In the 12 years I have been publishing what has evolved now into the Data Driven HR Monthly, people analytics has shifted from the periphery to the core of what is required to build a world-class HR function.
Back in 2014, it was a challenge to find 20 articles to build a year-end compendium of the best people analytics and data-driven HR articles. Wind forward 12 years, and it is now a Herculean task to prune so many wonderful resources down to a single summary. Indeed, for 2024 I foolishly curated a five-part series to summarise (hardly!) the year.
So, for 2025 it’s time to get ‘back to basics’ and summarise what proved to be a tumultuous 12 months in one single newsletter (albeit with shorter summaries of each resource so to comply with LinkedIn’s character length limitation). To paraphrase Lenin: “There are decades where nothing happens; and there are years where decades happen.” This can manifestly be applied to 2025.
You can read longer summaries of each resource in the monthly editions of the newsletter from 2025: January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November and December.
You can also read the annual compendiums from previous years here: 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 (Part 1 and Part 2) | 2023 (Part 1 and Part 2) | 2024 (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4 and Part 5). If you do decide to take this trip down memory lane, like me I expect it will become abundantly clear that the growth in the field has been staggering.
The advance of people analytics has been mirrored by the human resources field in general as it continues to progress from its traditional role as a support function to a strategic partner. As I wrote in my article, 12 Opportunities for HR in 2026:
HR is more complex, more consequential and more central to enterprise performance than at any point in the last 50 years – perhaps ever.
I hope you enjoy reading the selections for 2025, which have been organised under 11 themes: (i) AI and the Future of Work, (ii) Workplace Strategy, (iii) People Analytics, (iv) Strategic Workforce Planning, (v) Skills-Based Organisations, (vi) Employee Experience and Wellbeing, (vii) Leadership, Culture and Performance, (viii) Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging, (ix) The Future of HR and Learning, (x) Reimagining the role of the Chief People Officer, and (xi) Revamping the HR Operating Model. If you do enjoy reading and haven’t already, please subscribe to the Data Driven HR Monthly, and tune in to the Digital HR Leaders podcast.
AI AND THE FUTURE OF WORK
STANFORD – Future of Work with AI Agents: Project | Paper
One of the most referenced studies of 2025 was Stanford’s Future of Work with AI Agents. The study introduces the Human Agency Scale, a five-level framework (see FIG 1) that clarifies when humans must remain in the loop. As AI accelerates task automation, this model offers essential strategic guidance for leaders seeking to balance efficiency, trust, and the irreducible value of human judgment. Kudos to the authors: Yijia Shao, Humishka Zope, Yucheng Jiang, Jiaxin Pei, David Nguyen, Erik Brynjolfsson, Yang Diyi.
WHARTON – Accountable Acceleration: Gen AI Fast-Tracks Into the Enterprise
The third annual Wharton–GBK Collective study, led by Jeremy Korst, Stefano Puntoni and Prasanna Tambe, finds that Gen AI is no longer experimental – it’s now deeply embedded in organisations:
The next phase is not about adoption; it is about advantage. The companies that thrive will be those that pair measurable ROI with responsible integration and build a culture where people have the skills to grow with AI.
MICROSOFT – Work Trend Index Annual Report: 2025 – The Year the Frontier Firm is Born
As AI democratizes access to expertise and intelligence, we’ll see the rise of Intelligence Resources departments – much like how HR and IT evolved into core functions.
Microsoft’s Work Trend Index highlighted the emergence of a new type of organisation, the Frontier Firm, characterised by a blended workforce where AI agents work alongside humans, and employees are empowered to manage and utilise these agents effectively.
MCKINSEY – The agentic organization: Contours of the next paradigm for the AI era
Culture will become both the operating glue and the ethical compass of the agentic organization.
McKinsey’s vision of the agentic organization is built around five enterprise pillars and 15 themes (see FIG 3). The article shares learnings from early adopters and provides guidance on what firms should do next. (Authors: Alexander Sukharevsky, Alexis Krivkovich, Arne Gast, Arsen Storozhev, Dana Maor, Deepak Mahadevan, Lari Hamalainen, and Sandra Durth.)
IBM – 5 Mindshifts to Supercharge Business Growth
CEOs are looking to reskill the talent they already have (build), hire the talent they need (buy), add AI assistants and agents to workflows wherever they can (bot), and rely on partners to borrow what they can’t find another way (borrow).
IBM’s 2025 CEO Outlook highlights the five mindshifts to supercharge growth in the age of AI: (1) Make courage your core. (2) Embrace AI-fuelled creative destruction. (3) Cultivate a vibrant data environment. (4) Ignore FOMO, lean into ROI. (5) Borrow the talent you can’t buy.
