The Future Of Less Work What Should an AI Policy in Organizations Include with Rich Veldran
What if the biggest barrier to AI success at work isn’t the technology—but the disconnect between how leaders think it’s being used and what’s actually happening on the ground?
In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Rich Veldran, CEO of GoTo, to unpack new research revealing a striking misalignment: while 87% of IT leaders believe employees understand AI, 82% of employees say they don’t. And more than half admit to using AI for high-stakes tasks they probably shouldn’t.
Together, they explore how this gap emerged, what it means for productivity, and why the real competitive advantage now lies in responsible adoption—not hype. From remote leadership and culture-building to the role of policy, training, and tool design, Rich shares what it takes to lead a fully remote, AI-augmented organization where humans still come first.
If you’re grappling with how to integrate AI, support distributed teams, or lead in a world where tech is outpacing readiness—this episode offers a practical, grounded, and human-centered perspective on what it takes to make AI actually work.
Guest Information:
Rich Veldran serves as GoTo’s Chief Executive Officer where he leads all aspects of the organization, including overall business and go-to-market strategy, technology innovation, customer engagement, operational excellence, and growth initiatives.
Since joining GoTo in 2020 as CFO, he has been instrumental in rearchitecting the company’s business operations, leading a company transformation after it was taken private in 2019 and putting it on the path for renewed growth.
In a career that spans more than 30 years of experience as a business and finance executive, Rich has led strategy, finance, and operations as CFO at Dun & Bradstreet, and held various leadership positions at Boston Consulting Group (BCG), ADP, and Procter & Gamble. He has built world-class operations, delivered meaningful business results, and created significant value for a range of stakeholders.
Rich holds an MBA in Finance from Cornell University and a B.S. in Industrial Engineering and Operations Research from Cornell University.
Link to The Pulse of Work in 2025: http://goto.com/pulse-of-work
Chapters:
00:00 — Future of Work and AI Disconnect
01:40 — Why Choose a Fully Remote Organization?
04:00 — How Remote Work Shapes Product Innovation
06:30 — What AI Adoption Gap Exists in Companies?
09:30 — How To Customize AI for Employees
12:00 — How to Keep Up With AI Tool Changes
13:10 — Why AI Policies Are Essential at Work
15:00 — What Should an AI Policy Include?
17:00 — Policy vs. Training: What’s More Important for AI?
20:30 — How To Design AI Tools Employees Will Use
23:30 — Will AI Replace Jobs or Improve Them?
25:30 — How Small Businesses Can Start Using AI
27:00 — How to Balance Human Leadership and AI