12 Opportunities for HR in 2026: Building Organisations That Thrive in the Agentic AgeThe best way to predict the future is to create it (Peter Drucker).
If 2024 and 2025 were years of experimentation with generative and agentic AI, 2026 is the year organisations must scale. CEOs now expect measurable productivity improvements, while CFOs demand disciplined value creation. Yet many organisations remain stuck in pilot mode - not because the technology is immature, but because their operating models, skills and structures cannot absorb AI at scale.
Two-thirds of CEOs say their competitive differentiation depends on having the right expertise in the right roles, supported by reskilling, selective hiring, AI agents and strategic partnerships - the “build, buy, bot, borrow” model. Workforce strategy has become a CEO-level concern.
Introduction: HR’s R&D Moment
In the AI future, HR becomes your R&D department (Ethan Mollick)
For HR, the implications are profound. As Ethan Mollick notes, “In the AI future, HR becomes your R&D department”. HR now sits at the intersection of work redesign, skills strategy, leadership capability, organisational health and AI governance. The choices HR makes in 2026 will determine whether organisations unlock agentic productivity - or continue to experiment with little or no impact.
During the 10+ years I’ve been publishing this annual look at the year ahead, it has evolved from predictions to opportunities, because the forces shaping work now unfold over multiple years – and as Niels Bohr wryly observed:
“Prediction is very difficult, especially if it's about the future!” (Niels Bohr)
As ever, the 2026 opportunities are informed by Insight222 research, conversations with CHROs and people analytics leaders, Digital HR Leaders podcast interviews, and extensive academic and market analysis.
What follows are 10 opportunities for HR to lead with clarity, evidence, purpose and humanity in the agentic age. As in past years, I will again crowdsource two additional opportunities from readers, so please add your ideas in the comments below. An extensive list of references and further reading are also provided at the end of the article.
"When HR is fully engaged, AI adoption accelerates" (Bain, You Can't Spell AI without HR)
THE 12 OPPORTUNITIES FOR HR IN 2026
FIG 1: 12 Opportunities for HR in 2026 - as envisaged by NotebookLM (Source: David Green)
#1. Redesign Work for a Human-AI Operating System
“Agentic AI is already changing the nature of tasks, workflows, and roles — and organisations must redesign work to fully capture the benefits.” (McKinsey, The State of AI in 2025)
Organisations are beginning to move beyond experimentation and rethinking how work is structured. HR should now take the lead in designing the operating system that orchestrates humans and AI agents: clarifying tasks, workflows, decision rights, escalation points and where humans add unique value.
The question is no longer “What can we automate?” but “What is the optimal blend of humans and agents to deliver what we need?” That means starting from outcomes, decomposing work into tasks, and then deciding which should be human-led, AI-augmented or agent-delivered.
A coherent operating system requires clear governance: transparency, ethical boundaries, decision thresholds, and norms for human oversight. With CEOs pushing for productivity and CFOs demanding cost discipline, HR has the opportunity to become the architect of safe, scalable, value-creating AI-enabled work. Organisations that get this right will accelerate productivity, decision quality and speed of execution; those that don’t risk remaining confined to pilot purgatory.
“The future of work will be shaped not by replacing humans, but by redesigning systems to optimise the partnership between people and technology.” (Oliver Wyman Forum, How Generative AI is Changing the Future of Work)
"When you redesign work around human strengths, AI becomes a multiplier, not a threat. The shift is from doing tasks to orchestrating outcomes." (Loren Shuster, Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
FIG 2: Human Agency Scale (Source: Stanford)
#2. Elevate Strategic Workforce Planning into a Core Enterprise Discipline
“Strategic workforce planning is now a CEO-level priority.” (McKinsey, Workforce Planning in the Age of AI)
Strategic workforce planning (SWP) has been elevated from an HR process to a C-suite priority. CEOs now see talent, skills, automation and cost decisions as central to enterprise performance. Consequently, HR must transform SWP into a dynamic system connecting strategy, skills, cost and organisational design. This involves scenario modelling, internal mobility mapping, talent flow analysis and productivity forecasting- not traditional headcount planning.
The “build, buy, bot, borrow” portfolio CEOs expect HR to manage demands continuous decision-making, not annual cycles. In an agentic environment, demand for skills shifts constantly, and SWP becomes the mechanism that helps leaders decide: When to reskill. When to hire. When to deploy agents. When to partner
Done well, SWP becomes one of the CEO’s sharpest tools for competitiveness, enabling faster reallocation of talent, clearer trade-offs and more confident long-term investment.
"The companies that get ahead build workforce planning into the business rhythm, not as an annual HR exercise but as a strategic capability." (Diane Gherson, Digital HR Leaders Podcast episode)
FIG 3: Five shifts for the future of workforce planning (Source: Deloitte)
3. Build a Dynamic Skills and Capability Ecosystem
“Skills have become the currency of work — and organisations must create systems where people can move fluidly to opportunities.” (World Economic Forum, Global Skills Taxonomy Toolkit)
Static job architectures cannot keep up with the speed of work. HR must build a dynamic skills ecosystem that continuously identifies, updates and deploys skills. AI-driven inference can surface emerging capabilities in real time, replacing outdated self-reporting and static competency models.
This ecosystem supports transparent internal mobility, talent marketplaces, AI-enabled learning and capability building aligned to business priorities, not generic training. Employability shifts toward adaptability, breadth, and the ability to collaborate effectively with AI.
