Future of HR

This is Part 2 of our live at the CHRO Association's annual CHRO Summit in Orlando, Florida.I was honored to be invited to the CHRO Association's annual CHRO Summit that brought together more than 300 CHROs and senior HR leaders for strategic conversations truly shaping the future of work. With 25 presenters and panelists on the agenda, I was able to sit down and interview seven of those amazing speakers and bring their insights directly to you across these two episodes (EP 186 & EP 187).In this episode, Part 2 - we’re going to hear from three more incredible leaders:Darrell Ford, Vice Chair of the CHRO Association and Executive Vice President and CHRO at UPSRebecca Hinds, PhD, Head of the Work AI Institute and Thought Leadership at Glean, and author of Your Best Meeting EverKevin Cox, Former CHRO at General Electric and President of LKC Advisory LLCConnecting with CHRO Summit presenters: Connect with Darrell Ford on LinkedIn Connect with Rebecca Hinds on LinkedInConnect with Kevin Cox on LinkedInLearn more about CHRO AssociationEpisode Sponsor: Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

This is a very special episode recorded live at the CHRO Association's annual CHRO Summit in Orlando, Florida.Over two days, more than 300 CHROs and senior HR leaders came together for strategic conversations truly shaping the future of work. With 25 presenters and panelists on the agenda, I was fortunate enough to sit down and interview seven of those amazing speakers and bring their insights directly to you.The conversations were so good and in-depth that we're making this a two-part series to ensure we do each conversation justice. This is Part 1.In this episode, you'll hear from:Tim Bartl, CEO of the CHRO AssociationTim Richmond, Chair of the CHRO Association and former EVP and CHRO at AbbVieKristi Hummel, Chief People Officer at OptumEthan Mollick, Innovation Expert, AI Thought Leader, and Professor of Entrepreneurship at the Wharton School of BusinessConnecting with CHRO Summit presenters: Connect with Tim Bartl on LinkedIn Connect with Tim Richmond on LinkedInConnect with Kristi Hummel on LinkedInConnect with Ethan Mollick on LinkedInLearn more about CHRO AssociationEpisode Sponsor: Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

How can HR Rethink Performance Management?Why is Performance Management broken and what can HR do about it? My guests on this episode are Edie Goldberg & Alan Colquitt, co-authors of “Performance Enablement: A New Model for Driving Organizational Performance.”During our conversation, Edie, Alan, and I discuss the following: Why traditional performance management systems were built for a different era of work.How performance management became more about compensation than improving performance.Why shifting from performance management to performance enablement changes the leadership mindset.How continuous coaching and feedback outperform annual reviews and performance ratings.Why team-based goals better reflect how work actually gets done in modern organizations.Connecting with Edie and Alan: Connect with Edie Goldberg on LinkedIn Connect with Alan Colquitt on LinkedInLearn more about Edie’s firm and Performance EnablementLearn more about Alan’s firm and Performance EnablementEpisode Sponsor: Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

How can HR Operations help transform the function and drive business impact?Why should HR shift from People First to People Forward strategy?My guest on this episode is Girish Ganesan, Chief People Officer, S&P GlobalDuring our conversation, Girish and I discuss the following: Why HR operations are the foundation of real impactWhy credibility requires understanding the work beneath the workHow HR teams can shift from "People First" to "People Forward"Why execution is becoming a defining capability for next-generation HR leaders.Why adaptive leadership is critical in the age of AI. Connecting with Girish: Connect with Girish on LinkedIn Episode Sponsor: Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

How can two simple words, “How so?” unlock a deeper conversation with any leader?Why is consistency more important than intensity when building new leadership habits?My guest on this episode is Dave Stachowiak, Host of the Coaching for Leaders podcast.During our conversation, Dave and I discuss the following: Why most "questions" aren't really questions.How defining success in advance makes behavior change measurable.Why high achievers are especially prone to feeling like they've failed.Why pushback when you go more coach is often a green light, not a red one. Why the future of leadership is “both/and." Connecting with Dave: Connect with Dave on LinkedIn Learn more about Coaching for Leaders podcastListen to JP’s episode on Coaching for Leaders podcastEpisode Sponsor: Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

