Directionally Correct, A People Analytics Podcast

Check out this episode of the #1 people analytics podcast with special guest, Neil Morelli, Senior Director, Human+AI Collaboration and Workforce Transformation at Salesforce! If you like this episode, go ahead and sign up for Neil’s newsletter People-first AI! In this wide-ranging and deeply engaging conversation, Cole Napper sits down with Neil to unpack one of the most important shifts happening in the workplace today: AI workforce transformation. Rather than treating AI as just another tool, Neil explains how organizations are now rethinking the very nature of work itself. At the center of this shift is a move away from focusing purely on “jobs” or “tasks” and toward understanding work as dynamic units of value creation, where humans and AI systems collaborate in increasingly complex ways. Neil shares how AI introduces what feels like a new category of “digital talent,” fundamentally changing how organizations think about workforce composition, productivity, and value delivery. This shift requires leaders to rethink not just roles, but how work is structured, measured, and optimized. The conversation explores how organizations are beginning to adopt more economic-style thinking—focusing on value-added work versus overhead—and how new forms of observability are making it easier to measure contributions from both humans and AI systems. A major theme throughout the episode is the importance of mental models and frameworks for working effectively with AI. Neil emphasizes that success with AI isn’t about mastering prompt engineering tricks, but about breaking down problems, structuring work intelligently, and even using AI to help design better workflows. This “use AI to use AI” mindset becomes a powerful way to scale both individual and organizational capability. The discussion also dives into the evolving role of people analytics and workforce planning. Neil and Cole highlight how traditional analytics must now integrate more deeply with workforce planning, economics, and business strategy. The future belongs to practitioners who can bridge quantitative rigor with qualitative understanding of skills, motivation, and human behavior. Importantly, the episode doesn’t shy away from the human side of transformation. Neil discusses the psychological barriers to AI adoption, including fear, reduced psychological safety, and misconceptions about value and performance. He underscores that leadership behavior is critical—when managers model AI usage and create supportive environments, adoption accelerates. Without that, even the best tools and mandates fall flat. The conversation also touches on experimentation, collaboration, and the evolving nature of expertise. While AI democratizes access to capabilities, Neil argues that domain expertise remains essential for judgment, validation, and accountability. As organizations navigate uncertainty, the ability to be “directionally correct” becomes more valuable than ever. Blending practical insights with forward-looking perspective, this episode offers a thoughtful exploration of how AI is reshaping work, organizations, and the role of human talent in 2026 and beyond. If you like this episode, you’d also love exploring prior episodes—visit colenapper.com for the full archive and show links.

Meet Paola Alfaro, founder of HumanWorks who builds people analytics foundations across LATAM, and Maria Nolazco Masson, Ipsy analytics leader and writer who turns HR data into stories. They discuss building analytics from scratch in Latin America. They talk about data governance, training leaders, AI speeding workflows, community growth, and how storytelling and influence beat raw technical skills.

Dr. Paula Caliguiri, distinguished professor and global talent expert who co-founded Skillify. She explores cultural agility versus adaptability. She traces expatriate research to modern novelty at work. She discusses why soft skills like curiosity and humility matter as AI reshapes jobs. She describes Skillify’s approach to building durable people skills at scale.

Dr. Gary Russo, Executive Director of Workforce Intelligence at Providence Health with a neuroscience and people-analytics background. He recounts building a decade-long analytics practice through trust, governance, and steady wins. Conversation covers AI skepticism vs practical automation, robotic surgery as augmentation, healthcare’s unique incentives, the looming workforce crisis, and creative pathways into clinical careers.

Buddy Benge, Head of Workforce Strategy and Resource Management at Edward Jones and veteran people-analytics leader, walks through rethinking work from tasks up. He explores AI and automation limits, task deconstruction and job architecture, HR tech misconfiguration, broken performance management, and practical workforce planning for a 55,000+ associate firm.

