionally hilarious look at why being hyper-aware of our contradictions might be the first honest step toward actually handling them.

No hollow heroics.

No high horses.

Just humanity, humility, and a healthy dose of “yup… been there.”

You might also want to revisit these high-impact, head-stretching Biz-Souls episodes that pair beautifully with today’s hypocrisy hypothesis:

Episode 137: Just Say No! Maybe.

• https://open.spotify.com/episode/5O9pVnMLtrVRHfSrkE3dZn

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0ffpbkA2n8

Episode 139: Play for Better Living!

• https://open.spotify.com/episode/5EOyx44QYvEkrzE6Fg6fA8

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdUd8cU1JXg

Episode 127: Tickled About Piccles!

• https://open.spotify.com/episode/1m0lrAjU0EoA0YpWqq9n9K

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQNREqXwV8k

Episode 125: How to Retrain Your Brain

• https://open.spotify.com/episode/6Sl8zVZB6Jx5DMHg8lN9aH

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA4P9HvbKVI

Welcome to The Great Exhaustion. No, not a new Netflix docuseries, just your life… and ours!

Biz-Souls’ dynamic duo Rona Lewis and Jeffrey Hansler pull up a couple of chairs, rub their temples, and talk candidly about the bone-deep fatigue that seems to have settled over… well, everyone.

Change fatigue. Decision fatigue. “Another email?” fatigue.

You’re exhausted. We’re exhausted. The whole room is exhausted. Hey, are we borrowing lines from Rocky Horror?

But this isn’t just whining into the void.

Rona and Jeffrey unpack why people are so depleted right now — emotionally, mentally, and professionally — and what happens when constant uncertainty, nonstop change, and low-grade anxiety become the background noise of work and life.

They explore:

• Recognizing that exhaustion isn’t a personal failure, it’s a signal

• How stress quietly rewires our habits, reactions, and relationships

• The difference between being “busy” and being burned out

• Why powering through is no longer a strategy — it’s a warning sign

This episode isn’t about fixing everything. It’s about fixing what you can and planning for a healthier future.

If you’ve been feeling worn down, stretched thin, or quietly asking, “Is it just me?” — it’s not. And you’re very much among friends.

Pull up a chair. Take a breath. Welcome to The Great Exhaustion.

Batten down the hatches and buckle your braincells, Biz-Souls is back with an episode that declares unequivocally that AI is here to stay. Not because a robot whispered it in binary. Oh no, not that, because Jeffrey Hansler and Rona Lewis looked it square in the silicone eyes and asked, “So what?”

Yes, folks, the future of work has officially RSVP’d, crashed the party uninvited, and now refuses to leave until someone explains the TPS reports. And who better to tackle this delightful existential menace than two hosts who treat accountability like a competitive sport, and AI job numbers like hot wings at a data buffet. They’ll dissect the jobs “lost,” the jobs “gained,” and the jobs that probably just wandered into the server room and never came out.

Spoiler alert: No leadership position is safe. If your job description involves more than photocopies and collecting conference room snacks, you might already be obsolete — according to the AI overlords – though our we wouldn’t trust them either. Sharpen your skills, polish your purpose, and if you’re the last one in the office — do everyone a favor and turn off both the lights and the AI servers.

Listen. Laugh. Learn. Share. Subscribe. And most importantly, survive the bots with your soul (and your sense of humor) intact. Because if life gives you lemons, Biz-Souls shows you how to make AI-infused lemonade and still come out on top.

Recommended Biz-Souls Episodes:

• Episode 127 – Tickled About Piccles!

o https://open.spotify.com/episode/1m0lrAjU0EoA0YpWqq9n9K

• Episode 125 – How to Retrain Your Brain

o https://open.spotify.com/episode/6Sl8zVZB6Jx5DMHg8lN9aH

• Episode 137 – Just Say No! Maybe…

o https://open.spotify.com/episode/5O9pVnMLtrVRHfSrkE3dZn

• Episode 139 – Play for Better Living!

o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdUd8cU1JXg

• Episode 127 – Tickled About Piccles!

o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQNREqXwV8k

• Episode 136 – Mature Gnome with Ego

o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sl6sKzNUWTo

As you can tell by our homophonic title, this one’s got classic Biz-Souls energy all over it. Listen in to this episode for some fun, high-octane, tongue-in-cheek, comments on the 2026 outlook for professional and not so professional speakers.

In this episode, your ever-dependable Titans of Fact, Opinion, and Digression dive headfirst into the AMEX Global Meetings & Events Forecast to decode what the future of speaking might look like… and what it will definitely argue about.

As is tradition, the conversation at once goes off the rails in a warm, trustworthy, Biz-Souls way.

Highlights include:

• A spirited breakdown of what actually excites audiences verses what planners hope excites audiences

• A stroll through the 2026 trend jungle featuring engagement, experience, and possibly light chanting

• Jeffrey’s legendary story of the time he turned an audience of 300 into 5 in under 30 minutes (a masterclass in unintentional minimalism)

• The first official episode in the new, shorter, tighter, less-digressive-but-still-definitely-digressive format

• And… a major announcement that will thrill and terrify meeting planners worldwide:

Jeffrey Hansler is back on the speaking circuit, fighting a never-ending battle for truth, justice, and the American way (and occasionally hotel AV teams).

Also featured: one of our favorite listener comments ever:

“The show is real — not perfect, just real and heartfelt.”

Which pretty much sums up Biz-Souls:

Not polished. Not pre-packaged. Just congruent, consistent, transparent, and occasionally dangerous to convention.

If you want predictions, perspective, and proof that even professionals can wander gloriously off-topic, this episode is for you.