One (most likely) was not able to predict a future that would include social media feeds filled with heartbreaking AI-generated videos of feline furballs facing off with Bulldog bullies, losing loved ones to tragedy, or overcoming other trials and tribulations, set to the tune of a Billie Eilish ballad. But nevertheless the AI proliferation of daily life, culture, and work continues.

Employ, the recruiting software company with popular products like Jobvite, Lever, and JazzHR, won’t be positioning itself as the next big AI tech company for recruiting and talent acquisition. According to company execs, it’s shying away from the flashy moniker. That’s because rather than ride the waves of the incessant AI hype, engineers are instead focused on small gains that improve the talent acquisition workflow in its products.

“While we understand and appreciate the technology and what it can do for us, what it can do for our customers, we want to make sure that we’re not doing AI for AI’s sake,” said Dara Brenner, Employ’s CPO.

That’s not to say its platforms aren’t fitted with AI tools to ensure customers are able to seek out and secure that best talent or that the company won’t continue to learn how AI can improve its products. To Brenner, “AI is part of our DNA.”

Keep reading here.—AD

The percentage of small companies offering health insurance declined dramatically over the last three decades as care costs jumped and other options emerged. However, some employers want to provide it despite the expense because they say the benefit makes attracting and retaining employers easier.

The percentage of employers with 25 to 99 workers offering healthcare fell to 77% in 2023 from 81% in 1996, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI). It decreased to 52% from 65% among employers with 10 to 24 employees, and to 23% from 34% among employers with fewer than 10 employees.

The decline in coverage among small employers accounts for the overall drop in employers offering the benefit, the survey found. The percentage of the nonelderly population with employment-based health benefits was roughly 70% from 1970 to 1989. By 2023, that dropped to 60%

Nich Trimper, senior economist at Gusto, said that many small employers believe offering health benefits is the right thing to do. It can also help with business objectives like attracting workers.

Keep reading here.—TA

Leadership is hard work.

But it can be made a little easier with the understanding that people are at the heart of what every company does—that’s according to Candy Valentino, financial analyst and author of The 9% Edge: The Life-Changing Secrets to Create More Revenue for Your Business and More Freedom for Yourself.

Valentino shared with HR Brew a few people lessons from her book.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

What leadership lesson can readers take away from your book?

The HR role is so critically important to all businesses, because regardless of what business industry a founder or an entrepreneur may think they are in, everyone is in the people business. So, no matter what product or service you sell, people [are] truly one of the most important parts of every function in business.

Keep reading here.—MC