JULIE BEDARD, JESSICA BEIDELMAN, ELIZABETH LYLE, AND REINHARD MESSENBÖCK – To Unlock the Full Value of AI, Invest in Your People
Changing the way people work and focusing on the right value pools is the bridge between AI adoption and advantage.
According to a 2025 BCG study only 5% of companies are generating value at scale from AI. In their article, Julie Bedard, Jessica Beidelman, Elizabeth Lyle (Smith), and Reinhard Messenboeck provide insights into how these organisations move from AI experimentation to real business impact.
PRASAD SETTY – What Must Be True for AI to Replace Knowledge Workers
We are the architects of the standard, the owners of the risk, and the source of the care.
Prasad Setty analyses what it would actually take for AI to replace knowledge workers. While the cost gap between human and machine cognition is enormous (a 2000x ratio), he argues that three major hurdles stand in the way: The Quality Threshold, Demand Expansion, and The Social Barrier.
LASZLO BOCK – The Impact of AI on the Future of Work
Laszlo Bock shares the deck he is using to speak about AI and the future of work. As Laszlo astutely observes:
HR is uniquely positioned to make sure the future of work is both productive and humane.
AMY EDMONDSON AND TOMAS CHAMORRO-PREMUZIC – The Perils of Using AI to Replace Entry-Level Jobs
The real opportunity lies in rethinking jobs so humans spend more time where judgment, collaboration, and creativity are needed.
Amy Edmondson and Dr Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic outline why using AI to eliminate entry-level jobs is short-sighted and that these roles are crucial for developing future leaders, fostering innovation, enriching organisational culture, and protecting society. Instead of cutting these jobs, they argue that companies should redesign them to leverage AI for routine tasks while humans focus on judgment, creativity, and collaboration.
VINCENT GRECO AND JOHN HAZAN – You Can’t Spell AI without HR: The Surprising Secret to Scale
When HR is fully engaged, AI adoption accelerates. And when it’s sidelined, progress stalls.
Vincent Greco, Ph.D and John Hazan highlight a Bain study, which finds that companies that are able to move past pilot projects on AI to broader adoption are achieving this through integrating HR into their generative AI strategies. These companies integrate HR early in three key areas: (1) Redesigning roles and workflows to maximise AI’s impact. (2) Encouraging employees to experiment with generative AI to develop skills and learn organically. (3) Creating a culture in which AI is seen as an enabler, not a threat.
WORKPLACE STRATEGY
ANNE-LAURE FAYARD AND JOHN WEEKS – The Workplace Psychological Contract Is Broken. Here’s How to Fix It
If the old psychological contract called for managers to be rulemakers and fair judges, the ethics of care requires them to be more like anthropologists, psychologists, or social workers.
Anne-Laure Fayard and John Weeks argue the return-to-office battle signals a fractured psychological contract. Repairing it demands shifting from rigid policies to a care-based culture grounded in relational proximity, transparent principles, and adaptive leadership, so rebuilding trust and aligning expectations in a post-pandemic world of evolving employee needs.
BRIAN ELLIOTT, NICK BLOOM AND PRITHWIRAJ CHOUDHURY – Hybrid Work Is Not the Problem — Poor Leadership Is
The future of hybrid work will be won by leaders who prioritise trust, outcomes, and continuous learning — not by those who double down on attendance mandates.
To date, no peer-reviewed research shows a benefit to a rigid five-day office model. Those CEOs that are pushing for four or five in-office days are, Brian Elliott, Nick Bloom and Prithwiraj Choudhury argue, fixated on the wrong problem. The real challenge isn’t hybrid policy — it’s leadership capability. Their article outlines the common characteristics of companies that excel with flexible work policies.
DEBORAH LOVICH, GABRIELLE NOVACEK, AND CHENAULT TAYLOR – What the Return-to-Office Debate Misses: Employees Are Customers
Debbie Lovich, Gabrielle Novacek, and Chenault Taylorpresent findings from a BCG Henderson survey of 11,000 global employees, which finds that most companies treat employees as costs rather than customers who choose how much effort to bring to work. They make a compelling case that RTO mandates go against all notions of employee as customer. They explain why organisations should segment their workforces, much as they do with customers, so that they address different segments’ needs, to motivate and retain people, through specific practices.
PHILIP ARKCOLL – How AI Agents Will Reshape Organizational Networks
Philip Arkcoll explores how AI agents will impact organisational networks and create new pathways for information flow – potentially accelerating innovation, improving decision-making, and breaking down silos and bottlenecks (see FIG 6).
