Work doesn’t feel sustainable right now.

Employees are overwhelmed, leaders are exhausted, and organizations are trying to solve burnout by reducing workload - but what if that’s not the real problem?

In this episode, organizational psychologist Leanne Davey introduces the concept of thought load - the cognitive demands, emotional strain, and depleted energy that come from navigating modern work. From endless matrix structures and constant organizational change to meetings that add noise instead of clarity, today’s workplace is quietly draining the mental bandwidth people need to actually perform.

Leanne shares practical ideas for leaders trying to restore focus and effectiveness inside their teams: how to stop chasing productivity, eliminate dead work, redesign meetings, and create space for insight in a world full of noise.

For HR leaders especially, this conversation reframes burnout as a systemic design problem, not a personal failing.

About our guest

Leanne Davey is an organizational psychologist, keynote speaker, and bestselling author focused on helping teams achieve extraordinary results together. Known as “The Teamwork Doctor,” she works with executive teams and organizations around the world to tackle the messy people challenges that get in the way of performance. Her latest book, Thoughtload, explores why modern work is overwhelming people and what leaders can do about it.

Stay connected with foHRsight

To sign up for our monthly newsletter, foHRsight, visit http://www.futurefohrward.com/subscribe

Follow us on LinkedIn: Mark Edgar – www.linkedin.com/in/markedgarhr/

Naomi Titleman Colla – www.linkedin.com/in/naomititlemancolla/

future foHRward – www.linkedin.com/company/future-fohrward/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/futurefohrward/

For more information on our private community for forward-thinking HR leaders, including how to join our next Manager-Director HR Leader cohort launching this spring, visit our website at futurefohrward.com/community. We are also currently welcoming new members in our CHRO and VP+ HRBP & Talent cohorts. Don't miss your chance to join the community you've been missing!

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Most HR leaders are chasing engagement scores.
Very few are diagnosing loneliness.

If performance feels flatter… if initiative is fading… if teams feel more transactional than connected, this episode explains why.

In this conversation, Dr. Tracy Brower joins Naomi Titleman to unpack a truth many leaders feel but struggle to articulate: connection is not a “nice-to-have.” It is a structural driver of performance, initiative, retention, and fulfillment.

They explore:

• The early warning signs of workplace disconnection
• Why proximity still matters in a hybrid world
• How AI may unintentionally weaken team reliance
• Social contagion and why energy spreads faster than strategy
• The difference between dirt roads and superhighways inside your culture
• What a real “connection infrastructure” looks like

This isn’t about forcing friendships or dragging people back to the office.
It’s about being deliberate about the human system inside your organization.

Because when people don’t feel seen or needed, they disengage.

And disengagement is expensive.

About our guest

Dr. Tracy Brower is a PhD sociologist and VP of Workplace Insights at Steelcase. She studies connection, community, fulfillment, and the future of work, and is the author of Critical Connections. Her work bridges research and real-world application, helping organizations understand how human dynamics directly influence performance.

Stay connected with foHRsight

To sign up for our monthly newsletter, foHRsight, visit http://www.futurefohrward.com/subscribe

Follow us on LinkedIn:
Mark Edgar – www.linkedin.com/in/markedgarhr/

Naomi Titleman Colla – www.linkedin.com/in/naomititlemancolla/

future foHRward – www.linkedin.com/company/future-fohrward/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/futurefohrward/

For more information on our private community for forward-thinking HR leaders, including how to join our next Manager-Director HR Leader cohort launching this spring, visit our website at futurefohrward.com/community. We are also currently welcoming new members in our CHRO and VP+ HRBP & Talent cohorts. Don't miss your chance to join the community you've been missing!

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HR leaders are being asked to modernize faster than their organizations are ready for. New AI tools appear weekly, vendors promise transformation, and the pressure to “do something” keeps mounting. At the same time, most HR teams are still running complex, multi-step processes built for a very different era.

In this episode, Josh Bersin helps cut through the noise by reframing what AI transformation actually looks like inside HR. Rather than chasing dozens of tools or fearing job displacement, he argues that the real work ahead is architectural. Deciding what to build versus buy. Determining which processes matter most. And putting human ownership around data, judgment, and governance so AI can scale responsibly.

You’ll hear why onboarding, learning, feedback, and career development are not isolated workflows, but interconnected systems that AI can finally stitch together if HR leads the design. Josh also explains why organizations that get this right will not reduce HR’s importance, but elevate it.

This conversation is for HR leaders who feel both excited and overwhelmed, and who want a clearer mental model for where to start, what to prioritize, and how to partner with IT without losing their seat at the table.