Skills ecosystems reduce external hiring, increase internal mobility and enable transformation at scale. In 2026, skills can become the operating layer of the enterprise, connecting strategy, workforce decisions and learning in one adaptive system.
“High-performing companies are shifting from jobs to skills, and from hierarchy to capability ecosystems that evolve as fast as the business.” (BCG, AI at Work 2025)
"The real reason to become a skills-based organisation is business agility. As strategy shifts and technology evolves, you have to continually understand who you have relative to the work that needs to get done." (Sandra Loughlin, Digital HR Leaders Podcast episode)
FIG 4: Core skills in 2030 (Source: World Economic Forum)
4. Reshape Leadership for the Agentic Age
“As AI changes how work happens, leadership must evolve.” (BCG, As AI Changes Work, CEOs Must Change How Work Happens)
Leadership models built for supervision, expertise and control are no longer fit for a world where agentic AI executes tasks, synthesises information and accelerates decision cycles. In the agentic age, the leader’s job shifts from managing work to orchestrating systems - framing problems, setting direction, governing risk and enabling people and agents to operate together productively.
The research appears to be unequivocal: organisations will only capture the value of AI if leaders develop new muscles- judgement, systems thinking, ethical reasoning, rapid learning, transparency and the ability to steward change at speed. Leaders must become designers of workflows, not reviewers of work; enablers of experimentation, not gatekeepers; role models for adaptability, not certainty.
Psychological safety becomes even more important. As Amy Edmondson notes, people need to feel safe challenging both leaders and AI outputs. Leaders who create clarity, connection and trust see far higher adoption of agentic tools. Insight222 research highlights that the most effective leaders use data and evidence to guide decisions, while staying deeply human in how they communicate and build culture.
Perhaps most importantly, leaders must unlearn. As Katarina Berg puts it, almost everything about how we lead “is being rewritten” - and clinging to legacy behaviours slows the organisation.
The leaders who thrive will be those who embrace humility, curiosity and the mindset of a system architect - guiding people and AI to create outcomes neither could achieve alone.
"Psychological safety extends to AI. People must feel safe to question outputs and raise concerns." (Amy Edmondson, Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
“Leaders have to get comfortable unlearning…we can’t cling to practices that no longer help people thrive.” (Katarina Berg, Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
5. Strengthen Organisational Health, Fairness & Inclusion to Unlock Sustainable Performance
“Improving worker wellbeing is a powerful mechanism to raise productivity — potentially by 10–15%.” (McKinsey Health Institute and World Economic Forum, Thriving workplaces: How employers can improve productivity and change lives)
Organisational health, fairness and inclusion are now fundamental economic multipliers. Organisations that prioritise wellbeing consistently outperform peers on innovation, retention, productivity and financial performance.
In the agentic age, these issues become even more central. Poorly implemented AI can increase cognitive load, reduce autonomy and introduce new fairness risks - from biased models to opaque decisioning. HR must embed fairness, safety and inclusion into workflows, hiring systems, performance management and career pathways. Work should be redesigned to reduce friction, protect autonomy and ensure equitable access to opportunity and skills.
Healthy organisations transform faster, retain scarce skills and build the trust required for AI adoption. “Make work better” shouldn’t just be a slogan (as well as the name of a rather excellent blog by Bruce Daisley); it should be a mandatory requirement for sustainable performance.
"Firms that prioritise wellbeing outperform the stock market… delivering higher shareholder returns.” (De Neve et al, Workplace Wellbeing and Firm Performance)
"Fairness matters more than ever. AI raises the stakes, so leaders must communicate clearly and build cultures of accountability." (Patricia Frost, Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
FIG 5: The relationship between employee wellbeing and firm financial performance (Source: McKinsey, World Economic Forum, De Neve et al)
6. Reimagine Employee Experience for a Hybrid, AI-Augmented Workforce
“Employee experience is now the chief predictor of retention, productivity, and resilience.” (Deloitte, Global Human Capital Trends 2025)
Employee experience (EX) must now be designed as a system, not a collection of disconnected initiatives. Continuous listening, behavioural insights and real-time feedback loops replace annual surveys as the core instrumentation of EX.
AI is reshaping how people collaborate, solve problems and access support - from copilots in productivity tools to agents embedded in HR services. HR’s task is to ensure these tools remove friction, strengthen connection and enhance, rather than erode, meaning and craftsmanship.
Culture is experienced in small moments: team rituals, collaboration norms, clarity of roles, responsiveness of systems. Organisations that redesign EX holistically - across workflows, leadership behaviours, workplace design, technology and hybrid rhythms - should unlock higher levels of resilience, engagement and performance.
In 2026, EX should evolve to become the way strategy is felt by employees day-to-day, not a separate programme.
"Hybrid work isn’t a policy — it’s an ecosystem. You have to design experiences intentionally, otherwise you get the worst of both worlds." (Michael Fraccaro, Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
Join me for a webinar on January 15 as we unveil the key findings from the Insight222 People Analytics Trends
Register to join Madhura Chakrabarti, PhD, Jonathan Ferrar and me for an exclusive webinar on January 15 as we unveil the findings of the sixth annual Insight222 People Analytics and AI Trends study. Based on data from 370+ companies across the globe. Sign-up here.
