Compliance That Actually Changes Behavior, Not Just Checkboxes

Compliance still sounds like punishment, but it doesn’t have to feel that way in 2025. In this conversation, we sit down with Jeff Carr, president of Atana, to talk about why “required training” has to grow up. He walks through his journey from PeopleSoft, Taleo, and Saba to Atana’s model of compliance, learning, and behavioral data that lets companies see risk early, act surgically, and actually improve culture instead of running the same tired courses on repeat. In this episode we talk about compliance, behavioral science, learning data, risk, and culture. Jeff breaks down how Atana blends IO psychology, micro-assessments, and AI to surface “yellow flag” behavior before it turns into red-card lawsuits. We get into why the word compliance needs a rebrand, how to arm HR and L&D leaders with a real story for the C-suite, and why targeted, data-backed training beats blanket rollouts every time. Key Takeaways Compliance has a branding problem - the word alone triggers defensiveness and makes people expect legal risk, not growth. Atana starts with required topics like harassment, respectful workplace, bias, and violence prevention, then layers in behavioral insights instead of stopping at content delivery. Embedded micro-assessments inside training give IO psych and data science teams the signals they need on attitudes, risk tolerance, and behavior patterns. The goal is to catch yellow flags early, not wait for red-card moments where the only options left are investigation, payout, and damage control. Precise data lets leaders pinpoint risk at a store, hospital, team, or even individual level so they can avoid unnecessary re-training and focus effort where it’s needed. Actionable insights matter more than dashboards - leaders need a narrative, recommendations, and “here’s what to do next” when they walk into the C-suite. Generative AI is becoming a learning assistant that can suggest storylines, actions, and nudges, not just summarize survey results. The current political climate hasn’t killed the legal requirements - respectful workplace and code-of-conduct expectations are still in force even where DEI is under attack. Reframing performance and compliance around business value, not forms and cycles, follows the same playbook that made early SuccessFactors so disruptive. 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. Chapters 0:00 Why “compliance” instantly puts people on defense 3:08 From payroll programmer to PeopleSoft, Taleo, and Saba 7:40 Learning through a downturn and the early cloud HR era 11:34 What Atana does at the intersection of compliance, learning, and behavioral insight 15:10 Micro-assessments, IO psych, and spotting yellow flags before they become lawsuits 18:21 Turning training data into stories and actions leaders can take to the C-suite 20:34 Building an AI learning assistant inspired by Olivia and Winston 21:58 Renaming compliance, rethinking performance, and why language matters 23:54 Targeted training by location, team, and individual instead of punishing everyone 26:32 Jeff’s marathon habit, discipline, and what’s next on his race calendar Guest: Jeff Carr, President, Atana Connect with us William Tincup LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tincup/ Ryan Leary LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanleary/ Connect with WRKdefined on your favorite social network 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 (X): https://twitter.com/WRKdefined Substack: https://wrkdefined.substack.com/ #WRKdefined #Compliance #LearningAndDevelopment #BehavioralScience #HRTech2025 #WorkplaceCulture #AIInHR #Atana