TYLER WEEKS AND ALEXIS FINK – Thriving with AI: Accelerating Innovation by Fostering Human Connection
We must use ONA more often to monitor the creative health of the company.
Tyler Weeks and Alexis Fink demonstrate how unchecked AI efficiency can erode collaboration, weakening organisational networks. Their simulations reveal that intentionally designing AI as a “serendipity engine,” supported by ONA and four targeted interventions, strengthens connection density and boosts creativity. This ensures AI augments, rather than displaces, the collective.
PEOPLE ANALYTICS
YUYAN SUN – The Evolution of People Analytics: A Decade of Transformation – Part 1 | Part 2
People analytics has evolved from a technical specialty to a strategic function at the heart of workforce transformation.
In a two-part series, Yuyan Sun (together with Cole Napper in Part 1) charts people analytics’ evolution over the last decade (see FIG 8). Despite considerable advances over these ten years, the challenges of data quality, adoption, and skills remain persistent barriers. Looking ahead, Yuyan identifies augmented work design, intelligent orchestration systems, and adaptive talent networks as defining the future of the function. Thanks to Yuyan for drawing on the Data Driven HR Monthly as her primary source of data.
COLE NAPPER – The Tree of Value: Uniting People Analytics, Workforce Planning, Talent Intelligence, and Behavioral Science
Cole Napper explains how people analytics, workforce planning, talent intelligence, and behavioural science, while originating independently from each other, all have the same roots: the value of human capital labour data. Cole calls the relationships between these four disciplines the Tree of Value (see FIG 9), and in his article demonstrates how the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
MADELINE LAURANO – The ROI of People Analytics
Companies that invest in people analytics are 3x more likely to demonstrate ROI in their HR strategies and 2x more likely to feel prepared to present outcomes to the C-suite.
This is the standout finding from a study led by Madeline Laurano of Aptitude Research. Similar to our own research at Insight222, the study finds that people analytics acts as the critical link between HR initiatives and the financial metrics that matter most to executives.
Join me for a webinar on January 15 as we unveil the key findings from the Insight222 People Analytics Trends 2025-26
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.
MAX BLUMBERG – People Analytics CAN Measure ROI With Proven Business Methods
People Analytics often claims it cannot measure ROI on human capital investments. Every other business function quantifies returns on equally complex, equally uncertain assets.
Max Blumberg walks through five measurement approaches that people analytics teams should adopt: (1) Marketing mix modelling for retention programs, (2) Scenario analysis for hiring quality, (3) Total cost of ownership for HR Technology, (4) Portfolio thinking for learning investments, and (5) Throughput accounting for capability bottlenecks.
PIETRO MAZZOLENI AND ERIC BOKELBERG – The right owner, the right impact: mastering people analytics accountability
Pietro Mazzoleni and Eric Bokelberg provide guidance on mastering people analytics by defining clear ownership – a cornerstone for unlocking business value from people data. They outline four essential domains for assigning ownership: (1) Data Governance. (2) Stakeholder Management. (3) Data & AI Platforms. (4) Functional AI. They then recommend ownership across five key functional roles: the People Analytics Team, CHRO and HR Leadership Team, Business Function Leaders, Chief Data Office, and IT/AI Technology Team. By aligning accountability with expertise, HR leaders can ensure data is handled responsibly, initiatives drive strategic priorities, and AI delivers trustworthy, actionable insights, ultimately generating real business impact.
DANA MINBAEVA – People Analytics Lost the Plot. Here’s How to Get It Back (in the Age of AI)
Dana Minbaeva explains where she believes people analytics has gone astray, before outlining how the field can realign practice for the AI era using the ACAI – Ask, Collect, Analyse, Influence – model (see FIG 5).
RICHARD ROSENOW – The Uncharted Path of a People Analytics Career
Richard Rosenow examines what a career in people analytics looks like, why the path to leadership is still mostly undefined, why it’s hard to grow and provides some tips on how to overcome these challenges.
STRATEGIC WORKFORCE PLANNING
MCKINSEY – The critical role of strategic workforce planning in the age of AI
Neel Gandhi, Sandra Durth, Vincent Bérubé, Charlotte Seiler, Kritvi Kedia and Randy Lim, discuss five best practices for building a holistic talent plan through strategic workforce planning: (1) Prioritising talent investments as much as financial investments. (2) Considering both capacity and capabilities. (3) Planning for multiple business scenarios. (4) Refocusing from hiring to reskilling and upskilling. (5) Embedding SWP into business as usual:
Strategic workforce planning should become a business-as-usual process, not just a one-off exercise in the face of a single threat to an organization’s talent pipeline or business goals.
