Recording Academy Moves AI From Wild West to Managed Deployment
The Recording Academy is piloting an internal version of Claude, Anthropic's AI assistant, as part of a structured effort to formalize how the organization behind the Grammys uses artificial intelligence. The pilot involves about 20 senior leaders and is designed to test practical applications while establishing governance and security standards.
Shonda Grant, Chief People and Culture Officer at the Academy, is leading the dual-track effort. She said executives are pushing the initiative from the top, with strong backing from the CEO and president enabling the organization to move quickly from informal usage toward structured deployment.
From restricting to guiding
Employees are already using ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude on their own. Rather than ban these tools, the Academy is building guardrails that align with organizational goals and data security.
Initially, the Academy told employees not to input proprietary information into public AI tools. An internal platform changes that calculation, allowing staff to work with sensitive data within defined boundaries.
Grant compared the current moment to early corporate social media adoption. "It was sort of the wild west," she said. The pace of technology evolution is forcing organizations to adopt iterative oversight models instead of waiting for fully mature frameworks.
HR shifts from administrative to strategic
Within the People and Culture function, AI is being positioned as a tool to eliminate routine work, not replace people. Grant said the goal is to "streamline our manual processes" so HR professionals can focus on higher-value initiatives like leadership development and organizational design.
Workforce anxiety persists. "People are worried that AI is going to replace them," Grant said, including concerns within her own team. Addressing those fears requires clear communication about intent and visible investment in upskilling.
The emergence of agentic AI-systems that execute tasks autonomously-adds complexity. Grant described it as both "exciting and terrifying at the same time." While these systems could significantly boost productivity, they raise questions about workforce structure and skill requirements.
Organizations face pressure to deliver more with constrained resources. "We're never going to be asked to do less," Grant said. AI becomes critical for sustaining output without proportional increases in headcount.
The hiring bar is rising fast
The Academy is hiring for AI expertise and rapidly upskilling current employees. The bar for new hires is shifting quickly.
Grant relayed guidance from the CEO: "If we're hiring people that say, 'I really want to learn about AI,' then they're already too far behind." The expectation is that candidates arrive with practical AI fluency and can apply it immediately.
For existing staff, the focus is on training and tool access. People and Culture must ensure employees understand not just how to use AI, but how it reshapes their roles.
Building those programs in parallel with evolving technology is difficult. "It's nearly impossible to have all that in place before it hits," Grant said.
Leadership alignment matters most
Change management remains the biggest barrier, particularly among skeptical leaders. Grant said mindset shifts are as important as technical adoption. "There are some leaders who are hesitant about staff using AI to assist them in doing their work."
Top-down alignment is therefore essential. Organizations without strong executive sponsorship are likely to lag, as cultural resistance slows implementation. At the Recording Academy, leadership support has enabled a more proactive approach, positioning AI as a strategic priority rather than an experiment.
For professionals managing similar transitions, the AI Learning Path for CHROs addresses the specific challenges of workforce strategy and organizational change in an AI-driven environment.
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