Publicis Groupe ANZ is investing in AI education across its workforce, but the holding company says the goal is not to automate people and “become synthetic” but rather to change the way employees are using the technology day-to-day and remove fear and concerns.
The internal training program, PL.AI Ground (playground, geddit?) is an AI learning initiative “designed to build confidence, encourage experimentation and help employees apply AI tools in their everyday roles”.
With the first iteration kicking off in August 2025; the second in March this year; and the third at the end of April, the holdco is knuckling down on encouraging its agencies to amplify it in ways that suit their people and disciplines.
“At Publicis we’re not removing roles, we’re removing tasks. We’re not going to become a synthetic company,” Publicis Groupe ANZ chief talent officer Pauly Grant told B&T during a recent interview.
“People are getting stuck in that experimentation journey and they don’t know how to get from there to actually how do we make an impact across the business through adoption,” she said.
According to Grant, treating AI as an “organisational transformation” rather than simply a technology rollout is crucial.
“To do that you’ve got to step back and know that this just isn’t a project; it’s a transformation,” Grant said.
“Sometimes organisations are chasing the shiny tool and thinking it’s going to solve everything.”
Instead, Publicis has focused on breaking work down into tasks and understanding where AI can create value.
“It’s really about breaking that down into tasks and skills — what are the tasks that could be replaced by an agent or a tool? What are people going to continue doing? What is the best tool to solve for that task?”
The approach has become increasingly important as businesses face a growing number of AI platforms and tools entering the market.
“It’s about having a really clear strategy around how we’re tackling it,” she said.
Publicis provides employees access to a library of AI tools through its global platform Marcel, while also establishing guardrails around security, compliance and responsible use.
PL.AI Ground’s Serious Success
Launched locally to support AI learning, experimentation and adoption, PL.AI Ground ultimately combines workshops, live demonstrations and peer-led learning sessions for staff.
Grant highlighted the program has “evolved significantly since its launch” — moving from introducing employees to AI concepts towards helping teams apply AI within specific disciplines.
Now in its third iteration, PL.AI Ground covers areas including strategy, insights, data-led decision-making, creative, content and storytelling. Across two cohorts delivered in 2026, the program recorded 2,381 cumulative session attendances, with participants reporting an average 33 per cent uplift in confidence using AI tools after completing the program.
Grant said the program’s success had come from allowing employees to learn in different ways, rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach.
“Learning is a very personal thing,” she said. “Sometimes organisations can do a one-size-fits-all approach — it’s either all online or it’s one way of learning. Whereas this gives everyone a way in and everyone a different experience.”
The next phase of PL.AI Ground will focus more heavily on craft-specific applications, helping teams understand how AI can support their individual roles.
“If you’re a strategist or a planner, what are the ways that you can be utilising it more?” Grant said. “It’s going deeper into craft learning.”
While AI is often framed as a technology challenge, Grant said the bigger challenge for leaders was helping people adapt, as early concerns around AI had often been around what it meant for jobs and roles.
“I think there is definitely fear and uncertainty,” she said. “But when you give permission for your people to play, that actually removes some of that fear and uncertainty.”
Grant said leaders needed to provide clarity, governance and support rather than simply introducing new tools.
“You need the right governance structure, you need those guardrails of safety that people are playing in, and you need the right approach to work design and how you re-engineer processes.”
Publicis has also incorporated AI capability discussions into its leadership development programs, bringing together leaders from across its agency network to consider future skills and workforce needs.
Grant told B&T the future value of agency talent would “come from skills that AI can enhance rather than replace”.
“I actually think we’re quite lucky as an industry because a lot of what is going to make people successful in this era is creative thinking, critical thinking, strategic thinking, curiosity and adaptability,” she said. “I don’t think I could find many other industries that have more of those skills than advertising and media.”
“AI just enables those brilliant people to do more of what they’re really good at,” Grant said.