7. Scale People Analytics as a Strategic Intelligence Function
“People analytics must evolve from answering HR questions to shaping enterprise decisions.” (Insight222, People Analytics Trends Report 2025–26)
People analytics is becoming the intelligence system that guides enterprise decision-making. With skills data, workflow telemetry, organisational network insights and AI-usage patterns, organisations can finally understand how work actually happens rather than how it appears in org charts or process maps. This shift - from descriptive reporting to real-time organisational sensing - is fundamental in the agentic age.
To scale effectively, people analytics requires firm foundations: automated data pipelines, integrated skills and work data, responsible governance and the capability to design and run experiments at pace. The aim is not to produce more dashboards (heaven forbid); it is to produce clarity. Which behaviours drive productivity? How is value created in teams? Where are critical skills emerging or eroding? What is the impact of AI agents on work quality, decision velocity and employee experience?
Done well, people analytics becomes a strategic advantage: a system that enables early detection of risk, faster reallocation of talent, and continuous improvement of workflows and leadership behaviours. In an agentic organisation, the winners will be those who learn faster, not merely those who measure faster.
“The link between people data and business performance becomes clear when you can show how engagement and capability lift profitability.” (Sharon Taylor, Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
"The power of people analytics comes when insight ties directly to business outcomes — performance, customer experience, productivity." (Dawn Klinghoffer, Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
FIG 6: Insight222 Leading Companies in People Analytics Model (Source: Insight222)
8. Embed Responsible AI & Workforce Governance
“AI cannot scale without trust.” (Gartner, AI in HR: Hits, Misses and Growing Pains)
Trustworthy AI is now a business imperative. As organisations deploy agentic systems across workflows, HR must lead the creation of governance frameworks that ensure fairness, explainability and ethical use of both employee and organisational data. This means setting clear decision boundaries, defining human-in-the-loop oversight, stress-testing models for bias, and establishing transparent communication so employees understand how AI affects opportunities, assessments and career paths.
Effective governance also requires continuous monitoring of outcomes, not just initial risk assessments. Research shows that poorly governed AI erodes trust, increases cognitive load and amplifies inequity - while well-designed systems enhance autonomy, safety and performance at scale.
Governance is not a brake on innovation; it is the guardrail that enables safe acceleration. Organisations with explicit principles, documented guardrails and credible oversight adopt AI faster and with greater employee support. Responsible AI is no longer a peripheral concern - it is a core component of the modern social contract between employer and employee.
“Responsible AI must be embedded from the start, not retrofitted once problems occur.” (TI People, From AI Impact Assessment to Results)
"AI amplifies both good and bad decisions. Governance is not optional — it’s the difference between progress and harm" (Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
9. Elevate the CHRO as Enterprise Co-Pilot in Organisational Reinvention
“The CHRO is now the CEO’s most important partner in navigating the AI transition.” (BCG, What CEOs Should Look For in an AI-First Chief People Officer)
With work, skills, leadership and operating models being redesigned simultaneously, the CHRO has become the CEO’s closest strategic partner. Boards increasingly rely on CHROs to assess leadership capability, organisational health, skills readiness, talent allocation and the workforce implications of AI-driven change.
The modern CHRO blends economics, organisational psychology, AI literacy, systems thinking, culture expertise and data fluency. They shape decisions on business model reinvention, automation strategy, productivity, leadership appointments, capability building and culture renewal.
This is a profound expansion of scope. CHROs who embrace this mandate will become architects of reinvention, not custodians of HR processes. The role is more complex, more consequential and more central to enterprise performance than at any point in the last 50 years – perhaps ever.
“The CHRO has moved from people expert to organisational architect — shaping how work evolves with technology.” (Lynda Gratton, Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
"CHROs have a unique vantage point: they understand capability, culture and change. That combination is what drives transformation." (Janine Vos, Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
10. Reinvent the HR Operating Model and HR Capabilities for the Agentic Era
“Traditional structures will not deliver the speed or integration now required.” (Mercer, Operating by Design: Mercer’s new outcome-driven operating model for HR and technology)
HR cannot deliver any of the nine opportunities presented in this article without reinventing itself. Traditional COEs and service-delivery models were designed for times of stability - not today’s world of continuous workflow redesign, dynamic skills needs and pervasive AI.
A modern HR operating model requires:
Cross-functional integration rather than siloed COEs
AI-enabled workflows that automate transactional work
Real-time intelligence from people analytics and skills data
Clear decision rights and owner–accountability for outcomes
HRBPs fluent in AI, economics, data and organisational diagnosis
HR teams need new foundational capabilities: systems thinking, experience design, product mindset, experimentation, behavioural science, data literacy and technical fluency.
Only by reinventing itself can HR enable reinvention everywhere else.
“The HR function of the future blends analytics, experimentation, organisational design and technology fluency. These are no longer optional skills—they are foundational.” (Insight222, People Analytics Trends Report 2025–2026)
“HR leaders need to think of themselves as product managers, where employment is the product. That mindset changes everything — from how we design experiences to how we drive adoption and co-create solutions with our stakeholders." (Tanuj Kapilashrami, Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
FIG 7: The New HR Operating Model (Source: TI People)
WHAT HR MUST BECOME TO DELIVER THESE OPPORTUNITIES
To realise these ten opportunities, HR must evolve into a more integrated, insight-driven and future-defining organisational function. That transformation requires three essential shifts.
Operate as an integrated enterprise system.
