by Dr. William E Hamilton, Jr., Ph.D. 9 January 2026
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
There appears to be considerable discussion about ethics in relation to AI, but not enough on governance mechanisms. This synthesis addresses critical gaps in current AI governance literature: who sets and enforces AI governance policy, how AI enables (rather than defines) strategic vision, and how organizations operationalize AI decisions without creating C-suite overhead (too many executives).
Recent Wall Street Journal articles from Deloitte describe AI governance building blocks (January 7, 2025) and an “AI ROI Triumvirate” of CIO, CFO, and CSO (January 8, 2025). While valuable, these frameworks, in my opinion, don’t clarify the governance authority hierarchy, improperly position AI as a strategy rather than an enabler, unnecessarily inflate the C-suite structure, and lack practical execution mechanisms.
This document presents the CIWLEARNING organizational model, illustrated through the fictitious Hamilton Information System (HIS) case study (formerly TECHCORE). This model addresses the gaps through:
- Clear framing: AI enables business strategy (doesn’t replace it)
- Rationalized C-suite: CEO, CFO, COO, CHRO, CTO (5 executives, not 9+)
- Strategic coordination without CSO (Chief Strategy Officer): COO provides strategy plus “muscle,” Management Committee (MC) coordinates, Executive Steering Committee (ESC) decides
- Operational placement of IT: VP of IT under COO (not separate CIO (rationalized/cut))
- Clear CHRO vs CTO delineation: CHRO owns HR systems/policy, CTO owns talent development/capability
- Dual governance structure: MC (operational) + ESC (strategic) with clear decision flows
- AI Ad Hoc Committee (under the MC): Focused forum to develop AI proposals before ESC review
- Governance authority: Board → CEO → C-Suite → MC → AI Ad Hoc→ Execution
Key Insight: You don’t need a “triumvirate” or separate CSO when you have strong operational leadership (COO) with tactical muscle, clear talent development (CTO), and structured governance (MC/ESC). The model requires clear role boundaries—especially between CHRO (HR systems) and CTO (talent development); this part can be sticky!
PART 1: The Three-Layer Framework
LEVEL 1: BUSINESS STRATEGIC VISION
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ LEVEL 1: BUSINESS STRATEGIC VISION │
│ (What We're Trying to Achieve) │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Hamilton Information System (HIS) EXAMPLE: │
│ "Become the leading global provider of IT solutions │
│ through operational excellence, innovation, and a │
│ diverse, high-performing workforce." │
│ │
│ WHO OWNS: CEO sets, Board approves/oversees │
│ WHO COORDINATES: COO operationalizes, MC coordinates │
│ WHO DECIDES: ESC makes major strategic decisions │
│ │
│ NOTE: AI is NOT mentioned. This is pure business. │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘LEVEL 2: AI AS ENABLER
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ LEVEL 2: AI AS ENABLER (Data-driven) │
│ (How AI Helps Us Get There) │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ HIS EXAMPLES: │
│ • AI-powered talent analytics (build diverse workforce) │
│ • AI financial modeling (optimize pricing/margins) │
│ • AI project management (improve delivery timelines) │
│ • AI customer insights (drive innovation) │
│ │
│ WHO FACILITATES: AI Ad Hoc Committee (VP of IT chairs) │
│ WHO COORDINATES: MC reviews for operational fit │
│ WHO DECIDES: ESC approves major investments │
│ WHO VALIDATES: CFO vets financial viability │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘LEVEL 3: AI GOVERNANCE (CTO ROLE CLARIFIED)
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ LEVEL 3: AI GOVERNANCE │
│ (How We Use AI Responsibly) │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ DELOITTE'S 5 BUILDING BLOCKS: │
│ 1. Align risk management & AI governance │
│ 2. Establish AI posture │
│ 3. Identify inventory & potential risks │
│ 4. Enable risk mitigation & monitoring │
│ 5. Develop continuous improvement mindset │
│ │
│ WHO OWNS WHAT (CRITICAL DELINEATION): │
│ │
│ CHRO (HR Systems & Policy Governance): │
│ • AI governance policies and compliance │
│ • HR system alignment with AI initiatives │
│ • Performance management systems │
│ • Talent acquisition processes │
│ • Employee relations and labor law compliance │
│ • Compensation and benefits systems │
│ │
│ CTO (Talent Development & Organizational Capability): │
│ • AI literacy training and development programs │
│ • Leadership development for AI-era decision-making │
│ • Domain expertise cultivation (prompt engineering) │
│ • DEIB strategy and implementation │
│ • Learning culture and psychological safety │
│ • Succession planning and leadership pipeline │
│ • Organizational capability assessment │
│ • Change management and adoption support │
│ │
│ VP of IT (Technical Controls): │
│ • AI risk monitoring systems │
│ • Incident tracking and classification │
│ • Technical guardrails and security │
│ • AI inventory management (key) │
│ • Platform governance and vendor management │
│ │
│ CFO (Financial Oversight): │
│ • AI investment tracking and ROI measurement │
│ • Budget allocation and financial controls │
│ • Cost-benefit analysis of governance measures │
│ • Financial risk assessment │
│ │
│ WHO MONITORS: MC monthly, ESC quarterly │
│ WHO ENFORCES: COO ensures operational discipline │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘KEY STRATEGIC QUESTIONS:
CHRO = HR SYSTEMS (the infrastructure, policies, processes)
- “Are our HR policies compliant with AI regulations?”
