Last updated on July 29th, 2024 at 11:38 am
A Conversation with Sarah Tilley, Senior Vice President, Global Talent Management and Acquisition at ServiceNow
Managing AI talent planning in 2024 is a highly competitive undertaking with enormous potential consequences, the use of the technology itself, and so many unknowns. In such a new and constantly evolving environment, what does talent management look like and how can it translate into a strategy?
AI itself is helping. “Last year we had close to 1.2 million applicants for jobs,” Sarah Tilley said during a recent conversation.
Tilley is the Senior Vice President, Global Talent Management and Acquisition at ServiceNow, one of the fastest-growing enterprise tech companies in the world, responsible for all things people and skills. After 16 years at Disney, she was looking for her next move and made an enormous shift from one of the best-known consumer brands in the world (“where do you go after Disney?” she said) to a relatively unknown B2B enterprise software company. “So I was like, alright, I want this very unique thing where it’s like, B2B, fast growing. One of my mentors introduced me to Jacqui Canney, who introduced me to Bill.”
She went through what she described as a whirlwind hiring process with CEO Bill McDermott (she was basically hired during her first conversation with him), very focused on what she saw (and sees) as an unprecedented moment in the development of technology. “Bill is just a very interesting combination of being a brilliant capitalist, but also a genuine optimist who believes in people, trusts people, and invests in people.”
Both the potential for growth and the technology itself, and AI’s potential to change talent management, were compelling to Tilley. AI is fundamentally changing talent acquisition by identifying and forecasting gaps in expertise and experience. “What to look for (in people) and what you should be aspiring to do with planning—we’ve been trying to do that for many years in a very manual way.
“But now, with AI, it’s like, okay, here are the gaps you have. Oh, and by the way, here are the experiences, here’s the education, here’s the training that you need.
“And we’re going to serve that up to you in real time: here are people within the organization who are experts in this and can mentor you, etc. Leaders can now get the insights to take an aggregate view to say, alright, what’s ticking up, what’s ticking down, and then respond.” Managing 1.2 million job applications becomes the first role AI plays in the talent pipeline.
Tilley’s strategy includes organic hiring, strategic and planned (driven by AI), and through acquisitions. As anyone who has been through the M&A process will attest, acquisitions are very unpredictable and can be challenging to manage. ServiceNow’s record is very strong; buying ElementAI in 2020 was a game changer for the business. Tilley attributes this to process. “We’re very disciplined.” The company also acquired an AI skills management startup called Hitch in 2022 that has been pivotal to their planning while fostering an agile learning environment that supports targeted learning initiatives.
One of Tilley’s core principles is transparency. The integration of AI in the workplace has raised concerns about job displacement and exclusion. To mitigate these concerns, she advocates for clear communication and active engagement with employees. This approach not only alleviates fears but also fosters a culture of trust and collaboration. “We put out some research that we did in partnership with a company called Pearson and the research really looked at the impact of automation and AI on the global workforce. So how much productivity is it going to open up? How many roles is it going to augment? And how much capacity do we actually need to fulfill the roles that AI and automation are going to create?”
Looking ahead, Tilley envisions a future where AI plays a central role in talent development and organizational growth. She is focused on identifying opportunities for AI adoption at scale, particularly in areas that can unlock new job opportunities. Based on the Pearson report, the U.S. economy will need to add 11.22 million people to the workforce over five years to support GDP growth. AI will be able to do the work of 12.25 million full time employees. An additional 2.04 million tech jobs are needed to maintain emerging technologies, so the net job change is about +1 million, underscoring the enormous and transformative potential of AI.
In Canada, 196.5 thousand additional tech jobs will be required by 2028 to support economic growth, 172.7 thousand projected in the professional, scientific, and technical services industry by 2028 and 11.8 thousand additional systems software developers will be needed by 2028 to meet total demands across the economy.
Tilley’s approach to AI in the workforce is balanced by a deep sense of responsibility. She acknowledges the concerns about massive workforce displacement but remains optimistic about the potential for AI to drive positive change. Her emphasis on creating practice environments with AI technology and coaching reflects her commitment to preparing employees for the future while confronting broader societal challenges, such as aging populations and immigration strategies. “Now we get to apply the innovation to people, so we can say clearly, oh, you know, it used to be weak. We think if you graduate with these skills that you can get employed. Now it’s going to be much easier to quantify. Organizations need this volume of skills with this level of proficiency in these places across the globe. You know, I’ve never been able to really do that. It’s been a lot of guesswork.” Not anymore.
Tilley’s leadership extends beyond her immediate team and even beyond the company. She was recently appointed to the board of an organization called Downtown Center. “It’s in Los Angeles and it’s specifically focused on women who are experiencing homelessness, a cause that is very personal to me.”
Tilley advocates for comprehensive training across all levels of the workforce, particularly for senior leadership. By fostering transparency and open communication, she ensures that ServiceNow remains a leader in talent development and innovation.
And the strategy is undeniably successful; the company’s growth forecasts are huge, with Canada projected as one of several new billion dollar markets. “We’re now at a point where companies have gotten smarter about the fact that the business strategy is the talent strategy. So it doesn’t matter how great this business strategy is, if you don’t have the right talent strategy to support it, it’s not gonna go very far.”
Tilley’s role as Senior Vice President, Global Talent Acquisition and Development at ServiceNow is defined by her visionary approach to integrating AI in the workplace. Her commitment to upskilling, transparency, and employee engagement ensures that ServiceNow not only navigates the challenges posed by technological advancements but also seizes the opportunities they present.