Redesigning work, skills, leadership and employee experience cannot be achieved by isolated teams. Talent, learning, EX, people analytics and HR operations must function as an interconnected platform with shared outcomes, shared intelligence and shared accountability. The problems we are solving - skills scarcity, organisational redesign, leadership transformation and AI integration - are all system problems, and so therefore require system responses.
Become AI-fluent and evidence-led.
HR professionals do not need to become data scientists or engineers, but they must understand AI’s capabilities, risks and organisational implications. AI literacy, data fluency and scientific thinking are now foundational capabilities for those aspiring to successful careers in HR. As work becomes more agentic, judgement improves when paired with evidence - and HR must champion this partnership across the organisation, from frontline decisions to board-level discussions.
“If HR doesn’t understand how AI works, we can’t shape how work gets redesigned. Data and AI literacy isn’t optional anymore — it’s the entry ticket.” (Nickle LaMoreaux, Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
Build a new capability portfolio.
The future HR function blends organisational psychology, behavioural science, systems thinking, experience design, experimentation, governance, talent economics and transformation leadership. These capabilities enable HR to redesign workflows, govern AI ethically, accelerate skill building and orchestrate complex, multi-year change.
In short, HR must become the function that designs, enables and accelerates organisational reinvention - not merely responds to it.
“The best HR teams are running experiments constantly. It’s not about having all the answers — it’s about learning faster than the organisation around you.” (Thomas Otter, Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
CONCLUSION: HR'S MOMENT OF MAXIMUM INFLUENCE
2026 is a defining year. Organisations are no longer debating whether AI will reshape work - they are debating how fast, how safely and how humanely. That places HR at the centre of enterprise strategy in a way we have not seen in decades.
These opportunities are not tasks - they are capabilities to build. They demand a more integrated, experimental, analytical and courageous HR function. Some will challenge long-held assumptions. Most will stretch HR beyond its comfort zone.
But the prize is meaningful. Organisations that combine agentic technology with human judgement and care will outperform those relying on technology alone. HR—with its unique position at the intersection of people, work and strategy—holds the key for how organisations adapt, thrive and unlock value in the agentic age.
This is HR’s moment of maximum influence.
The question is not whether HR is ready — but whether we will seize the opportunity...
CROWDSOURCING: HELP SHAPE THE FINAL TWO OPPORTUNITIES
Each year, the best ideas come from this community. The challenges and innovations transforming HR rarely originate from a single company - they emerge from the everyday work of practitioners across industries.
So, once again, I’m opening up the final two opportunities to you.
If you were to add one opportunity HR must focus on in 2026, what would it be—and why?
It could be something emerging in your organisation, a challenge I have under-discussed in the first ten opportunities, or a shift you believe is coming faster than most expect.
Share your ideas in the comments. I’ll synthesise the strongest contributions into two additional opportunities - #11 and #12 - in an update of this article in the New Year.
Together, let’s shape the agenda for HR in 2026.
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
The following resources informed the 2026 opportunities and are all recommended reading (or listening!) for readers (Please note some resources informed more than one opportunity for in the interests of brevity have only been listed once):
Introduction: HR’s R&D Moment
PwC, 28th Annual Global CEO Survey (2025) | IBM Institute for Business Value, CEO Study: Five Mindshifts to Supercharge Business Growth (2025) | World Economic Forum (Attilio Di Battista, Sam Grayling, Ximena Játiva, Till Alexander Leopold, Ricky LI, Shuvasish Sharma, and Saadia Zahidi), Future of Jobs Report (2025) | Accenture (Karalee Close and Kestas Sereiva), Reinventing enterprise models in the age of generative AI (2025) | Ethan Mollick, One Useful Thing (Blog) | Jason Averbook, Now to Next (Blog) | Wharton and GBK Collective (Jeremy Korst, Stefano Puntoni and Prasanna Tambe), Accountable Acceleration: Gen AI Fast-Tracks Into the Enterprise (2025) | Bain (Vincent Greco, Ph.D and John Hazan), You Can't Spell AI without HR: The Surprising Secret to Scale (2025) | Peter Hinssen and David Green ?? - Uncertainty as an Opportunity: HR’s Role in Shaping the Future of Work (Digital HR Leaders podcast episode)
Opportunity 1 (Redesign Work for a Human–AI Operating System)
