Heera Rehman: “AI is like your personal assistant”. A Real-World Case of AI Usability in Internal Communication
- trinimaturana
- The Voices in English, Voces de la Industria
Índice
When communicators talk about AI, they often speak in abstractions: opportunities, fears, ethics, disruption.
But Heera Rehman brings something entirely different to the table, a real, working product built from a communicator’s lived experience.
After over 10 years in Internal Communication, often in small, overstretched teams, and expected to “wear multiple hats” without formal training, she kept seeing the same pattern:
“All of those doubts lead to diluted messages. It leads to safe, generic messages.”
Those doubts weren’t incompetence. They were the absence of support, confidence and resources.
WorldTone AI is her answer.
The Problem: Inclusive Communication Without the Right Tools
Heera describes a recurring tension inside organizations: employees expect inclusive messaging, leaders fear backlash, and communicators lack the frameworks to navigate sensitive cultural topics.
“I would always be extra cautious when wearing that DEI hat…asking myself: is it being written in an inclusive way? Am I keeping up with current language?”
Even when she proposed thoughtful, culturally aligned content:
“I’d send well thought-out, amazing campaigns… and they’d say, ‘no, no, no, strip it down, let’s do a generic message.’”
The result was predictable and harmful:
“Faith and religion and culture is very, very overlooked in businesses.”
This wasn’t just a gap, it was a risk. And it prompted Heera to build a tool that addressed a real-world need rather than adding noise.
The Solution: WorldTone AI, Built by a Communicator, for Communicators
WorldTone AI is an all-in-one platform for Internal Comms, HR, and DEI teams that builds planning and inclusion into daily content. It helps you plan, draft, and measure clear, on-brand messages, aligned to your priorities and key global moments, without losing the human oversight that makes inclusion meaningful.
Key features include:
- AI writing assistant trained by global standards to generate inclusive first drafts.
- Content review: paste your text and improve its inclusivity.
- A Global Events Calendar that aligns to your values with global events across 200+ countries, so teams are planning with cultural intelligence.
- Resource hub with guides, toolkits and training to educate managers looking after diverse workforces (Ramadan, neurodivergence, etc.).
- Integrations with Slack, Teams and LinkedIn for workflow compatibility.
As Heera explains:
“It helps them to plan, to draft and to measure their internal communications and ensure that it’s being inclusive.”
The tool is built on a crucial principle:
“We always need human approval with inclusive messaging.”
AI assists. Humans decide.
AI as an Actual Assistant, not a Replacement
Unlike the fear-driven narrative often seen in IC circles, Heera’s approach to AI is deeply pragmatic.
“AI is almost like your personal assistant. I’ve always kind of looked at AI as an assistant.”
Her use case is vivid and practical:
- AI helps her structure messages
- Extract key takeaways
- Support planning and scheduling
- Review drafts
- Even create visuals and multimedia
“I love AI for reviewing, I love AI for helping me create even visuals… but I really just look at it as: I am the idea generator.”
And when refining the concept of WorldTone, AI wasn’t optional, it was essential:
“I just used AI and said, this is my idea. Refine, refine, refine… and I wouldn’t have been able to do that if I didn’t have AI.”
This is real AI usability. Not the hype, the workflow.
Ethics & Human Oversight: The Non-Negotiables
Heera is careful, almost protective, about ethical use:
“I think as communicators, we should always… if you’re uncertain about something, you should always go and fact check it anyway.”
And for her platform:
“No posts go out, no content goes out unless it has been approved by whoever is in the chain.”
On privacy:
“We never use any of your data to train… we only train the AI on what data they provide us.”
Inclusivity is sensitive. Trust is essential. Human approval is mandatory.
From Communicator to Founder: The Transferable Skills No One Talks About
Heera’s transition from communicator to founder is a masterclass in recognizing the strategic power of our skill set.
“Being an internal communicator… it encompasses emotional intelligence… identifying cultural nuances… talking to diverse people.”
She is explicit:
“Those skills… developed really well into being an entrepreneur.”
But she also acknowledges the difficulty:
“I’m fairly introverted… being an entrepreneur, you have to be the face of your business… that took me a long time to learn.”
Her honesty is refreshing and needed.
AI in IC: What Communicators Need to Do Now
When asked what IC professionals need in this new era, her answer was immediate:
“Communicators need to have an open mind, resilience, and be comfortable with change.”
This is not optional. It’s the new baseline. And her message about human-AI partnership is one that every communicator should internalize:
“It can never replace that human insight… but it can certainly get you 99% very good.”
Human-centered strategy. AI-enabled execution. That’s the future.
The Road Ahead for WorldTone AI
Heera’s ambition is clear:
“I want to see WorldTone AI being recognized as the go-to inclusive communication tool for businesses… embedded on a global level.”
The platform is in free beta, gathering feedback to refine the features and ready to onboard customers. She is also preparing for global expansion including promising interest from the UAE & Canada.
For communicators, this is more than a tool. It’s proof that AI can solve real IC problems when designed by someone who understands our work from the inside.
Closing: Real AI, Real Communication, Real Impact
WorldTone AI is not theory. It’s not a trend. It’s a platform built by a communicator who understood a gap and turned it into a product that works.
Heera’s story is a reminder that communicators can, and should, lead the next wave of innovation.
And her words stay with me:
“It’s a support assistant for people like us who always wear many different hats.”
AI won’t replace communicators. But communicators who know how to use AI? They will redefine the profession.