When Michael Stopps joined Justworks as the VP of people in January, he did what he always does when starting a new job: He started writing a story. The story, Stopps told HR Brew, outlined the ins-and-outs and the who’s-who of the company, as well as the new-to-him world of HR tech.

“There was an absence of it [a company story], and selfishly, I was new to the organization as well. I wanted to know, ‘What is the story?’” he said. “If I was hearing different stories as I was going through my personal onboarding journey at Justworks, I would then hold a mirror up to the organization and say, ‘Hey, I don’t think it’s very clear.’”

He eventually shared it with his 60-person people ops team to help the recruiters and candidate experience coordinators in their roles.

“Whenever we’re scaling, it means that we’re hiring new folks, and they are becoming interviewers too, and so the necessity to have a singular source of truth that the right people have weighed into” was there, Stopps said.

For more on how McKinsey is adapting to the consulting industry’s AI upheaval, keep reading here.—MC

AI has an uncanny ability to insert itself into countless HR and workplace news stories, executive and corporate memos, and strategic plans. But the shine of new AI tools drastically improving productivity might be fading as organizations continue grappling with implementations.

While corporate leaders and executives are looking to AI investment as a boon for productivity (ultimately cheaper than a bulky headcount), most companies haven’t found the right formula to actually deliver on AI’s promise, according to a new report from CompTIA. It’s a moment that’s proven challenging for HR leaders caught in the fray.

According to CompTIA’s “AI’s Impact on Productivity and the Workforce,” 82% of executives expect AI to deliver major business value, but at the exact same time, 79% companies report that they’ve already had to backtrack on AI initiatives because they didn’t live up to the hype.

For HR leaders, the whiplash is revealing a more familiar challenge: How do you manage people through transformation as plans, impacts, and expectations rapidly change in real time?

For more on the workplace transformation challenge AI creates, keep reading here.—AD

Starbucks recently agreed to settle a case with New York City’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) over violations of the Fair Workweek Law.

The law requires fast-food employers to give workers regular schedules that stay the same each week, and offer them the ability to work more regular hours before hiring new employees. Employers are also prohibited from reducing workers’ hours by more than 15% without giving a just cause or fair business reason.

The DCWP found that Starbucks violated these aspects of the law.

Starbucks agreed to pay nearly $39 million to settle the case, according to a consent decree published on Dec. 1. Officials say the settlement, which will affect some 15,000 Starbucks retail employees, is the largest worker protection settlement in New York City’s history.

For more on the Fair Workweek Law, keep reading here.—CV

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