- “Do our performance management systems support AI adoption?”
- “Is our talent acquisition process aligned with AI needs?”
CTO = TALENT DEVELOPMENT (the people, capabilities, culture)
- “Do our leaders know how to use AI effectively?”
- “Are our people developing the skills needed for AI-enabled work?”
- “Do we have a learning culture that supports AI experimentation?” (key)
OVERLAP/COLLABORATION:
- CTO designs/facilitates leadership development programs → CHRO ensures they’re integrated into HR systems
- CTO identifies capability gaps → CHRO and HRIS adjusts talent acquisition to fill gaps
- CTO facilitates building DEIB strategy → CHRO ensures HR policies support it
- Both report to CEO (or CTO may report to CHRO in some models)
PART 2: CHRO vs CTO – Detailed Role Clarification
The Human Capital Development Challenge
As organizations integrate AI, human capital development becomes critical—but who owns what? Without clarity, CHRO and CTO can step on each other’s toes, creating confusion, duplication, or gaps.
The CIWLEARNING/HIS Model Solution:
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ HUMAN CAPITAL DEVELOPMENT │
│ (Two Complementary Roles) │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
↓
┌────────────────┴────────────────┐
│ │
┌───────▼────────┐ ┌────────▼──────────┐
│ CHRO │ │ CTO │
│ (HR Systems) │ │ (Talent Dev) │
│ │ │ │
│ "The │ │ "The Capability │
│ Infrastructure"│ │ Builder" │
└────────────────┘ └───────────────────┘CHRO: HR Systems & Policy Governance
OWNS:
1. HR Policy & Compliance
- AI usage policies for employees
- Data privacy and security policies (GDPR, CCPA compliance)
- Labor law compliance (AI in hiring, performance reviews)
- Employee handbook updates for AI tools
- Regulatory compliance (EEO, ADA, etc.)
