This series was recorded live at HR Tech 2025 inside the HR Executive studios on the expo floor in partnership with the WRKdefined Podcast Network. Make sure you’re subscribed to the full series and visit HRExecutive.com for the news, analysis, and insights shaping the future of work.
HR leaders are staring at louder demands, faster change, and more legal landmines than ever. Jocelyn King breaks down how compliance is shifting from reactive to proactive and why most HR teams still feel behind. Real talk on tech, complexity, and what HR needs next.
In this episode we talk about AI roadmaps, HRIS integrations, compliance automation, risk mitigation, and the tech skills HR can’t avoid anymore.
Key Takeaways
HR leaders lack clarity on AI strategy and need real frameworks
Integrations flip compliance from reactive to proactive
Locality coverage is a massive differentiator in labor law
Embedded compliance in HRIS workflows reduces risk instantly
Automation frees HR for people strategy instead of research
Partnership channels will drive most future growth
Credible data models beat open source in compliance every time
Change management is the missing skill in most HR teams
Chapters
00:00 Why HR struggles with AI roadmaps
00:20 The integrations that change compliance
00:37 HR’s invisible emotional labor
01:26 What Virgil HR actually does
02:45 Why compliance needs automation
03:34 The heart and team behind the company
04:34 How Virgil HR is scaling
04:47 Global expansion, AI roadmap, and integrations
05:41 How embedded compliance actually works
06:02 Direct vs indirect sales and partnerships
07:02 The new AI trained bot
08:07 Why locality law is a major differentiator
09:25 Automating critical pay and compliance tasks
10:11 HR’s real value and strategic shift
11:34 Jocelyn’s animal rescue work
13:12 Her deeper mission behind HR for HR
14:31 Why HR must be tech ready now
16:04 Building a real AI roadmap
17:08 How to pick the right tech on the HR Tech floor
18:44 Vetting, alignment, and involving CIO/CTO
20:10 Implementing tech with real change management
21:02 Jocelyn’s favorite thing to do in Vegas
Guest Info
Jocelyn King,CEO & Founder, VirgilHR
Website: https://www.virgilhr.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jocelynking/
Host
Christy Honeycutt, Host Inside the C-Suite Podcast
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christy-henika/
Connect with WRKdefined
Site:http://www.wrkdefined.com
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wrkdefined
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wrkdefined
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WRKdefined
Twitter: https://twitter.com/WRKdefined
Substack: https://wrkdefined.substack.com/
Powered by the WRKdefined Podcast Network.
Sponsors
