In the latest episode of Process Street’s Employee Onboarding Podcast, host Erin sits down with Tarek Kamil, CEO and founder of Cerkl, to explore the future of employee onboarding in a world powered by artificial intelligence (AI). Tarek shares insights into his passion for technology and AI, discussing the transformative potential of incorporating AI into the onboarding process. Throughout the conversation, listeners gain valuable insights into Tarek’s journey and the inspiration behind Cerkl, as well as the ethical considerations surrounding AI implementation. Join them as they discuss the exciting possibilities and future implications of AI in employee engagement.

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Podcast: A Tech Pioneer’s Vision of Employee
Onboarding
process.st/pioneering-employee-onboarding/
Anna Hase
March 12, 2024
Onboarding, Podcast
Ever envisioned a world where your onboarding process is powered by artificial
intelligence or where complex tasks are seamlessly managed by sophisticated
algorithms?
Join us for the latest episode of Process Street’s Employee Onboarding Podcast, where
Erin engages in a conversation with Tarek Kamil, the founder of Cerkl, delving into the
future of employee onboarding, the transformative potential of technology, and the ethical
considerations surrounding AI.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
Introducing Tarek Kamil: CEO and founder of Cerkl
Exploring Tarek’s passion for technology and AI
Implementing AI in employee onboarding
Tarek’s journey and inspiration behind Cerkl
The future of AI in employee engagement
You can listen on Apple, Spotify, Google, Podchaser, Podcast Addict, Deezer, & all your
favorite podcast platforms!

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Introducing Tarek Kamil: CEO and founder of Cerkl
Erin Rice: Welcome to the Employee Onboarding Podcast, where we are unpacking
great onboarding ideas and best practices from the world’s top HR practitioners and
thought leaders.
At Process Street, that starts with our mission to make recurring work fun, fast, and
faultless for teams everywhere. My name is Erin Rice, and I’m the People and Operations
Coordinator here at Process Street.
Awesome. So before we dive in, I like to ask a silly question, you know, just to break the
ice a bit.
And around Process Street, pizza has been a really big topic, which I hear you’re a big
fan of. So I have to know, do you like your pizza folded? Are you more of a fork-and-knife
kind of guy?
Tarek Kamil: I love pizza so much that there’s no way I could be patient enough to use
utensils. So I fold and get it in as fast as humanly possible. I’m definitely a fold guy. Thin
crust. Hot.
Although, I won’t complain about the temperature. So if it’s left over the next day, that’s
fine, too. Anything with pizza, I’m in. I love it all.
Exploring Tarek’s passion for technology and AI
Erin: Awesome. It’s like a thin, really large slice, New York style, with the bubbles on top.
I’m here for it.
Absolutely. Well, now, what we really came here for is employee onboarding. So, I’d love
it if you could start by sharing a little bit about how your passion for technology evolved in
your life.
Tarek: Oh, it’s been as long as I can remember, honestly. I started writing software when I
was really young, about 12. And it’s like, to an artist, it would be a blank canvas. So when
I see a computer screen, it’s blank. And the only thing that’s limiting you is your
imagination.
You can go in and create anything. I just found it fascinating that you sit there, think,
envision something, and then bring it to life, and the problem-solving involved with that. I
fell in love with it at an early age and really never stopped.
So that’s probably the single common thread in my career: how do you use technology to
make the world a better place?
Delving into AI and its implications

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Erin: That’s such a good thought. And that sort of brings me to my next question that AI is
all the buzz.
And a lot of what AI is bringing to the world is some concern. And maybe a little bit of
nervousness around it sort of taking over. I’d love to hear your thoughts on that.
Tarek: I think it’s like anything new. In the beginning, we’re learning. Any new technology
we are learning.
It’s the same thing, right? When we went from horse and buggy to automobiles, I think
most people would say that was a good move for us.
But in the beginning, I’m sure people were dying, getting run over, and things exploding.
So there’s always learning in the beginning. And I think with AI, which has been around
for a while, but it has really accelerated into kind of every crevice of society recently, I
would say within the last year, to a level we’ve never seen before.
And the level of sophistication that CHAT GPT and others are now producing is
phenomenal and unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.
So I would say, in general, I think it’s going to be super positive for humanity. I think the
negatives and what I would worry about in the beginning is misuse, right?
You’ve seen all the things and the headlines around propaganda and changing election
outcomes through misinformation. Well, this is only going to skyrocket that.
The other issue that I worry about with this is introducing things that are factually
incorrect, because it can just regurgitate what it’s been taught. So if it thinks this is true,
it’s going to regurgitate that. And the problem with that is people take that misinformation,
and then they post it online.
You get this very cyclical effect of misinformation becoming fact faster than it has. So,
without putting some guardrails on this, yes, I think there could be some pretty nasty,
negative consequences, but like everything else, the automobile was eventually worth it.
Implementing AI in employee onboarding
Erin: Yeah, for sure. So, how do you sort of see AI playing a role in employee
onboarding?
Tarek: We do a lot of that today. We’ve been talking about and using AI from the
beginning, so this is really 2013. Ten years ago, my idea was that a lot of the work that’s
done within organizations is very manual, choppy, and siloed.
And it is more about the person generating the process or the communication, not about
the recipient of that. How does it make me feel? And so, how can we use technology to
personalize that experience?