2. HR Systems & Processes
- HRIS (Human Resource Information System) selection and management
- Performance management system design
- Compensation and benefits administration
- Talent acquisition processes and ATS (Applicant Tracking System)
- Onboarding and offboarding processes
3. Organizational Structure
- Reporting relationships and org chart
- Job architecture and leveling
- Span of control and organizational design
- Workforce planning (headcount, budget)
4. Employee Relations
- Employee complaints and investigations
- Conflict resolution
- Union relations (if applicable)
- Exit interviews and termination processes
5. HR Analytics (Systems Focus)
- HRIS data integrity
- HR metrics and dashboards (turnover, time-to-hire, cost-per-hire)
- Compliance reporting (EEO-1, VETS-4212)
RELATIONSHIP TO AI GOVERNANCE:
- Ensures AI usage complies with HR policies
- Updates HR systems to support AI initiatives
- Manages legal/compliance risks of AI in HR
- Member of MC (provides HR policy perspective)
CTO: Talent Development & Organizational Capability
OWNS:
1. Leadership Development
- Executive coaching and development programs
- Leadership competency models
- Succession planning for critical roles
- High-potential identification and development
- Leadership pipeline management
2. Learning & Development
- Training program alignment, design, and delivery
- Learning management system (LMS) strategy (not administration—that’s COO and VP IT)
- Skills development and upskilling initiatives
- Professional development and career pathing
- Certification and credentialing programs
3. AI Capability Building (VP IT assist)
- AI literacy training for all employees
- Prompt engineering and AI tool usage training
- Domain expertise cultivation
- Data literacy and analytics skills development
- Change management for AI adoption
4. DEIB Strategy & Implementation (Coordinate with CHRO)
- DEIB strategy development
- Inclusive leadership training
- ERG (Employee Resource Group) support and sponsorship
- Bias interruption training
- Cultural competence development
- DEIB metrics and accountability
5. Organizational Culture & Learning (Coordinate with CHRO)
- Learning culture and psychological safety
- Innovation culture and experimentation mindset
- Feedback culture and continuous improvement
- Knowledge management and organizational learning
- Change readiness and agility
6. Strategic Talent Analytics (Capability Focus, with action)
- Skills gap analysis
- Leadership bench strength assessment
- DEIB pipeline analysis
- Capability maturity assessments
- Learning effectiveness measurement
7. Strategic Talent Leaders (STLs)
- Manages STLs who partner with business units
- Ensures talent strategy aligns with business strategy
- Develops talent solutions for business challenges
RELATIONSHIP TO AI GOVERNANCE:
- Builds organizational capability to use AI responsibly
- Develops leaders who can make AI-enabled decisions
- Creates learning culture that supports AI governance (incident reporting, continuous improvement)
- Ensures DEIB objectives are advanced (not undermined) by AI
CHRO-CTO Collaboration Model
SCENARIO: HIS Implements AI-Powered Talent Analytics
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ CTO LEADS: │
│ • Assesses organizational capability gaps │
│ • Designs training on AI talent analytics usage │
│ • Develops leadership competency for data-driven │
│ talent decisions │
│ • Creates DEIB strategy leveraging AI insights │
│ • Builds learning culture for AI experimentation │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
↓
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ CHRO SUPPORTS: │
│ • Updates HR policies for AI tool usage │
│ • Ensures HRIS integrates with AI analytics platform │
│ • Manages vendor contracts with VP IT and data privacy |
│ compliance |
│ • Updates performance management system to leverage │
│ AI insights │
│ • Ensures talent acquisition process uses AI responsibly │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
↓
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ JOINT OWNERSHIP: │
│ • Talent strategy: CTO designs, CHRO operationalizes │
│ • DEIB goals: CTO sets strategy, CHRO embeds in systems │
│ • Leadership development: CTO designs, CHRO tracks in │
│ HRIS │
│ • Change management: CTO leads adoption, CHRO manages │
│ employee relations issues │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘Decision Rights Matrix: CHRO vs CTO
┌──────────────────────┬────────────┬────────────┬──────────┐
│ DECISION │ CTO LEADS │ CHRO LEADS │ JOINT │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ Leadership dev │ ✓ │ │ │