McKinsey Quantum Black (Alex Singla, Alexander Sukharevsky, Lareina Yee, Michael Chui, Bryce Hall and Tara Balakrishnan), The State of AI in 2025: Agents, Innovation and Transformation (2025) | Microsoft Work Trends, 2025: The Year the Frontier Firm is born (2025) | Kathleen Hogan - Becoming a Frontier Firm: Orchestrating Microsoft’s Next Transformation in the Age of AI | Deloitte (Kyle Forrest, Chetan Jain, Greg Vert, Franz Gilbert, Arthur Mazor, Simona Spelman, Bhawna Bist, Derek Polzien), HR Reimagined (2025) | McKinsey ( Alexander Sukharevsky, Alexis Krivkovich, Arne Gast, Arsen Storozhev, Dana Maor, Deepak Mahadevan, Lari Hamalainen, and Sandra Durth), The agentic organization: Contours of the next paradigm for the AI era (2025) | Oliver Wyman Forum (Ana Kreacic, Amy Lasater-Wille, Lucia Uribe, Ravin Jesuthasan, CFA, FRSA, John Romeo, and Simon Luong), How Generative AI Is Changing The Future Of Work (2025) | Ravin Jesuthasan, CFA, FRSA, Want AI-Driven Productivity? Redesign Work (2025) | McKinsey Global Institute (Lareina Yee, Anu Madgavkar, Sven Smit, Alexis Krivkovich, Michael Chui, María Jesús Ramírez Larraín and Diego A. Castresana Bao), Agents, robots, and us: Skill partnerships in the age of AI (2025) | Loren I. Shuster and David Green ??, How LEGO Integrates People, Places and Culture (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2024) | Dave Ulrich, Talent Advantage = AI (Artificial Intelligence) * HI (Human Ingenuity): A Formula for Business and HR Leaders (2025) | McKinsey (Sandra Durth, Asmus Komm, and Charlotte Seiler), HR’s transformative role in an agentic future (2025) | Stanford (Yijia Shao, Humishka Zope, Yucheng Jiang, Jiaxin Pei, David Nguyen, Erik Brynjolfsson, Yang Diyi), Future of Work with AI Agents (2025)
Opportunity 2 (Elevate Strategic Workforce Planning into a Core Enterprise Discipline)
McKinsey (Neel Gandhi, Sandra Durth, and Vincent Bérubé, Charlotte Seiler, Kritvi Kedia and Randy Lim), The Critical Role of Strategic Workforce Planning in the Age of AI (2025) | Deloitte (Susan Cantrell, Russell Klosk (智能虎), Zac Shaw, Kevin Moss, Christopher Tomke, and Michael Griffiths), The Future of Workforce Planning (2025) | Ross Sparkman and David Green ??, How to Influence Business Strategy Through Workforce Planning, (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2025) | David Edwards, The Strategic Workforce Planning Handbook (2026) | Gartner (Maggie Schroeder-O’Neal and Jonah Shepp), 3 Steps to Initiate a Strategic Workforce Plan (2024) | PwC, Saratoga Annual HR & Workforce Benchmarking Report (2025) | Diane Gherson, Lynda Gratton and David Green ?? - The Key Role of HR In Successfully Integrating a Blended Workforce (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2024)
Opportunity 3 (Build a Dynamic Skills and Capability Ecosystem)
World Economic Forum (Neil Allison , Ximena Játiva, and Aarushi Singhania), Global Skills Taxonomy Adoption Toolkit: Defining a Common Skills Language for a Future-Ready Workforce (2025) | Lisa K. Simon, How Much Is a Skill Worth? (2025) | BCG (Vinciane Beauchene, Sylvain Duranton, Nipun Kalra, and David Martin), AI at Work 2025: Momentum Builds, But Gaps Remain (2025) | World Economic Forum ( Mario Di Gregorio, Genesis Elhussein, Ximena Játiva, Saadia Zahidi), New Economy Skills: Unlocking the Human Advantage (2025) | Amy Baxendale and David Green ??, How Arcadis is Building a Skills Powered Organisation (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2025), Sandra Loughlin, PhD and David Green ??, Building a Skills-Based Organisation: Lessons from a 30-Year Journey(Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2024)
Opportunity 4 (Reshape Leadership for the Agentic Age)
BCG (Vinciane Beauchene, Orsolya Kovacs-Ondrejkovic and David Martin), As AI Changes Work, CEOs Must Change How Work Happens (2025) | Gartner, Top 3 Strategic Priorities for Chief HR Officers (2025) | Rebecca Hinds, PhD and Bob Sutton, The 5 AI Tensions Leaders Need to Navigate (2025) | Katarina Berg and David Green ??, The New CHRO-CEO Partnership: Leading with Insight and Humanity (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2025)
Opportunity 5 (Strengthen Organisational Health, Fairness & Inclusion to Unlock Sustainable Performance)
McKinsey Health Institute and World Economic Forum (Barbara Jeffery, Brooke Weddle, Jacqui Brassey, PhD, MA, MAfN ?️? ?? (née Schouten) and Shail Thaker) - Thriving workplaces: How employers can improve productivity and change lives (2025) | Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, Micah Kaats and George Ward, Workplace Wellbeing and Firm Performance (2024) | Erin Meyer and David Green ?? - How to Bridge Cultures and Lead Global Teams for Success (Digital HR Leaders podcast episode, 2025) | Patricia Frost, Ruslan Tovbulatov, and David Green ??, The AI Pivot: Seagate’s Workforce Transformation in the Age of AI (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2025)
Opportunity 6 (Reimagine Employee Experience for a Hybrid, AI-Augmented Workforce)
Deloitte (Susan Cantrell, David Mallon, Kevin Moss, Nicole Scoble-Williams GAICD, and Yves Van Durme), 2025 Global Human Capital Trends (2025) | Brian Elliott, Nick Bloom and Prithwiraj Choudhury, Hybrid Work Is Not the Problem — Poor Leadership Is (2025) | Michael Fraccaro and David Green ??, How Mastercard is Using AI to Drive Employee Success and Leadership Growth(Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2024)
Opportunity 7 (Scale People Analytics as a Strategic Intelligence Function)