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When you think about onboarding, a lot of what happens with organizations is they really
do a good job of the employee-employer brand.
So through kind of talent attraction and how they market themselves and how great it’s
going to be to work here. And then the employee, right, gets the job, the candidate gets
the job, becomes an employee, well, here is your first real opportunity to show that’s
really who we are.
And a lot of times they say, we’re really innovative, and it’s all about you, and then the
person gets hired, and it is not about them at all. It’s a horrific process; it’s slow, it’s a lot
of paperwork, and it’s cumbersome.
Significance of personalized onboarding with AI
Tarek: We’ve just lost trust with that person. We’ve said this is who we are, but it’s not. AI
is really about how you take all this information that we know about this individual and
personalize their journey.
So, how do you use that data to serve them up the right process at the right time based
on who they are, where they’re at in the organization, and what they’re trying to
accomplish? And how do you make that a really great experience for that person?
Erin: Right. You’re really leveraging AI to create that personalized experience throughout
the onboarding journey.
Tarek: Absolutely. Absolutely. That’s it. And it’s, you know, not every organization is doing
that today. But I think over time, as they see the benefits of that, it’s kind of a no-brainer.
Why would you not want to make this as easy as possible for this person and as
personalized as possible? Because you’ve said that’s what you’re all about.
Tarek’s journey and inspiration behind Cerkl
Erin: Right. Absolutely. Can you tell us a little bit about your journey with Cerkl and what
inspired you to start the company?
Tarek: Sure. Cerkl actually started as kind of a side project. I was working at Procter &
Gamble at the time. And we were going through a really large-scale transformation at the
company. And I have always been really passionate about engagement and the
employee experience.
So we were going through this transformation, and it was really taking its toll on the
organization and on the employees because there was just so much change happening.
As a developer by trade, I always kind of looked at things like, “How could we automate
some of this process so that it didn’t take an army of people to do it?”

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So I came up with this idea: Could we use technology to make this better? And so, this
really started as kind of a prototype, if you will, at the time, that I called “internal Twitter”
because Twitter was all the rage at that time.
It was really focused on taking the existing information that was in the organization and
then sharing it in a way that was really relevant and timely to each individual. That’s kind
of where it started. From there, it just kind of grew and evolved into Cerkl as it is today.
Erin: That’s amazing. So it started with this idea of making the employee experience
better and more personalized, and it’s grown into Cerkl, this fantastic platform that’s doing
exactly that.
Tarek: Absolutely. Yeah. That’s exactly right.
The future of AI in employee engagement
Erin: So, what do you see as the future of AI in employee engagement and experience?
Tarek: Yeah, I think it’s only going to get better. I think there’s just so much opportunity to
leverage AI and real data to make it a more seamless and frictionless experience for the
employee.
There are a lot of things that can be done today, but they’re just scratching the surface of
what’s possible. As technology continues to evolve, we’re going to see a lot of really
interesting and cool things come out of it. For us, it’s just staying ahead of the curve and
really continuing to push the boundaries of what’s possible.
Erin: Absolutely. Well, Tarek, it has been such a pleasure chatting with you today. Thank
you so much for joining us and sharing your insights on AI and employee onboarding. It’s
been fantastic.
Tarek: Yeah, absolutely. Thanks for having me. It’s been a pleasure.
Anna Hase
Anna is a coffee-obsessed content writer with a master's degree in psychology. Her main
area of interest is employee psychology. When she's not writing, she's either reading or
lifting weights at the gym.
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