│ programs │ │ │ │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ DEIB strategy │ ✓ │ │ │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ AI literacy training │ ✓ │ │ │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ Succession planning │ ✓ │ │ │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ Learning culture │ ✓ │ │ │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ HR policies │ │ ✓ │ │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ HRIS selection │ │ ✓ │ │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ Compensation │ │ ✓ │ │
│ structure │ │ │ │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ Compliance │ │ ✓ │ │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ Employee relations │ │ ✓ │ │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ Talent strategy │ │ │ ✓ │
│ (vision) │ │ │ │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ Talent acquisition │ Input │ Execute │ ✓ │
│ strategy │ (needs) │ (process) │ │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ Performance mgmt │ Input │ System │ ✓ │
│ approach │ (coaching) │ (admin) │ │
├──────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼──────────┤
│ Org design │ Input │ Execute │ ✓ │
│ │ (needs) │ (structure)│ │
└──────────────────────┴────────────┴────────────┴──────────┘Reporting Structure Options
Option 1: CTO Reports to CEO (Peer to CHRO) (Recommended)
CEO
│
┌────┼────┬────┬────┐
│ │ │ │ │
CFO COO CHRO CTO │
(other, e.g., VP IT)PROS:
- CTO has equal voice at C-suite table
- Talent development elevated to strategic priority
- Clear separation from HR administrative functions
CONS:
- Potential coordination challenges with CHRO
- Requires strong CEO facilitation of CHRO-CTO relationship
Option 2: CTO Reports to CHRO
CEO
│
┌────┼────┬────┐
│ │ │ │
CFO COO CHRO (other)
│
CTOPROS:
- Clear hierarchy for all human capital functions
- CHRO coordinates HR systems + talent development
- Reduces C-suite count (if needed)
CONS:
- CTO may lack strategic voice
- Talent development may be subordinated to HR operations
- Succession planning may not get C-suite visibility
CIWLEARNING/HIS MODEL RECOMMENDATION: Option 1 (CTO as C-suite peer)
RATIONALE:
- Talent development and organizational capability are strategic priorities (not administrative functions)
- CTO needs C-suite authority and their ears to drive DEIB, leadership development, and AI capability building
- In AI governance, CTO’s role is too critical to subordinate under CHRO
- CEO facilitates CHRO-CTO coordination through ESC and MC
GUARDRAILS:
- Quarterly CHRO-CTO alignment meetings (facilitated by CEO if needed)
- Clear decision rights matrix (see above)
- Joint presentations to ESC on talent matters
- MC membership for both (CHRO standing member, CTO as needed)
PART 3: Updated Organizational Chart
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ BOARD │
│ • Approves governance framework & strategic vision. │
│ Necessarily does not initiate, but approves │
│ • Sets risk appetite │
│ • Reviews CFO escalations │
│ • Holds CEO accountable (really!) │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
↓
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ CEO (or Deputy) │
│ • Sets strategic vision │
│ • Chairs ESC │
│ • Chairs MC (or delegates to COO with consent) │
│ • Makes final decisions │
│ • Facilitates CHRO-CTO coordination │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
↓
┌────────────────────┼─────────────────┬──────────┐
│ │ │ │
┌───▼───┐ ┌─────────▼────────┐ ┌────▼─────┐ ┌────▼────┐
│ CFO │ │ COO │ │ CHRO │ │ CTO │
│ │ │ │ │ │ │ │
│Capital│ │"The Muscle" │ │HR │ │Talent │
│Alloca-│ │Operations │ │Systems & │ │Dev & │
│tor │ │Integrator │ │Policy │ │Organi- │
│ │ │ │ │ │ │zational │
│Dissent│ │Facilitates MC │ │ │ │Capabil- │
│Power │ │(in CEO absence) │ │MC Member │ │ity │
└───────┘ └──────────────────┘ └──────────┘ └─────────┘
│
│ (Reports to COO)
│
┌─────▼──────┐
│ VP of IT │
│ │
│ • Chairs │
│ AI Ad Hoc│
│ • ESC ex │
│ officio │
└────────────┘
DECISION-MAKING BODIES:
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ EXECUTIVE STEERING COMMITTEE (ESC) │
│ Chair: CEO (or Deputy) │
│ Members: CFO, COO, CHRO, CTO │
│ Ex Officio: VP of IT (when technology on agenda) │
│ Frequency: Monthly or Quarterly, as necessary │
│ Role: Strategic decisions, governance oversight │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE (MC) │
│ Chair: CEO/Deputy (primary), COO (backup w/ consent) │
│ Standing Members: CHRO, VP of IT, CFO/VP Finance, COO │
│ As-needed Members: CTO, Dept heads, program managers │
│ Frequency: Weekly or Bi-weekly (no overload!) │
│ Role: Operational coordination, initiative refinement │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ AI AD HOC COMMITTEE │
│ Chair: VP of IT │
│ Members: Finance rep, HR rep, Ops rep, SMEs, sponsor │
│ Frequency: As needed (called by chair) │
│ Role: AI initiative development before MC review │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘KEY NOTES:
- CHRO = Standing MC Member (HR systems perspective in operational coordination)
