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Welcome to this issue of Talent Edge Weekly!

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THIS WEEK'S CONTENT

Below are links and descriptions of the topics covered in this issue. If you're interested in my deep dive, you can read the full newsletter.

• Succession Planning Cheat Sheet: Questions, Metrics, and Triggers | Brian Heger | My new cheat consolidates previous templates into one, offering SP metrics, questions, and trigger events for succession reevaluation.

• When Humans and AI Work Best Together — and When Each Is Better Alone | MIT Sloan School of Management | Summarizes results from a meta-analysis of 106 experimental studies on human-AI collaboration. Full research paper and bonus resource included.

• AI in HR: Hits, Misses and Growing Pains | Gartner | Provides insights on three-high interest domains in AI in HR: AI in recruiting, HR virtual assistants, and AI-enabled skills management.

• Can You Go Home Again? Performance Assistance Between Boomerangs and Incumbent Employees | Organization Science | A research study on how boomerang employees (rehired employees) can bring incremental value to an organization. I share 3 bonus resources on the topic.

• HR Initiative Prioritization Template | Brian Heger | My one-page editable template for reevaluating HR priorities and initiatives as circumstances may shift throughout the year.

📉 Also, check out my job cuts tracker & Chief HR Officer move of the week.

Brian

THIS WEEK'S EDGE 

SUCCESSION PLANNING

Succession Planning Cheat Sheet: Questions, Metrics, and Triggers | Brian Heger

My new cheat consolidates previous templates into one, offering SP metrics, questions, and trigger events for succession reevaluation.

Succession planning (SP) continues to be a top priority for many organizations. In response to frequent requests for SP resources, I’ve created a one-page cheat sheet that consolidates elements from three of my templates into a single summary. It includes: 1) SP Questions – A set of 10 questions to help organizations clarify their approach, such as determining the scope of succession planning (what roles they will focus on) and how they will assess successor readiness to assume a targeted role; 2) SP Metrics – A list of 12 metrics, including the percentage of non-ready now successors with a development plan and the success rate of successors after assuming the role; and 3)Trigger Events for Reassessment – Nine examples of events that may warrant a reassessment of succession plans, such as shifts in business strategy, organizational transformation, or successor turnover. This cheat sheet is designed to help practitioners take a more deliberate approach to succession planning while ensuring plans remain relevant and actionable. Organizations can use this cheat sheet as a starting point and modify it to fit their unique needs.

Access cheat sheet

AI IN THE WORKPLACE

When Humans and AI Work Best Together — and When Each Is Better Alone | MIT Sloan School of Management

Summarizes results from a meta-analysis of 106 experimental studies on human-AI collaboration. Full research paper and bonus resource included.

This article summarizes findings from a recent Nature Human Behaviour paper on AI-human collaboration. Researchers analyzed 106 experimental studies on human-AI collaboration conducted between January 2020 and July 2023. A key finding: on average, AI-human combinations do not outperform the best AI-only or human-only systems—contrary to expectations. For example, one finding shows that AI alone had the highest accuracy in detecting fake hotel reviews (73%), compared to 69% for AI-human teams and 55% for humans. AI by itself also outperforms in demand forecasting and medical diagnosis. AI and human worker combinations are more likely to provide an advantage on tasks in which humans already outperform AI on their own, tasks involving creating content, and creation tasks involving generative AI. The detailed research paper and summary article provide additional examples. These insights highlight the need for strategic decisions on where AI adds the most value—and where it does not. With this in mind, I’m resharing a Deloitte AI Institute report that offers a framework for determining which tasks are best suited for AI, AI-assisted humans, or humans alone.

Read article

AI IN HR

AI in HR: Hits, Misses and Growing Pains | Gartner

Provides insights on three-high interest domains in AI in HR: AI in recruiting, HR virtual assistants, and AI-enabled skills management.

This Gartner article offers insights for Chief HR officers and their teams evaluating AI in HR. It covers three key areas: AI in recruiting, HR virtual assistants (HRVAs), and AI-enabled skills management. The 9-page article summarizes each by highlighting a) hits (what’s working), b) misses (AI’s limitations), c) growing pains, and d) future evolution. For instance, for AI-enabled skills management, (Hits) – "When used well, skills data informs recommendation engines for internal mobility, candidate fit, learning content, project roles, and mentoring." (Misses) – AI struggles to connect structured job-based skills data (from HR systems) with unstructured skills data (from actual work tasks). (Growing Pains) – "Getting value from skills data is a long-term investment rather than a quick win; start with teams most ready to use it." (Evolution) – Gartner predicts that by 2028, 40% of large organizations will invest in two or more AI-enabled skills management solutions to drive business agility. For full insights across all three areas, explore the full paper. As a bonus, here’s my editable template to help evaluate AI in HR use cases for your organization.