Insight222 (Madhura Chakrabarti, PhD, Heidi Binder-Matsuo, Jay Dorio, and Jonathan Ferrar) Navigating AI & People Analytics from Ambition to Action: People Analytics Trends Report 2025–2026 (Available from January 15, 2026) | Thomas Hedegaard Rasmussen, Mike Ulrich, and Dave Ulrich, Moving People Analytics From Insight to Impact (2023) | Cole Napper, The Tree of Value (2025) | Dawn Klinghoffer and David Green ??, How Microsoft Uses People Data to Shape Flexible Working That Helps Teams Thrive (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2025) | Amy Coleman, Flexible work update (Microsoft, 2025) | Sharon Taylor, Jaco Van Vuuren and David Green ??, Digitising HR for 55,000 Employees: Lessons from Standard Bank (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2024)
Opportunity 8 (Embed Responsible AI & Workforce Governance)
Gartner (Helen Poitevin), AI in HR: Hits, Misses & Growing Pains (2025) | TI People, From AI Impact Assessment to Results (2025) | Amy Edmondson and David Green ??, How Learning to Fail Can Help People and Organisations to Thrive (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2024) | Dr Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic and David Green ?? - Why Authenticity Is Overrated — and What Great Leaders Do Instead (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2025)
Opportunity 9 (Elevate the CHRO as Enterprise Co-Pilot in Organisational Reinvention)
BCG (Julie Bedard and David Martin), Strategy and Soft Skills: What CEOs Should Look For in an AI-First Chief People Officer (2025) | Josh Bersin, The Pivotal Role Of Chief HR Officer in AI Transformation (2025) | Josh Bersin and Kathi Enderes, Secrets Of The High Performing CHRO (2025) | Eric Anicich and Dart Lindsley, Reimagining Work as a Product (2024) | Dave Ulrich, Dick Beatty, and Patrick Wright, The HR Inflection Points: What’s Next for HR and How to Respond (2025) | Janine Vos and David Green ??, The CHRO’s Playbook: How to Build an Agile and Data-Driven HR Function (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2025)
Opportunity 10 (Reinvent the HR Operating Model and HR Capabilities for the Agentic Era)
Mercer (Emily Liddle, Jim Scully, Alexandra Zea, Jonathan Gordin, David Mitchell, Kristin Rhebergen and JESS VON BANK), Operating by Design: Mercer’s new outcome-driven operating model for HR and technology (2025) | McKinsey (Asmus Komm, Fernanda Mayol, Neel Gandhi, Sandra Durth, and Dr. Jasmin Kiefer), A new operating model for people management: More personal, more tech, more human (2025) | Volker Jacobs, AI is Reshaping the HR Operating Model: Here's What 15 Leading Companies Discovered (2025) | Volker Jacobs and David Green ??, How AI is Reshaping the HR Operating Model (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2025) | Tanuj Kapilashrami, Ravin Jesuthasan, CFA, FRSA, and David Green ??, How to Build the Skills-Powered Organisation (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2024)
What HR Must Become to Deliver These Opportunities
Jacqui Canney and Brandon Roberts, How to make AI work for people: A playbook for HR and business leaders (2025) | Insight222 (Naomi Verghese, Jonathan Ferrar and Jordan Pettman), Building the People Analytics Ecosystem Operating Model 2.0 Report (2024) | Insight222 (Naomi Verghese and Jonathan Ferrar), Upskilling the HR Profession: Building Data Literacy at Scale (2023) | John Golden, Ph.D., Alexis Fink, Steve Hunt, The Future of Work 2025: Why HR Holds the Pen to Rewrite the Playbook (2025) | Tima Bansal and Julian Birkinshaw, Why You Need Systems Thinking Now (2025) | Amy Edmondson and Dr Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, The Perils of Using AI to Replace Entry-Level Jobs (2025) | Nickle LaMoreaux and David Green ??, How IBM Uses AI to Transform Their HR Strategies (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2024), Thomas Otter and David Green ?? - AI in HR Tech: What Investors and Leaders Need to Know (Digital HR Leaders podcast, 2025)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
David Green ?? is a globally respected author, speaker, conference chair, and executive consultant on people analytics, data-driven HR and the future of work. As Managing Partner and Executive Director at Insight222, he has overall responsibility for the delivery of the Insight222 People Analytics Program, which supports the advancement of people analytics in over 120 global organisations. Prior to co-founding Insight222, David accumulated over 20 years experience in the human resources and people analytics fields, including as Global Director of People Analytics Solutions at IBM. As such, David has extensive experience in helping organisations increase value, impact and focus from the wise and ethical use of people analytics. David also hosts the Digital HR Leaders Podcast and is an instructor for Insight222's myHRfuture Academy. His book, co-authored with Jonathan Ferrar, Excellence in People Analytics: How to use Workforce Data to Create Business Value was published in the summer of 2021.
MEET ME AT THESE EVENTS
I speak regularly at in-person and virtual events about people analytics, the future of work, and data driven HR. Below are the events I'm speaking at up to the end of May 2026:
February 25-26, People Analytics World, Zurich
March 17-19, Unleash America, Las Vegas
April 20-21, People Analytics World, London
May 18, Building Data Literacy in HR - Executive Masterclass, Warsaw
More events will be added as soon as they are confirmed.
