Highlights from HR Tech 2026

Joseph Fuller is Professor of Management Practice at Harvard Business School and co-lead of the Managing the Future of Work Project.In this episode of The Edge of Work, Fuller shares his perspectives and insights how AI is reshaping the labor market, challenging traditional hiring practices, and changing the skills organizations need. He shares research on the growing disconnect between workforce development and employer demand, the impact of AI on entry-level jobs, and the opportunities emerging through skills-based hiring.During the conversation, Professor Fuller also discusses why organizations must rethink early-career talent development, strengthen partnerships with educators, and challenge long-held assumptions about workforce strategy.LinksLinkedin Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephbfuller/

In this solo episode of The Edge of Work, Al Dea shares key takeaways from six to eight weeks on the road, spanning client work, conferences, and his At The Edge dinner series. In this episode, Al reflects on conversations with a couple hundred HR and business leaders, highlighting four signals in AI adoption and transformation, including insights on moving beyond AI tooling and training, methods for leveraging “AI Champions” and companies exploring redeployment and outskilling. He also offers a way to make sense of these signals for their own organization.LinksAl Dea's Website: https://al-dea.com/ 

In this solo episode of The Edge of Work, host Al Dea shares key takeaways from his time attending  HR Tech Conference 2026 in Las Vegas, highlighting emerging trends in HR technology and their implications for the future of work. In this episode, Al shares some of his thoughts and insights from the 400+ vendors on the Expo Hall and in particular categories like AI enablement and AI/HR agents and agentic tools. He also shares some of the takeaways from his conversations with leaders across the HR ecosystem.LinksAl Dea: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsaldea/Al Dea’s Website: https://www.al-dea.com/

In this solo episode of The Edge of Work, Al Dea explores why traditional career planning may no longer be enough in a rapidly changing workplace. He introduces career experimentation, a curiosity-driven approach that replaces rigid career roadmaps with small, practical tests designed to uncover new interests, build skills, and identify opportunities. Al outlines a four-step framework: formulate a hypothesis, test it, learn from the experience, and take action. He explains how this approach helps professionals navigate uncertainty, build momentum, and make more informed career decisions without waiting for a promotion, a formal development plan, or a clear career ladder.LinksAl Dea: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsaldea/Al Dea’s Website: https://www.al-dea.com/

Joe Leslie is Vice President of Global AI L&D at Golin Ketchum. In this episode, Joe shares how organizations can move beyond basic AI training to drive meaningful adoption and behavior change. He discusses how Golin Ketchum increased weekly AI usage among client-facing teams from 15% to 93% in 18 months, emphasizing the importance of leadership support, role-specific learning, and practical application. Joe also introduces his “Live AI” framework, which uses AI itself as a tool for learning and development. Finally, Joe also explores how Golin Ketchum uses role-specific AI workflows, peer mentoring, and an AI coaching companion to help employees improve their use of AI in everyday tasks.LinksJoe’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephleslie/

Debbie Lovich is a Managing Director & Senior Partner at Boston Consulting Group and Author of Make Work Work: The 5 Daily Practices of the Employee-Centric Leader. In this episode of The Edge of Work, Debbie discusses why she believes work is broken and how organizations can become more employee-centric without sacrificing performance. She explains why employee experience needs to focus on the work itself, not just HR programs, and why the perceived trade-off between employees, customers, and shareholders is a false one. Debbie also shares the five daily practices leaders can use to create better workplaces: celebrate them, go see and help, be interested, co-create, and do it first. She also discusses what these practices look like in action, including how leaders can model change and encourage AI adoption.LinksDebbie’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-lovich-634b681/Debbie’s Book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GHP1B28Z?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback

Lauren Tropeano is Chief People Officer of Docebo. In this episode, Lauren explores how organizations can navigate rapid change, develop talent, and create the conditions for successful AI adoption. She introduces the concept of the “renaissance worker,” someone who combines core expertise with adjacent skills and interests to create value beyond traditional roles. Lauren discusses how a skills-based talent philosophy can help organizations identify and deploy employees’ capabilities, why HR leaders need to understand the broader business, and how leaders can encourage AI experimentation through learning and invitation rather than mandates. LinksLauren’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurenkrol/

Samantha Dray is Director of Early Career Finance & Strategy Development Programs at ServiceNow. In this episode, she shares how ServiceNow is rethinking early career development by putting emerging talent at the center of AI and automation initiatives. Samantha explains the company’s AI accelerator sprint, where early career professionals spend three focused months identifying business problems, building solutions, and driving adoption. She discusses why fresh perspectives can be powerful in transforming work, how organizations can create meaningful opportunities for early career talent to build both technical and human skills, and the importance of giving employees the time and space to develop new capabilities. LinksSamantha’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-kozub-dray-ba4a606/

Tanya Moore is the Chief People Officer at West Monroe. In this episode, she joins The Edge of Work to discuss how organizations can navigate transformation while keeping people and business performance at the center. Tanya shares how she's leading transformation at West Monroe and how she and her team are sensing and responding to shifts in the professional services industry, from investing in company culture to realigning performance management to meet the needs of the business environment. Tanya also explores how West Monroe is approaching AI adoption, including the role of AI literacy, hands-on learning, and employee "power users" in driving meaningful adoption.LinksTanya’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tanyaemoore/

Emily Field is the Chief People Officer at LPL Financial. In this episode Emily she shares lessons from her transition from management consulting to becoming a Chief People Officer, including how to approach onboarding, operate as a strategic business leader, and serve as the connective tissue across an executive team. During the conversation, Emily also discusses how AI is changing work design, why organizations need to keep humans in the lead, and how leaders can turn workplace anxiety into agency. Finally, we close with a discussion about why why managers remain essential as teams increasingly work alongside AI agents.LinksEmily’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emilykfield/Emily’s Book: https://www.amazon.com/Power-Middle-Managers-Hold-Future/dp/1647824850