DELOITTE – Reinventing workforce planning for an AI-powered, uncertain world
Workforce planning is evolving – and in some organizations, being reinvented – to become a key differentiator in a dynamic, artificial intelligence-powered world.
Susan Cantrell, Russell Klosk (智能虎), Zac Shaw, Kevin Moss, Christopher Tomke, and Michael Griffiths outline the five key shifts required to transform how workforce planning is done, and turn it into a competitive advantage for a new world of work (see FIG 11).
GARTNER – 3 Steps to Initiate a Strategic Workforce Plan
Maggie Schroeder-O’Neal and Jonah Shepp outline three steps to successfully initiate a strategic workforce plan: (1) Defining roles and responsibilities for enhanced collaboration. (2) Narrowing the plan’s scope to reduce its complexity. (3) Promoting flexible plans by practicing adaptability. The paper provides two compelling case studies from FIS and Merck with the latter outlining how Merck prioritises their SWP needs based on relevance and actionability (see FIG 12).
BCG – AI Is Moving Faster Than Your Workforce Strategy. Are You Ready?
What feels advanced today will be table stakes by 2030—if not before. To stay ahead, organizations must know where they stand now and act accordingly.
AI is profoundly reshaping work, talent, and teams, requiring a fundamental shift in workforce strategy. In this article, Julie Bedard and her BCG colleagues introduce the AI Talent Horizon Framework (see FIG 13), which plots an organisation’s journey across two dimensions: AI Maturity (from tool-based adoption to agent-led orchestration) and Workforce Impact (changes in tasks, talent and teams).
MCKINSEY GLOBAL INSTITUTE – Agents, robots, and us: Skill partnerships in the age of AI
Work in the future will be a partnership between people, agents, and robots – all powered by AI.
McKinsey’s Agents, Robots, and Us, published at the end of 2025, shows work shifting toward human–machine partnership, not replacement. The Skills Change Index, presented within the study, reveals most skills endure as AI accelerates demand for both technical and human capabilities. Real value comes from redesigning workflows and reskilling people, with leaders orchestrating trust-based, human-centred collaboration at scale. Kudos to the authors: Lareina Yee, Anu Madgavkar, Sven Smit, Alexis Krivkovich, Michael Chui, María Jesús Ramírez Larraín and Diego A. Castresana Bao.
JOSEPH FULLER, MATT SIGELMAN, AND MICHAEL FENLON – How Gen AI Could Change the Value of Expertise
Joseph Fuller, Matt Sigelman, and Michael Fenlon present analysis that suggests, in the next few years, c50 million jobs will be affected by GenAI. They outline that the scale of this change will compel companies to reshape their organisational structures and rethink their talent-management strategies in profound ways.
WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM – Future of Jobs Report 2025
The fifth World Economic Forum Future of Jobs Report is, like its predecessors, an absolute treasure trove. Three standout highlights are: (1) By 2030, 170 million new jobs will emerge, yet 92 million will be displaced—a net increase of 78 million roles (see FIG 15). (2) Skill gaps are the biggest barrier to business transformation with 63% of employers identifying them as a major barrier over the 2025- 2030 period. (3) On average, workers can expect that two-fifths (39%) of their existing skill sets will be transformed or become outdated over the 2025-2030 period. Authors: Attilio Di Battista, Sam Grayling, Ximena Játiva, Till Alexander Leopold, Ricky LI, Shuvasish Sharma, and Saadia Zahidi.
SKILLS BASED ORGANISATIONS
RAVIN JESUTHASAN, RUPAL KANTARIA, AND SIMON LUONG – Workforce Transformation In The AI Era
Leaders need new talent strategies as AI and demographic changes create the need for agile, skills-based organizations.
In their article, Ravin Jesuthasan, CFA, FRSA, Rupal Sachdev Kantaria, and Simon Luong explain why CEOs increasingly recognise that workforce strategy is as important to companies as financial strategy. This is expanding the role of the chief people officer, whose mandates at some companies have expanded to include strategy, transformation and operations. All this, argue the authors, is leading to a transformation of work and the human experience of work across three critical dimensions: (1) Redesigning work for a truly agile operating model. (2) Skills as the currency (see FIG 16). (3) Adaptive leadership.
WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM – Global Skills Taxonomy Adoption Toolkit: Defining a Common Skills Language for a Future-Ready Workforce
As technology rapidly advances and economic landscapes continue to shift, a common skills language is urgently needed to bridge gaps and enable workforce transformation.
Neil Allison, Ximena Játiva, and Aarushi Singhania present the World Economic Forum’s Global Skills Taxonomy Adoption Toolkit. It is designed to equip leaders with a roadmap and actionable methodologies, evidence-based insights, and real-world case studies to adopt a common skills language and embed skills-first approaches into talent management strategies.