- CTO = As-Needed MC Member (when talent development on agenda)
- Both CHRO and CTO = ESC Members (both have strategic voice)
- CEO facilitates CHRO-CTO coordination (ensures no gaps or overlaps)
PART 4: Role Definitions
CTO (Chief Talent Officer)
LEVEL: C-Suite (peer to CFO, COO, CHRO)
REPORTS TO: CEO
PRIMARY MANDATE: Build organizational capability to execute business strategy, with particular focus on leadership development, DEIB, and AI-readiness
OWNS:
1. Leadership Development & Succession Planning
- Executive coaching and development programs
- Leadership competency model design
- Succession planning for C-suite and critical roles
- High-potential identification and development
- Leadership pipeline management
- 360-degree feedback processes
2. Organizational Capability Building for AI
- AI literacy training for all employees
- Prompt engineering and domain expertise cultivation
- Leadership development for AI-era decision-making
- Data literacy and analytics skills development
- Change management for AI adoption
- Learning culture and psychological safety
3. DEIB Strategy & Implementation
- DEIB strategic vision and goals
- Inclusive leadership training and development
- ERG support and sponsorship
- Bias interruption training
- Cultural competence development
- DEIB metrics, accountability, and reporting
4. Learning & Development Strategy
- Training program design (leadership, technical, soft skills)
- Learning culture development
- Professional development and career pathing
- Skills gap analysis and upskilling initiatives
- Learning effectiveness measurement
5. Strategic Talent Leaders (STLs) Management
- Manages STLs who partner with business units
- Ensures talent development aligns with business strategy
- Develops talent solutions for business challenges
6. Organizational Culture & Change
- Culture of continuous improvement and learning
- Innovation culture and experimentation mindset
- Change readiness assessment and support
- Knowledge management and organizational learning
RELATIONSHIP TO AI GOVERNANCE:
- Critical role: Builds the organizational capability for AI governance to work in practice
- Ensures leaders can use AI responsibly and effectively
- Develops learning culture that supports incident reporting and continuous improvement (Deloitte Building Block 5)
- Ensures AI initiatives advance (not undermine) DEIB objectives
- Provides capability readiness assessments to ESC for AI initiatives
ESC ROLE: Standing member, provides capability perspective
MC ROLE: As-needed member (when talent development on agenda)
COLLABORATES WITH:
- CHRO: CTO designs programs → CHRO integrates into HR systems
- COO: CTO assesses capability → COO adjusts operational plans
- VP of IT: CTO designs AI training → VP of IT provides technical content
CHRO (Chief Human Resources Officer)
LEVEL: C-Suite (peer to CFO, COO, CTO)
REPORTS TO: CEO
PRIMARY MANDATE: Ensure HR systems, policies, and processes support business strategy and comply with legal/regulatory requirements
OWNS:
1. HR Policy & Compliance
- AI usage policies for employees
- Data privacy and security policies
- Labor law compliance
- Employee handbook
- Regulatory compliance (EEO, ADA, GDPR, CCPA)
2. HR Systems & Processes
- HRIS (Human Resource Information System)
- Performance management system administration
- Compensation and benefits administration
- Talent acquisition processes and ATS
- Onboarding and offboarding processes
3. Organizational Structure & Workforce Planning
- Org chart and reporting relationships
- Job architecture and leveling
- Span of control
- Headcount planning and budget
4. Employee Relations
- Employee complaints and investigations
- Conflict resolution
- Union relations (if applicable)
- Exit interviews and termination processes
5. HR Analytics (Systems Focus)
- HRIS data integrity
- HR operational metrics (turnover, time-to-hire, cost-per-hire)
- Compliance reporting
RELATIONSHIP TO AI GOVERNANCE:
- Critical role: Ensures AI usage complies with HR policies and legal requirements
- Updates HR systems to support AI initiatives
- Manages legal/compliance risks of AI in HR
- Ensures data privacy and security in AI-powered HR tools
- Standing MC member (provides HR policy perspective)
ESC ROLE: Standing member, provides HR systems and compliance perspective
MC ROLE: Standing member (HR policy and systems coordination)
COLLABORATES WITH:
- CTO: CHRO operationalizes CTO’s talent development programs in HR systems
- CFO: CHRO ensures HR costs align with budget
- VP of IT: CHRO ensures HRIS integrates with AI platforms
PART 5: Practical Scenarios Showing CHRO-CTO Collaboration
Scenario 1: AI-Powered Talent Analytics Implementation
SITUATION: HIS wants to implement AI-powered talent analytics to improve DEIB outcomes (15% increase in diverse leadership over 3 years).