THANK YOU
As the year draws to its close, I'd also like to thank a host of people: conference organisers that invited me to speak at their events in 2025, Digital HR Leaders podcast guests and sponsors and those that regularly share and comment on my content here. This is certainly not an exhaustive list but thank you to: Marc Coleman Jeremy Roden Barry Swales Louis Gordon Andreas De Neve ? Julius Schelstraete ? Tanya Arrowsmith Ben Harris Philip Arkcoll Parker Mitchell David Wilkins Julie Asselin Pushkaraj Bidwai Lewis Garrad Nick Lynn Anna A. Tavis, PhD Jeremy Shapiro Stela Lupushor Richard Rosenow Amit Mohindra Dan Riley Pietro Mazzoleni Dr Philip Gibbs Håvard Berntzen Even Bolstad Anne-Marie Andric Malgorzata SZARZEC Hung Lee Lucy Adams Maya Lane Deborah M. Weiss Matthew Bidwell Laura Zarrow Jennifer Neumann Ankita Jha Martha Curioni Sanja Licina, Ph.D. Serena H. Huang, Ph.D. Irada Sadykhova Irina Villacreces, M.S., SPHR, PMP Adam McKinnon, PhD. Hanadi El Sayyed Greg Newman David van Lochem Chin Yin Ong Swechha Mohapatra (IHRP-SP, SHRM-SCP, CIPD) Siobhan Savage ?? Dave Fineman Ben Zweig Jeff Schwartz Fatma Hedeya Meg Bear Dominic Boon Philippa Penfold FCIPD Narelle Burke Geetanjali Gamel Jonathon Frampton Dan Lapporte Shujaat Ahmad Blaine Ames Chris Long Rob Baker, FCIPD, MAPP Perry Timms Alicia Roach Catherine de la Poer Jeff Wellstead Paola Alfaro Alpízar Marta Gascón Corella Sergio Garcia Mora Sebastian Knepper Sebastian Kolberg Timo Tischer Bob Pulver Seth Hollander, MBA Melissa Arronte Victoria Holdsworth Alexandra Nawrat Nima Sherpa Green Gianni Giacomelli Phil Kirschner Roxanne Bisby Davis Amelia Irion Ekta Lall Mittal Arne-Christian Van Der Tang Stacia Garr Priyanka Mehrotra Laurent Reich Paul Rubenstein Dirk Jonker Jacob Nielsen Patrick Coolen Jaap Veldkamp Anish Lalchandani Michael Arena Greg Pryor David McLean Kate Bravery Brian Heger Anita Lettink Alan Susi Gal Mozes, PhD Prasad Setty Henrik Håkansson Dr. Tobias Bartholomé Colin Fisher Jenny Dearborn, MBA Toby Hough Jodie Evans Katarina Coppé Jurgen Hofstede Don Dela Paz Andrés García Ayala Angela LE MATHON Oliver Kasper Daisuke Ikegami Elson P. Kuriakose Phil Inskip Sophia Huang, Ed.D. Søren Kold Asaf Jackoby Joonghak Lee John Gunawan Josh Tarr Phil Willburn Ying Li Prabhakar Pandey Delia Majarín Tina Peeters, PhD Agnes Garaba Nico Orie Kouros Behzad Andrew Pitts Kristin Saboe, Ph.D. Nicole Lettich Al Adamsen Maria Alice Jovinski Miriam Daucher Chris Hare Avani Solanki Prabhakar Alex Browne Jaejin Lee Kevin Oakes Todd Raphael Ian OKeefe Amanda Nolen Kevin Le Vaillant
AI-augmented workforce
2025年12月22日
AI-augmented workforce
CHRO 的新战略机遇：生成式 AI 如何重塑组织的未来概要：74% 的 CEO 认为团队已准备好迎接 AI，但只有 29% 的 C-suite 同意。这一巨大认知差距既是风险，也是 CHRO 最关键的机会窗口。预计到 2025 年，77% 的初级岗位与超过 25% 的高管岗位都将因 AI 发生改变。未来三年，CHRO 必须从支持角色转变为组织未来的设计者，围绕三项任务展开：构建 AI 人才战略、重塑组织运营模式、建立 AI 治理框架。AI 时代的核心竞争力不再是技术本身，而是 CHRO 如何重塑组织能力与文化。抓住这个窗口期，组织才能真正迈向未来。
引言：迎接组织变革的“AI 时刻”