LISA K. SIMON – How Much Is a Skill Worth?
Lisa K. Simon, Chief Economist at Revelio Labs, presents the findings of a paper, she co-authored with David Dorn, Ludger Woessmann, Moritz Seebacher and Florian Schoner, which finds that the number and type of skills workers report are strong predictors of how much they earn.
Workers who list more skills tend to be in better-paid jobs. On average, each additional skill listed on a resume is associated with 0.67 percentage points higher earnings.
WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM – New Economy Skills: Unlocking the Human Advantage
In the age of artificial intelligence, the true competitive edge is being human.
The World Economic Forum’s New Economy Skills: Unlocking the Human Advantage report argues that in an AI-enabled economy, human-centric skills – creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, empathy and lifelong learning (see FIG 17) – are the true competitive advantage. Yet demand outpaces supply. Organisations and governments must rigorously assess, develop and credential these capabilities, embedding them into talent systems to unlock growth, resilience and innovation. Authors: Mario Di Gregorio, Genesis Elhussein, Ximena Játiva, and Saadia Zahidi.
DAVID G. COLLINGS AND JOHN McMACKIN – Skills-first HR: a key enabler of future global strategy
In their paper, David Collings and John McMackin present a business case supporting the adoption of skills-first HR as a key enabler of future global strategy. They outline a framework composed of four essential building blocks for implementing skills-first HR (see FIG 18), as well as highlighting critical success factors for enabling this change.
EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE AND WELLBEING
BARBARA JEFFERY, BROOKE WEDDLE, JACQUELINE BRASSEY, AND SHAIL THAKER – Thriving workplaces: How employers can improve productivity and change lives
By making work a place that improves health, organizations can build a strong, productive, and engaged workforce and release greater individual and organizational potential.
This collaboration between the McKinsey Health Institute and the World Economic Forum finds that improving workforce health could unlock $11.7 trillion in economic value. Yet only half of employees report good holistic health. Organisations must prioritise well-being as a strategic asset, measure it rigorously, pilot targeted interventions, and embed health into culture to drive productivity and resilience (Authors: Barbara Jeffery, Brooke Weddle, Jacqui Brassey, PhD, MA, MAfN 🎗️ (née Schouten), and Shail Thaker).
AMY EDMONDSON AND MICHAELA J. KERRISSEY – What People Get Wrong About Psychological Safety
Leaders who truly understand what psychological safety is—and isn’t—communicate the concept to their teams clearly, stop incorrect assumptions before they gain destructive force, and keep people focused on the value to be gained from candor.
Amy Edmondson and Michaela Kerrissey outline six common misconceptions about psychological safety, explaining why they stymie progress and provide guidance on how to counter each misconception.
DAN RILEY AND SHONNA WATERS – AI and the New Intimacy: Part 1 – When Connection Becomes Consumption | Part 2: The Edge of Connection | Part 3: The Seduction of Seamless | Part 4: The AI Skills Paradox: Why We’re Not Ready to Be “More Human”
When intimacy becomes frictionless, it stops being human… The greatest threat of AI isn’t intelligence. It’s isolation and atrophy.
Across their enthralling four-part series, Shonna Waters, PhD and Dan Rileyargue AI is reshaping intimacy and revealing uncomfortable truths about human capability. As frictionless, always-on AI competes with human connection, leaders must actively protect reciprocity, vulnerability, and judgment. The challenge is not technological but moral: redesign work, norms, and leadership behaviours so AI augments relationships without eroding the human capacities organisations depend on.
PATRICK COOLEN AND SANDER DE BRUIJN – 7 Golden Rules For Improving Employee Experience
Effective EX solutions are built on an iterative and evidence-based approach while co-creating with employees.
Patrick Coolen and Sander de Bruijn outline how to do continuous employee listening and share seven ‘Golden Rules’ for improving employee experience. These include the ‘Triple Diamond Model’ (see FIG 20), which is designed to capture, understand and act on your employees’ needs and ambitions.
LEADERSHIP, CULTURE AND PERFORMANCE
KATARINA BERG AND TOMAS CHAMORRO-PREMUZIC – AI is coming for your job. Here are 10 strategies to stay relevant
Katarina Berg and Dr Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic provide ten smart tips to avoid being automated by AI including: (1) Reinvesting the time saved by AI into higher-value, human-centric tasks. (2) Strengthening emotional intelligence. (3) Investing in your personal brand.