Read article

TALENT ACQUISITION

Can You Go Home Again? Performance Assistance Between Boomerangs and Incumbent Employees | Organization Science

A research study on how boomerang employees (rehired employees) can bring incremental value to an organization. I share 3 bonus resources on the topic.

Talent acquisition (TA) professionals continue to source talent from untapped pools to uncover “hidden” top talent. One often-overlooked group is former employees—commonly known as “boomerang employees”—who possess the skills their previous organization values and a desire to return. This recent study found that boomerangs are more likely than new hires to offer assistance to both former and new colleagues, leveraging pre-existing relationships and organizational knowledge. While the study has limitations (e.g., it was conducted within the context of the National Basketball Association), it offers useful insights for reintegrating former employees into an organization. As a bonus, I’m sharing three additional resources: (1) A study published in the Academy of Management Journal found that former employees often outperform new hires, particularly in roles requiring strong relational skills and internal coordination. (2) A study by Visier suggests that 13 to 16 months is a critical time frame for rehiring former employees. (3) My template, designed to help organizations identify employees they may want to target for re-recruitment. 

Access research paper

HR PRIORITIZATION

HR Initiative Prioritization Template | Brian Heger

My one-page editable template for reevaluating HR priorities and initiatives as circumstances may shift throughout the year.

HR teams are well into executing their 2025 goals. At the start of the year, I shared my goal-setting template to help teams establish objectives and track metrics, including sections for both what will be accomplished and what won’t be prioritized. Clearly defining what won’t be done is invaluable, as lingering tasks or outdated priorities can carry over from a previous year, diverting focus from what matters most. While it's still early to shift objectives, changing circumstances (e.g., layoffs, talent shortages, business shifts) often require organizations to reevaluate priorities. As HR leaders navigate these decisions, my one-page template can facilitate discussions on reprioritizing HR objectives. The editable template allows teams to list HR initiatives, evaluate their impact on stakeholder value, and assess complexity and investment levels. Leaders can then decide whether to stay the course, deprioritize, or further reevaluate. Tailor it to your needs and expand it by adding criteria for ‘business impact’ and ‘investment & complexity’ that fit your organization.

Access template

MOST POPULAR FROM LAST WEEK

FUTURE OF WORK

Future of Jobs Report 2025 | World Economic Forum

A 290-page report examining how shifts in jobs and skills require changes in workforce strategies.

Among the many findings from this robust report is Job Growth and Losses: Global macro trends are expected to create 170 million new jobs this decade while displacing 92 million, resulting in a net gain of 78 million jobs (p.18). 

Access report

JOB CUTS AND LAYOFF TRACKER

Check out my tracker of announcements from a segment of organizations that have conducted job cuts and layoffs since the start of 2023.

A few job cuts announced this past week:

• Salesforce (NYSE: CRM). The cloud-based software company is laying off around 1,000 employees. This comes on the heels of a December announcement that the company plans to hire 2,000 salespeople for its new AI products. The changes are part of the company’s strategic shift toward AI innovation.

• Sprinklr (NYSE: CXM). The customer experience management platform company has laid off approximately 15% of its workforce, or around 500 employees, due to business performance not meeting expectations.

• Workday (NASDAQ: WDAY). The finance and human resources software company is laying off 1,750 employees, reducing its workforce by approximately 8.5% as it reallocates resources to expand globally and prioritize AI initiatives.

 Click here to access all listed announcements.

CHIEF HR OFFICER MOVE OF THE WEEK

This past week, 12 new Chief HR Officer announcements were posted on CHROs on the Go, my subscription-based platform tracking movement in and out of the CHRO role. This week’s CHRO move of the week is:

• Mastercard (PURCHASE, NEW YORK) [NYSE: MA]— multinational payment card services—announced that Susan Muigai will join as Chief People Officer, effective April 7, 2025, succeeding Michael Fraccaro, who will serve as an advisor until his departure at year-end. Fraccaro has been Mastercard's CPO since 2016. Muigai joins Mastercard from TransUnion, where she served as EVP, Chief Human Resources Officer since October 2021. ​

If you are already a subscriber to CHROs on the Go, log in here.

FROM ME ON LINKEDIN

THE BEST OF JANUARY 2025

Did you miss the “Best of January” issue of Talent Edge Weekly? If so, check out issue #282, which includes 20 of the most popular resources from the month.

Read the Best of January

Thank you to Produgie for sponsoring this Best of January issue! ***Check out Produgie’s upcoming Growth Leader Team Discovery Virtual Certification Program to help empower team effectiveness and leadership. Feb 27-28, 1:00-5:00PM CST.

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RESOURCE LINEUP

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CHROS on the Go is a subscription that provides the easiest and most convenient way to stay informed about Chief Human Resources Officer hires, promotions, and resignations in organizations of all sizes and industries.

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