Tele2 HR chief: employee involvement is key to successful AI adoption, not just buying tools

Aija Bite-Ozere, personnel department director at the telecommunications company Tele2, writes in an opinion article in the Latvian magazine Ir, published on 10 November 2026, that buying artificial intelligence (AI) tools is not enough for companies. In her view, the benefit of the technology depends largely on how actively employees themselves are involved.

The author says AI develops so fast that it is practically impossible for a company to predict and centrally decide which single tool will meet all work needs. Every employee has specific tasks and challenges, so the ways of using AI can differ. She argues that the employees who know a given process best are often the ones who spot where the technology can help most.

Tele2's three pillars

Tele2 builds its approach to AI adoption on three principles.

The first is security. A company needs clear rules on which tools may be used, what information may be shared in them and which precautions must be taken, so that employees do not have to guess what is allowed. According to the author, the speed of technological change must not push security into the background.

The second is self-learning. AI use cannot be mastered in a single training session, because tools and their capabilities keep changing. Tele2 therefore encourages colleagues to practise daily with the AI solutions the company provides.

The third is sharing experience. Once a month the company holds AI coffee talks, where colleagues informally describe what they have tried, what worked and what did not. The author says new ideas for using the technology more effectively often emerge from these conversations.

Conclusion

Bite-Ozere stresses that AI adoption is not only a technology project but also a matter of change management, culture and trust. If employees do not know how to use the tools, fear making mistakes or do not understand why they are needed, the benefit will be limited. Giving people the chance to learn, experiment and share experience, she says, lets AI become an instrument that helps a person work smarter, faster and more creatively rather than replacing them.