How can we redesign our culture by redesigning our meetings?Why do well-designed meetings allow for more time for individual and value-added work?My guest on this episode is Rebecca Hinds, author of “Your Best Meeting Ever” and leading expert on organizational behavior and the future of work.During our conversation, Rebecca and I discuss the following: Deciding what deserves to be a meeting (and what doesn’t) is one of the most important decisions leaders can make.How poorly designed meetings become signals of busyness rather than drivers of real work.What meetings reveal about your organization's cultureWhy treating meetings like a product changes how leaders think about time, collaboration, and outcomes.How high-performing organizations design clear communication norms so meetings are a last resort, not the default.Connecting with Rebecca: Connect with Rebecca on LinkedIn Learn more about Rebecca’s book and AI research. Episode Sponsor: Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

Over the past 180 episodes, I've only been the one getting interviewed twice. I continue to get requests and questions from you saying, "JP, we'd love for you to answer more questions. We want to get to know you better. We've got some questions we would love you to answer." So, that is what I am doing today. This is a special Ask Me Anything episode.I am joined by my brilliant friend, Anne Gotte, who's the Senior Vice President, Global Talent and Organizational Effectiveness for Mondelēz International. Anne was kind enough to say, "Hey, JP, I want to interview you. I think this will be a lot of fun." And she was right.All the questions today were submitted by you — through the newsletter, on LinkedIn, and across the Future of HR community. I saw some of the questions as they came in, but Anne and I made a deliberate choice: no scripts, no prep, just a candid conversation. So what you're going to hear is Anne and I working through your questions in real time.I'm going to do my best to answer questions around:How I got my first big breakWhere I think AI will shape HR careersWhat I would do differently if I could go back in time and give myself the advice I give many next-gen HR leaders today

How can organizations make employee well-being a leadership responsibility, not just an employee responsibility?Why is belonging the number one driver of employee well-being?My guest on this episode is Mark C. Crowley, a pioneer in workplace leadership, speaker, and bestselling author of Lead from the Heart and The Power of Employee Well-Being.During our conversation, Mark and I discuss the following: Why leading with the heart is often misunderstood as being "soft" in business settings.How pulse surveys, when paired with real accountability systems, can transform manager behavior and team performance.Why belonging is the number one driver of employee well-beingWhy employee well-being is the leader’s responsibility, not the employee’s and the research that proves it.Why HR leaders need to challenge decisions that prioritize short-term financial metrics over long-term culture and people.Connecting with Mark: Connect with Mark on LinkedIn Learn more about Mark’s books and podcastEpisode Sponsor: Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

How can organizations use coaching to build leadership capability?Why should every organization have a clear executive coaching strategy?My guest on this episode is Brian Underhill, Founder and CEO of CoachSourceDuring our conversation, Brian and I discuss the following: How the executive coaching industry evolved and matured over the past few decades.How organizations can design disciplined, scalable coaching systems that drive measurable behavior change.Why coaching works best when it is aligned to the talent strategy.How team coaching can improve trust and effectiveness when designed intentionally. Where AI can support coaching at scale and where it can’t.Connecting with Brian: Connect with Brian on LinkedIn Learn more about CoachSourceEpisode Sponsor: Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

How can HR lead with courage?How can organizations be both high performing and healthy?My guest on this episode is Pat Wadors, CHRO, Intuitive and author of “Unlock Your Leadership Story.”During our conversation, Pat and I discuss the following: Why HR leaders must have the courage to challenge decisions that compromise the organization’s or their own values, even when it puts their role at risk.What it truly means to build a healthy company, not just a high-performing one.How can you partner with the business, so they own the initiatives and not HRWhy HR needs to adopt a product mindset when designing employee experiences and strategic initiatives.Why should you have a “personal scorecard” that helps you navigate your career and personal life.Connecting with Pat: Connect with Pat on LinkedIn Learn more about Pat’s book Unlock Your Leadership Story. Episode Sponsor: Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

