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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.

• The Impact of Generative AI on Critical Thinking: Self-Reported Reductions in Cognitive Effort and Confidence Effects From a Survey of Knowledge Workers | Microsoft Research | A new Microsoft study explores how reliance on generative AI may diminish critical thinking skills.

• The Future of Recruiting 2025 Report: How AI Redefines Recruiting Excellence | LinkedIn Report | Explores key AI-driven trends shaping talent acquisition, including quality of hire, skills-based hiring, the evolving role of recruiters, employer branding, and responsible AI use.

• Scaling AI Across Talent Management in Financial Services Organizations | Deloitte Center for Financial Services | Highlights how firms utilize AI to manage aspects of talent management, including identifying and managing employee turnover risk.

• Six Actions for HR to Create More Stakeholder Value | Dave Ulrich | RBL Group | Provides a framework of six actions and questions that business and HR leaders can answer to create stakeholder value over time.

• How to Get Real About Measuring to Outcomes | MIT Sloan Management Review | Explores how Neiman Marcus Group’s results-focused flexible work model improved retention, reduced time-to-hire, and enhanced business performance.

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

Brian

THIS WEEK'S EDGE 

AI

The Impact of Generative AI on Critical Thinking: Self-Reported Reductions in Cognitive Effort and Confidence Effects From a Survey of Knowledge Workers | Microsoft Research

A new Microsoft study explores how reliance on generative AI may diminish critical thinking skills.

As AI becomes more integrated into knowledge work, a new Microsoft study examines its impact on critical thinking. The study surveyed 319 knowledge workers who regularly use AI tools and found that those confident in AI’s capabilities were less likely to engage in critical thinking, while those confident in their own abilities scrutinized AI outputs more carefully. This shift suggests AI is reshaping problem-solving—moving workers from active analysis and synthesis (e.g., critically evaluating information, generating insights, and drawing conclusions) to monitoring and verification (e.g., reviewing AI-generated outputs for accuracy and alignment). While not inherently negative, this evolution poses risks if workers become overly dependent on AI, especially where human judgment is critical. One implication for learning and development practitioners is that AI-based training should enhance AI proficiency (e.g., developing effective prompts) while reinforcing critical thinking skills. Without these components, organizations risk developing a passive AI-reliant workforce rather than one that leverages AI strategically.

Read paper

TALENT ACQUISITION

The Future of Recruiting 2025 Report: How AI Redefines Recruiting Excellence | LinkedIn Report

Explores key AI-driven trends shaping talent acquisition, including quality of hire, skills-based hiring, the evolving role of recruiters, employer branding, and responsible AI use.

AI continues to transform most aspects of the human resources function. I previously shared my one-page infographic highlighting multiple AI use cases within HR, including recruiting, where AI streamlines tasks and allows recruiters to focus more on strategic work. The LinkedIn 2025 Future of Recruiting Report highlights several AI-driven recruiting trends, such as quality of hire (QoH), skills-based hiring, the evolving role of recruiters, and employer branding, to name a few. Among these, QoH stands out, as it is increasingly prioritized to assess a hire’s long-term value, yet many recruiters struggle with effective measurement. AI helps bridge this gap by analyzing employee performance over time and tracking multiple factors indicative of longer-term value (e.g., the employee is on succession plans, possesses in-demand or scarce skills the company values, etc.). With 61% of talent acquisition professionals believing AI can improve QoH measurement, its potential is significant. In my view, a perennial challenge with QoH metrics is their reliance on short-term hiring manager input rather than long-term, multi-source data that better reflects a hire’s sustained impact. AI can help overcome this limitation by integrating broader performance indicators and analytics that provide a more accurate measure of long-term quality of hire. 

Read report

AI AND TALENT MANAGEMENT

Scaling AI Across Talent Management in Financial Services Organizations | Deloitte Center for Financial Services

Highlights how firms utilize AI to manage aspects of talent management, including identifying and managing employee turnover risk.

AI continues to gain traction in talent management, yet many organizations are still in the early stages of adoption. A recent Deloitte focus group of 38 senior executives from large U.S. financial services firms—primarily Talent leaders—highlighted AI’s potential impact on performance management, career development, succession planning, and employee flight risk. Flight risk, in particular, is a growing focus as firms shift from reactive to proactive retention strategies. AI enables a push analytics approach, detecting early signs of disengagement and burnout before employees leave. Participants noted that organizations often invest heavily in well-being programs without fully understanding burnout’s root causes. AI can analyze job satisfaction, engagement scores, absenteeism, and performance trends to uncover patterns linked to turnover, burnout, etc— assigning flight risk scores to flag at-risk employees. The report provides an example of an AI model integrating multiple data sources to identify burnout risks, enabling targeted, data-driven actions to mitigate unwanted turnover. While predictive analytics for employee turnover aren’t new, AI advancements make them more powerful and precise. Though the article focuses on financial services, its insights are industry-agnostic, offering valuable takeaways for any organization looking to enhance talent management with AI.

