Being a manager is tough these days.

The supervisory ranks feel less capable to have the conversations needed to perform their jobs successfully. In fact, few have actually received guidance on leading their teams. Around 44% of managers say they’ve received management training, according to recently-published Gallup research.

Can role-playing with AI coaches help with that? Some companies hope so. HR Brew spoke with leaders from three companies about how their AI coaching products can help managers navigate the trickier parts of their jobs, like giving a critical performance review or discussing pay raise requests.

For more on these AI coaching tools and what their various features mean for managers, keep reading here.—PM

Even when school’s out for summer, working parents continue to clock in. Summer break can be a headache for caregivers, who may have to cobble together different types of support during these months.

Working parents at AT&T are navigating these challenges for the first time since the company called back employees into the office five days a week. The telecommunications giant had adopted a hybrid model during the pandemic, but began enforcing a full-time RTO policy in January.

To help address employees’ concerns about childcare as they come into the office more often, AT&T decided to pilot a camp program for workers at its Dallas headquarters this summer. The company sees it as one way to test workers’ appetite for on-site daycare, AT&T’s assistant vice president of benefits Matt Phillips told HR Brew.

For more on AT&T’s on-site summer camp program, keep reading here.—CV

People leaders are constantly wrestling with the three Ps of their job: people, processes, and performance. That’s why it makes sense on occasion if one gets more attention than another.

But the Ps of the people profession shouldn’t be an “either/or” option, it should be “both/and,” according to Jeff Smith, chief product officer at the performance management platform 15Five and author of The Meaningful Manager: How to Manage What Matters.

Smith shared with HR Brew how people leaders can strike a balance between the three Ps and more insights from his 2022 book.

For more on practical tips HR leaders can take away from Smith’s book, keep reading here.—MC