DAVE ULRICH – Talent Advantage = AI (Artificial Intelligence) * HI (Human Ingenuity): A Formula for Business and HR Leaders
Dave Ulrich argues that true talent advantage arises not from artificial intelligence (AI) alone but from its fusion with human ingenuity (HI) — the creativity, judgement and empathy that machines cannot replicate. AI amplifies information and efficiency; HI gives it meaning and value. Multiplying the two, rather than adding them, defines modern capability.
MICHAEL ARENA, ANDREA DERLER, AND EMILY KLEIN – Balancing speed & stability in deploying AI
The size of teams plays a crucial role in enabling executive leaders and organizations to drive innovation in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.
Drawing on a Visier Inc. study, which found that the ideal team size is six to ten people, Michael Arena, Andrea Derler, Ph.D., and Emily Klein‘s research reinforces a key principle: team size should be designed around the desired outcome, namely the nature of the work to be done. The article details four actions leaders can take to balance speed and stability in AI-driven organisations: (1) Design teams based on task complexity. (2) Adopt the speed-stability continuum. (3) Encourage cross-team collaboration. (4) Right-size teams for maximum impact.
KATE BRAVERY, GORD FROST, AND RAVIN JESUTHASAN – Reimagining performance management in the age of AI
60% of HR Leaders believe that performance management does not work the way they wish it would, within their organization.
In their paper for Mercer, Kate Bravery, Gord Frost, and Ravin Jesuthasan, CFA, FRSA, argue performance management is broken, highlighting data that finds only 4% of HR leaders see real value. Reinvention requires shifting to performance enablement: supporting the “vital many,” aligning aspirations with business needs, empowering managers to act as stewards to all employees – not just low and high performers, embedding continuous dialogue, and partnering with AI to drive clarity, fairness and stronger outcomes for all.
VIRGINIA MINNI – New Research on How the Best Managers Shape Employees’ Careers
For every extra dollar of compensation spent on high-flyer managers, the company sees roughly five dollars of value in higher worker productivity.
Virginia Minni outlines findings from her study of 200,000 employees and 30,000 managers in nearly 100 countries. It reveals that high-performing managers – those with early promotions – create value for both their companies and those they manage – by matching people to roles where they fit best. Employees who overlap with these managers see enduring gains in productivity and wages – benefits that persist long after either party moves on.
ANTONIO NIETO-RODRIGUEZ – The Project-Driven Organization
In a project-driven organization, employees have to move easily to where they can have the most impact. HR’s role is to enable the project teams, providing training, coaching, and tools to help them adapt and thrive.
Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez explains how organisations have moved through three eras of value creation — operations, then agile, and now projects — as constant transformation becomes the defining challenge of modern business. He argues that projects are now the primary vehicle through which companies evolve, innovate and execute strategy, and presents a model with eight levers (see FIG 24) for leaders to build this capability.
AMIT MOHINDRA – The Human Advantage in the Age of Algorithms
Amit Mohindra outlines five core human capabilities that will define employability in the age of algorithms (see FIG 25) before presenting his Human Advantage Manifesto.
DIVERSITY, EQUITY, INCLUSION AND BELONGING
FRANK DOBBIN AND ALEXANDRA KALEV – Achieve DEI Goals Without DEI Programs
Many management innovations designed to improve performance actually boost workforce diversity as well, without inviting the backlash of formal DEI programs.
Frank Dobbin and Alexandra Kalev argue that meaningful DEI progress doesn’t require DEI programs. Instead, high-performance management such as referral programs, skills upgrading, mentoring, flexible scheduling and performance-based retention naturally expand opportunity. The authors cite examples from the likes of Walmart, Amazon and IBM, and demonstrate that when embedded into everyday talent practices, these approaches strengthen inclusion and business outcomes alike: doing good by doing well.
LILY ZHENG – What Comes After DEI?
DEI work must evolve to become outcomes-based, systems-focused, coalition-driven, and win-win.
Lily Zheng outlines the FAIR framework built around fairness, access, inclusion, and representation: (1) Fairness is when all people are set up for success and protected against discrimination. (2) Access is when all people can fully participate in a product, service, experience, or physical environment. (3) Inclusion is when all people feel respected, valued, and safe for who they are. (4) Representation is when all people feel their needs are advocated for by those who represent them.
CURTIS L. ODOM, CHARN P. MCALLISTER, AND RYAN SOFFER – Why Belonging Matters More Than Just Diversity
When leaders commit to fostering a culture of belonging, the connection between management practices and diversity-related outcomes becomes clearer.
Curtis Odom, Ed.D., Charn McAllister and Ryan Soffer outline three targets for effective DEI. (1) Establishing belonging and psychological safety as the ultimate aim. (2) Urging organisations to move beyond single-approach diversity practices, and advocating for a multifaceted, integrated strategy. (3) Emphasising the need for persistence to sustain diversity efforts through consistent, long-term action.