CTO LEADS:
Phase 1: Capability Assessment
- Uses AI to identify diversity gaps in the leadership pipeline (may involve HRIS)
- Prompts AI: “Analyze current diversity metrics and identify key bottlenecks” (may be more detailed)
- AI shows engagement drop among diverse employees in middle management
- CTO designs intervention: executive mentorship program for underrepresented groups for impact and ROI
Phase 2: Program Development
- Designs/facilitates mentorship program curriculum
- Develops training for mentors on inclusive leadership
- Creates/facilitates metrics for program success (engagement, promotion rates)
- Conducts change management planning
Phase 3: Leadership Development
- Facilitates executives on how to use AI talent analytics responsibly
- Develops prompt engineering skills for talent leaders
- Ensures bias testing of AI recommendations
CHRO SUPPORTS:
Phase 1: Policy & Systems
- Reviews AI talent analytics vendor contract for data privacy compliance
- Updates HR policies for AI tool usage
- Ensures HRIS data feeds into AI platform securely
- Confirms compliance with GDPR, CCPA
Phase 2: Process Integration
- Integrates mentorship program into performance management system
- Updates talent acquisition process to track diverse candidate pipelines
- Ensures compensation systems don’t inadvertently penalize diverse employees
Phase 3: Operational Execution
- Manages vendor relationship and contract
- Tracks program participation in HRIS
- Handles employee relations issues if they arise
- Produces compliance reports (EEO-1) using AI insights
ESC APPROVAL:
- CTO presents capability assessment and program design
- CHRO confirms policy and systems readiness
- CFO validates $2M investment, $5M ROI projection
- The VP of IT confirms technical feasibility (the COO has oversight).
- COO confirms operational execution plan
- CEO approves
RESULT: CTO owns the talent development intervention, CHRO owns the HR systems that support it. No overlap, clear collaboration.
Scenario 2: AI Governance Learning Culture
SITUATION: HIS needs to create a learning culture where employees feel safe reporting AI failures (Deloitte Building Block 5: continuous improvement mindset).
CTO LEADS:
Phase 1: Culture Assessment
- Assesses current organizational culture
- Identifies barriers to psychological safety
- Designs learning culture interventions
Phase 2: Leadership Development
- Facilitates leaders on blameless post-mortems
- Develops skills for receiving feedback without defensiveness
- Creates “near-miss celebration” practices (before incidents and accidents)
Phase 3: Change Management
- Rolls out learning culture initiatives
- Develops communication campaigns
- Measures culture shift (engagement surveys, incident reporting rates)
CHRO SUPPORTS:
Phase 1: Policy Updates
- Updates employee handbook to protect near-miss reporters
- Ensures whistleblower protections extend to AI incident reporting
- Clarifies that AI incident reporting won’t trigger performance penalties
Phase 2: Systems Integration
- Ensures incident reporting system integrated with HRIS
- Remote or off-station reporting available (ensures anonymity)
- Tracks training completion on psychological safety
- Ensures performance management system doesn’t penalize thoughtful risk-taking
Phase 3: Employee Relations
- Handles any employee complaints related to AI incidents
- Ensures managers don’t retaliate against incident reporters
- Investigates if employee claims unfair treatment after reporting AI issue
RESULT: CTO builds the learning culture, CHRO ensures HR systems and policies protect it. Complementary, not duplicative.
PART 6: Reference Model Clarification
Model Origin vs. Illustration
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ THE CIWLEARNING MODEL │
│ (Organizational Design Framework) │
│ │
│ • Developed by Dr. Bill at CIWLEARNING │
│ • Principles: Rationalized C-suite, strong COO, │
│ clear CHRO-CTO delineation, dual governance │
│ • Real-world test pending, comments appreciated │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
↓
Applied to
↓
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ HAMILTON INFORMATION SYSTEM (HIS) │
│ (Fictional Case Study) │
│ │
│ • Formerly TECHCORE scenario with financials and │
│ evaluation │
│ • IT solutions company facing transformation │
│ • Illustrative financials and operational challenges │
│ • Used to demonstrate CIWLEARNING model in action │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