HR Leaders Must Think Like Product Leaders

Your career journey has been quite non-linear, moving from finance into HR research and strategy. How did that transition happen?

My career journey has definitely been non-linear. I actually started at an HR consulting organisation where my primary interest was analytics rather than HR itself. Later, because of my academic background in finance, I pursued a master’s degree specialising in finance and worked in strategy roles within the financial services domain.

However, over time, I realised that what I enjoyed most was the consulting and research-oriented side of work. When I moved into Gartner — previously CEB — and started working on HR-related advisory projects, I discovered the impact that research-driven HR strategy could create for organisations.

The turning point came when I saw organisations actively implementing recommendations from research insights that we had developed. That multiplier effect — helping hundreds of organisations solve people-related challenges through research — became the biggest motivation for me to move deeper into HR strategy and advisory.

What are the most important competencies HR professionals need today?

Three qualities stand out consistently for me: communication skills, analytical ability and adaptability.

Communication is foundational because HR professionals need to influence stakeholders, build trust and effectively communicate ideas across the organisation.

Analytical ability is equally important because HR today is deeply connected with business strategy. Professionals need to understand business implications, workforce trends and organisational data to make informed decisions.

Finally, adaptability has become critical in today’s environment. Technology, business models and workforce expectations are evolving constantly. HR professionals must demonstrate a growth mindset and the willingness to continuously learn and adapt to new challenges.

What major trends in HR research do you believe will shape organisations in the coming years?

One of the biggest shifts we are seeing is the growing importance of strategic workforce planning.

Historically, workforce planning was often considered a ‘good-to-have’ capability. However, with AI, automation and rapidly changing business environments, it is becoming a core strategic responsibility for CHROs and HR teams.

Organisations now need to constantly assess how technology, AI agents and changing workflows will impact talent requirements. HR leaders are increasingly expected to advise boards and business leaders on workforce implications of strategic decisions.

At the same time, many organisations still struggle with implementation. Building workforce plans is one challenge, but continuously updating and operationalising them requires strong collaboration between HR and business leadership.

How do you see AI reshaping HR functions and the employee experience?

AI is fundamentally changing how HR operates.

For the last decade, cloud-based HR systems focused heavily on standardisation and operational efficiency. However, AI is now enabling a return to deep customisation and contextualisation of employee experiences.

In the future, organisations will increasingly build HR ecosystems tailored to their specific workforce needs. For example, high-volume recruitment organisations may invest heavily in AI-driven hiring agents, automated assessments and interview systems, while other organisations may prioritise leadership development or learning ecosystems instead.

This means HR leaders will need to think like product leaders — working closely with technology teams, designing AI-enabled employee experiences and balancing efficiency with personalisation.

How can organisations effectively measure and understand culture, which is often considered intangible?

Culture measurement cannot rely on intuition alone anymore. Organisations today have access to significantly more real-time employee sentiment data through pulse surveys, collaboration tools, sentiment analysis, and platforms such as Glassdoor or Fishbowl.

However, data alone is not enough.

The most effective organisations combine data-driven insights with active leadership involvement. Leaders who regularly interact with employees, conduct town halls and closely observe behaviours can identify whether organisational values are actually being reflected in day-to-day actions.

Culture ultimately becomes visible through employee behaviour, innovation, customer interactions and leadership decisions — not just survey scores.

Employee expectations have changed significantly after the pandemic. How do you see this evolving further?

Employee expectations evolve alongside broader business and economic cycles.

Post-pandemic, employees began prioritising flexibility, remote work, mental wellness, work-life balance and holistic well-being much more strongly than before. While some of these expectations fluctuate depending on market conditions, many of them have permanently become part of the employer-employee equation.

One important emerging expectation is organisational investment in learning and adaptability. Employees increasingly expect employers not only to provide AI tools, but also to guide them on how to learn, reskill and stay relevant in a rapidly changing work environment.

Organisations that actively invest in employee development and adaptability will likely gain a stronger competitive advantage in attracting and retaining talent.

How do you see the role of HR leaders evolving in an AI-driven future?

The role of HR leaders is going to expand significantly.

CHROs will continue to remain custodians of employee experience and business performance, but they will also increasingly become technology leaders, ethics stewards and strategic advisors.

As AI becomes more integrated into workflows, HR leaders will need to address questions around AI governance, employee data ethics, workforce transformation and technology adoption strategies.

At the same time, automation of operational HR tasks creates an opportunity for HR teams to focus more deeply on strategic business partnership, leadership advisory, organisational culture and workforce transformation initiatives.