生成式 AI 与以往任何技术都截然不同，它正以前所未有的速度颠覆商业与社会，迫使领导者实时反思并重塑其核心战略。这场变革的核心并非技术本身，而是它对“人”与“工作方式”的根本性重塑。正如深度研究所指出的，“生成式 AI 的一切都与人有关——关乎工作如何完成”。
懂得如何用生成式 AI 赋能人才的领导者，将对业务产生“倍增效应”。在未来三年，首席人力资源官（CHRO）将迎来一个决定性的转折点，从传统的支持角色转变为驱动这一倍增效应的核心战略制定者。然而，当前仍有高达 60% 的高管将人力资源视为纯粹的行政职能，这一认知错位不仅是巨大的风险，更预示着一个前所未有的战略机遇。CHRO 必须抓住此刻，引领组织迎接未来。
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一、趋势洞察：生成式 AI 正在重塑工作的本质
1. AI 放大人类能力，而非取代人类
生成式 AI 的核心价值在于放大人类的专业能力。它通过自动化市场研究、内容创建、数据分析和代码开发等重复性任务，让员工得以专注于更高价值的创造性工作。例如，客服人员可以将常规问答交给 AI，从而专注于销售赋能；程序员可以摆脱繁琐的编程，聚焦于提升代码质量与安全性；HR 专家则能从日常流程中解放出来，全力投入于真正重要的人才发展。
企业的竞争优势不再仅仅来源于技术本身，而是来源于规模化员工的专业知识和扩展组织的能力。这催生了“AI 增强型劳动力”的概念。一个清晰的现实是：生成式 AI 不会取代人类，但使用生成式 AI 的人将会取代不使用它的人。
2. CEO 与组织间存在显著的“AI 准备度差距”
高管层对组织 AI 准备度的认知存在显著脱节，这种乐观情绪背后潜藏着巨大风险。数据显示：
74% 的 CEO 认为他们的团队已经为生成式 AI做好了技能准备。
然而，仅有 29% 的 C-suite 高管 同意这一观点。
这一巨大的认知鸿沟，代表了 CHRO 最为紧迫的行动指令。更值得警惕的是，AI 的影响是普遍的：到 2025 年，77% 的初级员工的岗位将发生转变，同时超过四分之一的高管也无法幸免。这使得 CEO 的盲目乐观尤为危险。CHRO 的核心机会在于，识别并弥合组织内部的人才与能力错配，确保组织具备驾驭变革的真实能力。
3. 未来关键能力：创造力与协作力超越技术力
在一个看似由技术驱动的变革时代，一个反直觉的真相浮出水面：人类独有的软性能力正变得空前重要。一项核心洞察指出：
高管们认为，到 2025 年，对组织最有价值的技能将是创造力。
当技术性工作可以被 AI 高效辅助时，企业的核心竞争力将从技术熟练度转向那些机器无法复制的能力。高管们认为，团队建设和协作能力与软件开发和编码同等重要，甚至领先于分析和数据科学。创造力，将成为引领未来的关键。
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二、CHRO 的三大新使命：未来 36 个月的行动框架
为应对挑战，CHRO 需要一个清晰、可执行的战略框架，围绕以下三大新使命展开行动。
1. AI 人才战略 (Talent Strategy for AI)
目标：重新设计人才的“选、育、用、留”体系，构建一支 AI 增强型团队。
行动建议：
重塑岗位与技能图谱：推动对现有岗位职责的重新定义，将工作重心从执行重复性任务，转向利用 AI 进行分析、创造和战略决策。
推动全员技能再培训：将 AI 技能提升视为员工重大的职业发展机遇。尤其要重点投资于高绩效员工，因为 AI 无法放大平庸的绩效，它带来的是一场革命而非演进，其真正价值在于将优秀人才的能力提升到全新高度。
将人力资源部作为战略试点：要让全员拥抱 AI，首先要从人力资源部开始。CHRO 应将 HR 部门打造为组织内 AI 转型的战略试点项目，率先对 HR 专业人员进行再培训，使其成为组织内 AI 应用的实践者、引领者和赋能者。
2. 组织运营模式重构 (Operating Model Redesign)
目标：打造更敏捷、更智能、更具创造力的组织模式，以释放 AI 的全部潜力。
行动建议：
聚焦高价值应用场景：避免被海量的可能性分散精力。集中资源投资于三到五个最具商业影响力的 AI 应用场景（“Focus on the top five. Or three.”），以点带面，实现价值最大化。
建立快速迭代与试错文化：鼓励团队以“快速失败”（fail fast）的方式进行小范围实验。建立跨部门的反馈循环机制，系统性地分享成功案例、失败教训和实践经验。
利用 AI 优化工作流程：应用 AI 增强的流程挖掘技术，深入分析现有工作流程，精准识别瓶颈与低效环节，并通过智能化改造加速决策效率。
3. AI 治理与伦理 (AI Governance)
目标：建立负责任的 AI 使用框架，确保技术向善，规避潜在风险。
行动建议：
建立明确的道德准则：制定并推行一套清晰的 AI 道德使用框架，其中包含明确的标准、指南和行为期望。
保障数据安全与隐私：在鼓励全员实验的同时，必须围绕数据保护和道德规范设立明确的护栏，确保创新在安全可控的范围内进行。
确保透明与公平：在招聘、绩效评估等关键人力资源环节应用 AI 时，必须建立有效的机制来管理算法偏见，确保决策过程的透明度与公平性。
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三、从战略伙伴到未来设计师：CHRO 的新定位
生成式 AI 正在推动 CHRO 的角色发生根本性演进。CHRO 必须从被 60% 高管视为被动的行政支持者，进化为主动的战略引擎，成为组织未来工作模式的总设计师和 AI 时代人力资本的管理者。CHRO 的新角色是通过前瞻性地引导 AI 在人才与组织层面的落地，主动重塑组织文化、决策模式和业务节奏。
在最高管理层中，CHRO 的新定位是连接技术、人才与业务战略的关键枢纽。AI 的成功绝非单一部门的责任，而需要建立一个由业务、IT 和人力资源负责人共同负责的问责模式。在这个领导力“三驾马车”中，CHRO 作为平等的战略伙伴，确保技术投资能够真正转化为组织能力和商业价值。
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决胜未来，重在组织能力的设计
生成式 AI 时代已经到来，领先的企业正在迅速采取行动。最终的成功者，将是那些能够围绕人才与技能建立灵活、深思熟虑的战略，并积极克服组织焦虑、奖励热情、拥抱包容与乐观的组织。
在生成式 AI 时代，决定企业未来竞争力的不是技术本身，而是 CHRO 对组织与人才能力的重新设计能力。
AI-augmented workforce
AI-augmented workforce
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