Read article

HR EFFECTIVENESS

Six Actions for HR to Create More Stakeholder Value | Dave Ulrich | RBL Group

Provides a framework of six actions and questions that business and HR leaders can answer to create stakeholder value over time.

Human resources leaders continue to explore ways for HR to create value for stakeholders, such as employees, customers, investors, communities, and boards. However, determining which HR-related work disproportionately unlocks this value can be challenging. Dave Ulrich shares six key actions to help HR leaders and their teams shift from activities to outcomes and drive stakeholder value. Among the insights, Dave offers three criteria that can help determine which human capability investments can create the greatest value: Impact (how much value an initiative delivers to stakeholders), Weaknesses (how effectively it is currently executed), and Variance (how much opportunity exists for improvement). Together, these three components help identify where HR efforts can drive the most meaningful results—ensuring resources are allocated to the highest-return-on-investment opportunities. As you evaluate your HR priorities for 2025 against these three criteria, where do you see strong alignment, and where are the biggest gaps? This reflection can help you identify opportunities for delivering increased stakeholder value. As a bonus, I’m resharing a 42-page playbook from the RBL Institute, which comprehensively reviews the factors that drive HR effectiveness. Thanks to Dave Ulrich for permission to share.

Read article

RETURN-TO-OFFICE

How to Get Real About Measuring to Outcomes | MIT Sloan Management Review

Explores how Neiman Marcus Group’s results-focused flexible work model improved retention, reduced time-to-hire, and enhanced business performance.

A few weeks ago, I shared a Harvard Business Review article on basing return-to-office (RTO) strategies on an organization’s unique business needs rather than following trends. The article outlined a five-component framework for RTO decisions. In a new piece, Brian Elliot highlights how Neiman Marcus Group (NMG) aligned its workplace flexibility guidelines with a simple but effective premise: Give people more flexibility—with accountability for results. Under former Chief People Officer Eric Severson, NMG implemented the Way of Working (WOW) model, granting corporate staff and store associates greater flexibility in exchange for performance accountability. This approach drove retention rates above 75% in stores and 78% in supply chain roles, reduced time-to-hire, and virtually eliminated unwanted director-level attrition. NMG also expanded its talent pool by embracing remote work. A shift from traditional performance reviews to structured quarterly goal tracking reinforced accountability, while front-line workers benefited from flexible scheduling and career growth. The outcome? Higher engagement, improved productivity, and a premium acquisition valuation—showcasing how a well-executed flexible work strategy can drive both business and workforce success.

Read article

MOST POPULAR FROM LAST WEEK

WORKFORCE PLANNING

The Critical Role of Strategic Workforce Planning in The Age of AI | McKinsey

Presents five best practices to help organizations prepare for the impact of AI and other technological advancements on strategic workforce planning.

Read article

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:

• Audacy Inc. (NYSE: AUD). The radio and podcast company has conducted another round of layoffs, with media reports estimating job cuts impacting about 200 employees.

• Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE: HPE). The technology company announced plans to cut 3,000 jobs—about 5% of its workforce—following a quarter impacted by excessive server discounting and mixed execution, which hurt profit margins.

• Wayfair Inc. (NYSE: W). The furniture and home goods retailer is cutting about 340 jobs in its Technology division to streamline operations and adjust its team after system upgrades.

 Click here to access all listed announcements.

CHIEF HR OFFICER MOVE OF THE WEEK

This past week, 10 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:

• The Baltimore Orioles ​(BALTIMORE, MARYLAND)— a Major League Baseball team—announced that ​Kate Skidmore​ will join the organization as the Chief Human Resources Officer. Skidmore joins from Capital One, where she most recently served as Vice President, Card HR. Her experience includes various HR roles with the National Basketball Association (NBA) and Head of HR for the NFL Players Association. ​​

CHROs on the Go has over 4,000 archived announcements in its database, with new announcements added daily!

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FROM ME ON LINKEDIN

THE BEST OF FEBRUARY 2025

Did you miss the “Best of February” issue of Talent Edge Weekly? If so, check out issue #286, which includes 16 of the most popular resources from the month.

Read the Best of February

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RESOURCE LINEUP

​brianheger.com provides free access to +1,500 curated articles, research reports, podcasts, and more that help practitioners drive better business results through strategic human resources and talent management.

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