Canva CTO encourages employees on AI use; Ford says RTO is about improving ‘dynamics’

Plus, how empathetic leadership impacts return on investment.

Greetings, comms pros! Let’s take a look at a few news stories from the past week and see what we can learn from them.

1. Canva CTO speaks about AI-employee relationship positively, encourages them to figure out what tools fit their work

Canva chief technology officer, Brendan Humphreys, is encouraging his employees to embrace AI tech, allowing them to purchase any tool they’d like to experiment with in their work. The move shows an employee-centric embrace of a new technology that hasn’t been super prevalent yet.

According to Fortune:

“We want to have just a thousand blossoms bloom,” says Humphreys of this embrace of what he calls “permissive” licensing.

Canva’s security team still vets any AI tool before it’s authorized, and it  has rejected vendors based on data protections. But the aim is to show employees that they are charting the course forward with AI usage at the company. Humprheys likened it to everyone being in a research and development role with AI work.

“We want them to be intrinsically motivated to understand that their jobs have essentially changed,” says Humphreys.

Communication of AI adoption policies is just as important as AI adoption itself. If organizations can’t have an open discussion about a game-changing technology, effective implementation is significantly less likely. Modeling that openness from the top is also a major plus. Humphreys’ willingness to communicate that AI is changing the landscape and he wants his employees to be well equipped for what’s coming next could also serve as a positive culture builder for Canva.

AI is already here, and the more leaders are able to reckon with that fact and speak with clarity to their employees about how their roles will shift, the smoother AI transitions stand to be.

2. Ford calls corporate employees back to the office four days a week in the name of improved processes

Ford is mandating that its corporate employees return to their offices at least four days a week later this year, according to a report from Investopedia. The car manufacturer follows a larger RTO trend that has hedged its messages on improved performance in many cases.

“Many of our employees have been in the office three or more days per week for some time now,” a spokesperson for the “Big Three” automaker told Investopedia. “We believe working together in person on a day-to-day basis will help accelerate Ford’s transformation into a higher growth, higher margin, less cyclical and more dynamic company.”

The report went on to say that the move will impact most of Ford’s salaried employees. It’s also worth noting that this isn’t Ford’s first RTO push, with employees returning to the office three days a week in February 2024. The language around that return was similar to the recent one, with more on process and less on employee culture or benefits.

There are plenty of reasons for RTO processes, and no matter the motivation it’s a communicator’s job to inform employees of what decisions have been made. But when possible, it’s also key to tell your employees where they factor into such a move. Improved processes and growth are great and keep the lights on — no doubt — but including some language about collaboration or culture benefits can help preserve morale in times when people might not be pleased about losing a work-from-home day.

RTO needs to be rooted in a company’s culture and the maxims it upholds. If you’re charged with creating messaging about such a process, ensure that your words match those ideals throughout the process. It also doesn’t need to be a one-and-done announcement — follow-up announcements rooted in the benefits of the RTO process can help ease people along and unify under the company’s decision. Additionally, sharing messages showing employees collaborating back at an office can add a pop of color to these messaging pushes.

3. Report: Empathetic leaders directly affect ROI

A study from Businessolver reported that empathy in leaders isn’t just a plus for culture — it’s also good for a positive bottom line. The 2025 State of Workplace Empathy Report stated that companies across the world that don’t emphasize empathy are leaving $180 billion on the table.

27% of the employees surveyed in the study said they worked for “unempathetic” leaders, and the same group was reported to be 1.5 times higher to change jobs in the next six months as opposed to employees with leaders they found to display empathy. Additionally, the workers who said they worked for employers lacking in empathy reported more mental health issues stemming from their jobs and a threefold higher level of workplace toxicity. These two factors are known to be potential productivity killers.

Human beings are what make up an organization’s identity — internal comms pros should work with leaders to ensure that’s emphasized in every message to the workplace. When leaders show humanity to the employee base, the employees are much more likely to respond positively and engage in the company’s established work culture. Positive engagement often results in productivity.

Communicating with empathy from leadership positions isn’t just good form — it’s also good business. Comms pros should remember that link when they’re collaborating with their leaders on messaging to the employee base.

4. How about some good news?

• A “green bridge” in England will allow wildlife to safely cross a busy roadway.
• Ireland stopped its use of coal for power generation.
• Engineers invented tiny robots to fix water leaks without having to tear out pipes.
• Ragan Training is great for communications pros to find inspiration and resources.
• You should be rewarded for your work. Find out how to earn an award here! Our Video, Visual and Virtual Awards and PR Daily Awards close to entries in July.

Have a great weekend comms all-stars!

Sean Devlin is an editor at Ragan Communications. In his spare time he enjoys Philly sports and trivia.

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