DAVID ANDERSON, MARGRÉT V. BJARNADÓTTIR, AND DAVID GADDIS ROSS – Your Company Wants to Close Pay Gaps. Here’s Where to Start (APR)
Firms that define clear pay equity goals and adhere to them set themselves apart as good places to work, and their employees are less likely to leave.
With regulations (such as the EU Pay Transparency Directive) and both societal and workforce expectation, companies are increasingly focused on achieving pay equity. David Anderson, Margret Bjarnadottir, and David Gaddis Ross outline a framework (see FIG 26) to help companies decide which steps to take to stay aligned with their values and to be responsive to the regulatory environment.
THE FUTURE OF HR AND LEARNING
DAVE ULRICH – Six Actions for HR to Create More Stakeholder Value
Dave Ulrich reframes HR’s mission around creating value for all stakeholders. He outlines required outcomes, a human capability framework spanning 38 initiatives, and a shift from activity to impact. His message is clear: HR must prioritise with precision, communicate its value, and build the capabilities that drive meaningful business results.
JOHN GOLDEN, ALEXIS FINK, AND STEVE HUNT – The Future of Work 2025: Why HR Holds the Pen to Rewrite the Playbook
HR leaders must embrace its new identity—not as a back-office function, but as the architect of future-ready organizations.
John Golden, Ph.D., Alexis Fink and Steve Hunt present five critical and interconnected dimensions to reimagine HR in the age of AI: (1) Integrating AI as a true co-worker. (2) Navigating the fast-moving skills economy. (3) Evolving from a service function to a strategic conductor. (4) Designing hybrid work beyond mandates. (5) Transforming employee experience through intelligent listening systems.
STACIA GARR – What If AI Doesn’t Make HR More Strategic?
Stacia Garr argues that AI alone doesn’t make HR more strategic – what matters is how leaders act. She warns that many organisations use AI just to automate, not to transform. True strategic impact comes when HR measures outcomes, develops leaders who role-model change, and builds trust through transparency. AI must serve a human-centred agenda, not replace leadership.
HELEN POITEVIN – AI in HR: Hits, Misses and Growing Pains
Skills-based talent management cannot scale or be sustainable long-term without AI-enabled skills management.
Writing for Gartner, Helen Poitevin presents a AI use-case prism for human capital management (see FIG 29) before providing detailed insights on AI in HR across three key areas: recruiting, virtual assistants and skills in terms of what’s working and what isn’t as well as areas requiring more focus (growing pains) and what to expect next.
GREG VERT AND KYLE FORREST – HR Reimagined: Agentic AI for HR
Agentic AI is an opportunity to completely reimagine HR processes and experience in a way where AI plays a much bigger role to help automate, personalize, and provide insights throughout
Greg Vert and Kyle Forrest of Deloitte present a primer on the potential of Agentic AI to reimagine and significantly increase the impact of the HR function. It provides an explainer on what AI Agents are, how they are revolutionising how ‘work gets done’ and a methodology for identifying opportunities for Agentic AI.
JACQUI CANNEY AND BRANDON ROBERTS – HR’s Role in AI Transformation: A playbook for HR leaders
AI transformation in HR can help supercharge business transformation because the business strategy starts with the people strategy.
In their playbook, Jacqui Canney and Brandon Roberts of ServiceNow position AI as a ‘human renaissance’ and provide HR with a clear three-point plan to lead it. First, reimagine an AI-powered HR function with a robust operating model and governance. Second, enable AI fluency across the enterprise. Third, transform the workforce by building skills to partner with AI. Practical use cases show the value is real and immediate.
REIMAGINING THE ROLE OF THE CHIEF PEOPLE OFFICER
THE CONFERENCE BOARD – The Evolving Role of the CHRO in the Boardroom
The CHRO is now increasingly expected to function as an enterprise leader—engaging deeply in business strategy, risk oversight, organizational transformation, and governance.
The Conference Board finds CHRO–board engagement deepening as CHROs are expected to act as enterprise leaders, aligning human capital with financial and operational priorities. Four derailers—administrative perceptions, succession friction, access limits, and limited commercial acumen—can impede impact. As AI, regulation and workforce shifts intensify, CHRO influence will only grow. (Authors: Rita Meyerson, Ed.D., Andrew Jones, Marion Devine, Matt Rosenbaum, and Christine Guinessey plus Matteo Tonello for sharing.)
DELOITTE – Reimagining CHRO roles and responsibilities for strategic growth
Leaders, chief executive officers, board members, and venture capital and private equity firms realize HR is the secret glue holding everything together.