About our guest
Josh Bersin is a global HR industry analyst, researcher, and founder of The Josh Bersin Company. He has spent decades advising CHROs and executive teams on talent, leadership, and workforce transformation, and is a leading voice on how AI is reshaping the HR function in practice, not theory.

Stay connected with foHRsight

To sign up for our monthly newsletter, foHRsight, visit http://www.futurefohrward.com/subscribe

Follow us on LinkedIn:
Mark Edgar – www.linkedin.com/in/markedgarhr/

Naomi Titleman Colla – www.linkedin.com/in/naomititlemancolla/

future foHRward – www.linkedin.com/company/future-fohrward/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/futurefohrward/

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If you’re leading HR right now, it can feel like the ground is moving under your feet. You’re still expected to deliver flawless service, keep costs down, and manage risk, while your CEO quietly expects you to redesign the workforce for an AI era that’s arriving faster than most operating models can handle.

In part one of this conversation with Josh Bersin, we explore a reframe that changes everything: AI isn’t just personal productivity. The real disruption is enterprise-level “super agents” that automate whole sequences of work, and force HR to rethink hiring, talent strategy, and even the idea of “a job” itself.

We also dig into why CHRO tenure may be shrinking, what that signals about expectations on HR leaders, and why “talent density” is becoming a more useful lens than traditional talent management as companies try to scale without simply adding headcount.

About our guest
Josh Bersin is a leading HR and workplace industry analyst and the founder of Bersin by Deloitte (now The Josh Bersin Company). He advises senior executives on HR, talent, and organizational transformation, with a sharp focus on what’s actually changing inside companies as AI moves from experimentation to enterprise reality.

Stay connected with foHRsight
To sign up for our monthly newsletter, foHRsight, visit http://www.futurefohrward.com/subscribe

Follow us on LinkedIn:
Mark Edgar – www.linkedin.com/in/markedgarhr/

Naomi Titleman Colla – www.linkedin.com/in/naomititlemancolla/

future foHRward – www.linkedin.com/company/future-fohrward/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/futurefohrward/

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You can be brilliant, hardworking, and respected — and still feel like you’re running full-speed into an invisible wall. For many senior leaders (especially high-achieving women), the instinct is to push harder: take on more, prove more, hold more. But the higher you go, the more that strategy quietly limits influence, sponsorship, and sustainability.

In this episode, we explore the tension HR leaders see every day: individuals are trying to thrive inside systems that weren’t designed for them — and organizations keep investing in “fixes” that don’t address the real blockers. Carolyn Lawrence and Jennifer Laidlaw unpack why burnout is often a signal your mind is in survival mode, how “resisting the system” can unintentionally keep inequity in place, and what it looks like when inner leadership shifts meet system-level redesign.

About our guests
Carolyn Lawrence partners with organizations to redesign systems so they stop reinforcing outdated patterns — removing invisible barriers so talent can thrive without overperforming for legitimacy.

Jennifer Laidlaw is an executive coach focused on the inner transformation required of modern leaders, helping them achieve breakthrough results sustainably with strong teams and thriving culture.

Stay connected with foHRsight
To sign up for our monthly newsletter, foHRsight, visit http://www.futurefohrward.com/subscribe

Follow us on LinkedIn: Mark Edgar – www.linkedin.com/in/markedgarhr/

Naomi Titleman Colla – www.linkedin.com/in/naomititlemancolla/

future foHRward – www.linkedin.com/company/future-fohrward/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/futurefohrward/

For more information on our private community for forward-thinking HR leaders, including how to join our next Manager-Director HR Leader cohort launching this spring, visit our website at futurefohrward.com/community. We are also currently welcoming new members in our CHRO and VP+ HRBP & Talent cohorts. Don't miss your chance to join the community you've been missing!

Support the show

Success in HR often comes with a hidden job: absorbing everyone else’s anxiety. You’re expected to soothe, steady, and “make it okay”, even when what people are feeling is a normal response to real pressure and uncertainty.

In this episode, clinical psychologist Dr. David Rosmarin offers a practical reframe: not all anxiety is the same. Some anxiety does require professional support, but much of what shows up at work is an emotional signal, not a diagnosis. When leaders learn to recognize what anxiety is communicating, they can stop playing whack-a-mole with stress, build healthier trust on teams, and create a culture that performs without pretending certainty exists.

You’ll also hear David’s simple four-step process to work with anxiety constructively, identifying what’s underneath it, sharing it in a way that builds connection, embracing it as resilience-building, and letting go of what can’t be controlled.