How do leaders develop cultural agility?Why is cultural agility an essential skill in the age of AI?My guest on this episode is Paula Caligiuri, Distinguished Professor at Northeastern University, Co-Founder of Skiilify, and Best-Selling Author.During our conversation, Paula and I discuss the following: Why cultural agility is becoming a critical leadership capabilityHow leaders actually develop effectiveness across culturesWhy vulnerability, curiosity, and perspective-taking build trust and adaptability.How individual behavior shapes team dynamics more than formal authority.How organizations can intentionally design experiences to develop global leaders.Connecting with Paula: Connect with Paula on LinkedIn Learn more about Paula’s company, SkillifyCheck out my conversation with Paula on International Business Today podcast where we discuss The Future of HREpisode Sponsor: Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

How does active listening build a culture of trust?Why is the employee experience as important as the customer experience?My guest on this episode is DJ Casto, CHRO, SynchronyDuring our conversation, DJ and I discuss the following:How adopting an agile mindset and methodologies transformed Synchrony's approach to HRHow Synchrony bucked the “return to office” trend by listening to employee feedback and maintaining a flexible, performance-based work model.Why they created a frontline experience team to invest in and improve the employee journey and customer experience.How Synchrony uses active listening to co-create the employee experience and shape the culture.Connecting with DJ:Connect with DJ Casto on LinkedInEpisode Sponsor:Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

How can “managing up” help you to have more impact and influence?Why is managing up a critical leadership skill for all HR leaders?My guest on this episode is Melody Wilding, author of “Managing Up”, keynote speaker, and executive coach.During our conversation, Melody and I discuss the following: The biggest misconceptions about managing up and why they are wrongWhy managing up is a core leadership skill that every HR leader needs to learnPractical tools and questions HR leaders can use to help clarify priorities and expectations with leaders.The four main communication styles leaders need to recognize to build trust and influence across the organization.How to structure upward feedback for your boss to ensure it lands diplomatically and productively.Connecting with Melody: Connect with Melody Wilding on LinkedIn Learn more about Managing Up and Melody’s workEpisode Sponsor: Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

The "Best of 2025" episode features fourteen don't miss moments from HR executives and thought leaders who…So, who can you expect to learn from on this episode?Monique Herena, Chief Colleague Experience Officer, American ExpressWanda Wallace, Managing Partner, Leadership Forum & Darren Overfield, EVP, Coaching & Consulting at Kaiser Leadership SolutionsRiina Hellström, Founder, Agile HR CommunityDave Ulrich, Partner at The RBL GroupMarcia Avedon, 3X CHRO, Board Director, Human Capital Expert, and Executive CoachLisa Chang, EVP & Chief People Officer, The Coca-Cola CompanyChristina Norris-Watts, Head of Assessment & People Practices, Johnson & JohnsonAnita Graham, EVP & CHRO, LabcorpChristy Pambianchi, CHRO, Caterpillar Inc.Ani Huang, Senior EVP, CHRO Association & Anthony Nyberg, Director, Center for Executive Succession at University of South CarolinaBrandon Sammut, Chief People & AI Transformation Officer, ZapierTina Gupta, SVP, Talent Management, New York Life InsuranceBrian Miller, Chief Talent and D&I Officer, Levi Strauss & CoJennifer Wilson & Brad Warga, Partners and Global Co-Heads of the Human Resources Officers Practice at Heidrick & StrugglesEpisode Sponsor:Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

My guests on this special holiday episode are Ian Ziskin, Lori Heffelfinger, Bill Baker, lead author and co-contributors to “Lives Lost and Leadership Found.”During our conversation, Ian, Lori, Bill and I discuss the following: The inspiration behind the book "Lives Lost and Leadership Found" and how personal loss can serve as a foundation for personal growth.The neuroscience behind grief: how loss rewires your brain and why that matters for leaders.What research reveals about the role of intentionality in healing after loss and becoming a stronger leader.The power of storytelling and reflection—why writing about a special someone can be transformativeConnecting with Ian, Lori, and Bill: Learn more or buy Lives Lost and Leadership Found: Lessons From Special SomebodiesConnect with Ian Ziskin, Lori Heffelfinger, and Bill BakerEpisode Sponsor: Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader’s Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.