Deloitte’s analysis shows CHRO roles expanding faster than any C-suite position, with required skills up 23% since 2018. As HR’s strategic importance rises, CHROs must pair deeper analytical and regulatory expertise with stewardship of workforce engagement and wellbeing—reshaping the role into a quantitatively fluent, people-centred enterprise leader. The report brings the findings to life with examples from CHROs including Peter Fasolo, Ph.D. and Christian Meisner. Authors: Kyle Forrest, Brad Kreit, Tim Murphy, Monika Mahto, Karen Weisz, and Jessica Britton Cantrell.
JULIE BEDARD AND DAVID MARTIN – Strategy and Soft Skills: What CEOs Should Look For in an AI-First Chief People Officer
A Chief People Officer needs to be comfortable owning the AI talent strategy and having a strong hand in the company’s reinvention.
The Chief People Officer’s role in the AI transformation should not be merely a supporting one – instead the CPO should be a lead actor according to Julie Bedard and David Martin of BCG. They argue that the CPO must be the ‘chief capabilities architect’, fundamentally disrupting the organisation by shaping AI strategy from the outset and continuously reinventing critical organizational workflows and capabilities. To determine if their chief people officer is truly AI-First, the CEO should ask five key questions: (1) Is my CPO AI-curious? (2) Has my CPO played a role in another type of transformation? (3) Can my CPO bring structure to ambiguity? (4) Can my CPO create and manage a new social contract with employees? (5) Can my CPO claim their rightful seat at the table and challenge me?
JOSH BERSIN AND KATHI ENDERES – Secrets Of The High Performing CHRO
The CHRO role is critical for business success, with CHROs serving as C-suite leaders first, and HR function leaders second.
Josh Bersin and Kathi Enderes present their research identifying four major archetypes of CHRO (see FIG 31): Career CHRO (who change companies regularly), Company CHRO (who grow up inside the company), Business CHRO (who are rotated into the job from non-HR roles – and who drive the greatest change and impact), and Operations CHRO (who come from legal, finance, or operations background).
REVAMPING THE HR OPERATING MODEL
VOLKER JACOBS – AI is Reshaping the HR Operating Model: Here’s What 15 Leading Companies Discovered
To operationalise the productivity gains from AI, a product-oriented HR is the way to go. And for that, new product management and data skills are needed.
Findings from a co-creation study developed with 15 major European companies by Volker Jacobs and his team at TI People finds AI reshaping HR with ~29% efficiency potential and significant reinvestment opportunities, especially in specialist operations and HRBP roles. Volker proposes a new HR Operating Model (see FIG 32) built on four components: product managers owning end-to-end HR products, cross-functional problem solvers, service delivery teams orchestrating AI-human collaboration, and AI taking on increasing portions of transactional and analytical work.
McKINSEY – A new operating model for people management: More personal, more tech, more human
To get the most from employees, organizations need a more strategic, collaborative, fluid, and data-driven people operating system.
In this article, which I was delighted to be invited to contribute to, the McKinsey team of Asmus Komm, Fernanda Mayol, Neel Gandhi, Sandra Durth, and Jasmin Kiefer envision a hyper-personalised people management model where two-thirds of HR tasks are largely automated and only 20% of today’s strategic activities remain unchanged. Delivering this requires a new operating system: a strategic trio of people strategists, scientists and technologists; a more fluid, tech-enabled model; and technology to manage complexity—scaled through experimentation and continuous improvement.
MERCER – Operating by Design: An outcomes model for perpetual change
An AI-powered operating model isn’t built on top of the old one; it’s built for a fundamentally different world of work.
Mercer’s reframes HR for an AI-powered world, urging CHROs to shift from process-led delivery to outcome orchestration through a living operating system. HR, IT and Finance must jointly steward a digital fabric, outcome delivery teams, domain expertise and modernised enablement services to drive trusted, adaptive, human–machine collaboration. Key actions outlined include: anchor on outcomes, redesign work, build AI fluency and governance, and progressively graft the new model onto existing structures to transform how work is organised and delivered. (Authors: Emily Liddle, Jim Scully, Alexandra Zea, Jonathan Gordin, David Mitchell, Kristin Rhebergen and JESS VON BANK.)
THANK YOU
Thanks to all the authors and contributors featured in the best articles of 2025 as well as across the monthly collections from 2025 – see January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November and December – your passion, knowledge and expertise continues to inspire. Thanks also to the sponsors of the Data Driven HR Monthly newsletter in 2025 as well as the great many of you that share and engage with newsletter every month. It’s much appreciated. I wish you all a happy, healthy, and successful 2026.
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.