About our guest

Dr. David Rosmarin is a clinical psychologist, author, and Associate at Harvard Medical School, and the founder of the Center for Anxiety. His work focuses on helping people rethink anxiety not only as something to treat clinically when needed, but as a normal human experience that can be used to thrive — a perspective especially relevant in today’s high-pressure workplaces.

Resources Mentioned

• Dr. Rosmarin’s four-step framework (public resource) Dr. David Rosmarin
• Dr. Rosmarin’s site + newsletter - Dr. David Rosmarin
• Book: Thriving with Anxiety - Amazon
• TED Talk: How to make anxiety your friend TED

Stay connected with foHRsight

To sign up for our monthly newsletter, foHRsight, visit http://www.futurefohrward.com/subscribe

Follow us on LinkedIn:

Mark Edgar – www.linkedin.com/in/markedgarhr/

Naomi Titleman Colla – www.linkedin.com/in/naomititlemancolla/

future foHRward – www.linkedin.com/company/future-fohrward/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/futurefohrward/

For more information on our private community for forward-thinking HR leaders, including how to join our next Manager-Director HR Leader cohort launching this spring, visit our website at futurefohrward.com/community. We are also currently welcoming new members in our CHRO and VP+ HRBP & Talent cohorts. Don't miss your chance to join the community you've been missing!

Support the show

Entry-level roles are being labeled “obsolete.” But what if the real issue isn’t AI — it’s how we’ve designed early-career work for decades?

In this episode of foHRsight, we explore why entry-level jobs aren’t going away, but passive, low-agency roles are. As AI takes over routine execution, new hires are being asked to show judgment, critical thinking, and maturity much earlier than before — often without the support or learning pathways to succeed.

Dr. Miranda Rodak joins us to unpack what this shift means for HR leaders, educators, and people managers who are responsible for building sustainable talent pipelines. Together, we examine why over-automation undermines learning, how “effortful learning” is being squeezed out by efficiency, and what organizations must redesign if they want AI to augment people instead of eroding capability.

This conversation challenges a dangerous narrative — and offers a more hopeful, practical path forward for early-career development in an AI-enabled workplace.

About our guest

Dr. Miranda Rodak is a professor at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business and Associate Director of the Communication Professional and Computer Skills Program. She brings a rare perspective at the intersection of education, communication, and AI-enabled work, helping organizations and universities rethink how humans learn, think, and lead alongside technology.

Stay connected with foHRsight

To sign up for our monthly newsletter, foHRsight, visit http://www.futurefohrward.com/subscribe

Follow us on LinkedIn:
Mark Edgar – www.linkedin.com/in/markedgarhr/
Naomi Titleman Colla – www.linkedin.com/in/naomititlemancolla/
future foHRward – www.linkedin.com/company/future-fohrward/

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/futurefohrward/

For more information on our private community for forward-thinking HR leaders, including how to join our next Manager-Director HR Leader cohort launching this spring, visit our website at futurefohrward.com/community. We are also currently welcoming new members in our CHRO and VP+ HRBP & Talent cohorts. Don't miss your chance to join the community you've been missing!

Support the show

James Terry shares how Indeed Flex is revolutionizing frontline staffing through AI-powered solutions, enabling 24/7 candidate interviews, same-day pay, and unprecedented workforce flexibility for hourly workers.

Topics Covered:

AI-Powered Recruitment:

• 24/7 AI interviews eliminate scheduling friction
• Recruiters now review 80+ interviews daily vs. conducting 7-12 manually
• Human oversight ensures quality and catches misuse

Operational Efficiency:

• One-click staffing requests distributed automatically via AI
• Data analysis identifies turnover root causes (overtime policies, transportation issues)
• HR teams transitioning from admin roles to strategic business partners

Worker Experience:

• 50%+ of sub-$20/hour workers juggle multiple jobs
• Platform enables seamless multi-assignment management
• Same-day pay provides financial flexibility for emergencies

Future Vision:

• Consumer-grade flexibility becoming workforce standard
• Simplified interfaces replacing complex dashboards
• Technology enabling location and schedule flexibility

Don’t forget …

To sign up for our monthly newsletter foHRsight at http://www.futurefohrward.com/subscribe.

Follow us on LinkedIn:

• Mark - www.linkedin.com/in/markedgarhr/
• Naomi - www.linkedin.com/in/naomititlemancolla/
• future foHRward - www.linkedin.com/company/future-fohrward/

And on Instagram - www.instagram.com/futurefohrward/

For more information on our private community for forward-thinking HR leaders, including how to join our next Manager-Director HR Leader cohort launching this spring, visit our website at futurefohrward.com/community. We are also currently welcoming new members in our CHRO and VP+ HRBP & Talent cohorts. Don't miss your chance to join the community you've been missing!

Support the show