Rob Dees, Senior Director of People Analytics & Insights at Target and former military decision scientist. He discusses decision quality’s three-legged stool, treating employee listening as an intelligence function, a product operating model for people analytics, the Whole Soldier performance approach, and AI’s role as an alternatives and information engine.

Tyler Weeks, Managing Vice President of People Technology, Research, and Analytics at Marriott — a systems thinker who builds R&D-style people analytics and HR tech at enterprise scale. He argues analytics should act like R&D with rapid tests and small compounding wins. He explains building lightweight apps instead of dashboards, cautions against superficial AI, and reframes skills and internal mobility through outcome-focused thinking.

Check out this episode of the #1 people analytics podcast with special guest, Amy Armitage, Program Director for Human Capital Analytics and Strategic Workforce Planning at The Conference Board! In this wide-ranging and deeply thoughtful conversation, Cole Napper sits down with Amy to explore how the future of work is taking shape in early 2026 and why many of the long-standing assumptions in HR, workforce planning, and people analytics are being actively challenged. Amy shares how her current focus on workforce transformation is rooted in four core themes: technology’s expanding role in shaping business strategy, rising transparency driven by digital systems, the growing importance of trust inside organizations, and the central role of teams in creating sustainable business value. Drawing on her leadership of The Conference Board’s Human Capital Analytics Council and Future Workforce Strategy and Planning Council, Amy explains how closed-door, vendor-neutral communities are helping senior leaders move from polished presentations to honest problem-solving conversations that address AI adoption, skills skepticism, learning, and execution at scale. Throughout the episode, Amy and Cole unpack what differentiates U.S. and European perspectives on the future of work, including how economic pressure, infrastructure investment, and regulatory environments shape mindsets around AI, skills, and workforce sustainability. Amy reflects on her experience producing major global events, including cross-functional conferences in New York and Brussels, and why solving human capital challenges requires collaboration across HR, finance, strategy, sustainability, and governance rather than remaining siloed within HR alone. The discussion also dives into human capital standards, including ISO 30414, and why comparable, outcome-focused metrics are becoming essential for boards, investors, and executives who want to link workforce decisions directly to financial performance and long-term value creation. Listeners will also hear Amy’s perspective on the evolving role of HR as fiduciary, workforce advocate, and public steward, the tension that exists when organizations over-index on one role at the expense of others, and how data, analytics, and standards can help balance those competing demands. The conversation spans everything from AI’s impact on executive coaching and workforce planning to why learning may ultimately matter more than narrowly defined skills, how trust is eroding inside organizations, and why high performance is best understood as a system-level outcome driven by teams and context rather than individual traits alone. In Cole’s Corner, Amy reflects on her unconventional career path from environmental journalism to finance to HR consulting and community leadership, shares where she sees AI headed next, and offers candid insights from the many behind-the-scenes executive discussions she facilitates. This episode is packed with practical insights, big-picture thinking, and grounded realism for anyone navigating people analytics, workforce strategy, HR leadership, or AI-driven transformation in today’s uncertain environment. If you like this episode, you’d also love exploring prior episodes—visit colenapper.com for the full archive and show links.

Peter Louch, the CEO of Vemo - Workforce Planning, joins the Directionally Correct podcast for our latest HR Tech Voices episode of 2026. In this episode, we discuss how Vemo is a robust workforce planning platform that utilizes predictive analytics and AI to automate supply and demand modeling, helping organizations forecast talent needs by bridging the gap between internal job taxonomies and external market data. Book a demo today with Vemo - Workforce Planning! In this wide-ranging and deeply practical conversation, Peter shares how workforce planning has evolved from static spreadsheets and reactive headcount decisions into a strategic, data-driven discipline that directly impacts business resilience and growth. He explains why many organizations struggle with workforce planning today, not because of a lack of data, but because their internal job architectures, skills frameworks, and headcount models are disconnected from real labor market signals. Peter walks through how Vemo was designed to solve that exact problem by creating a dynamic bridge between internal workforce data and continuously updated external market intelligence. Peter also breaks down how predictive analytics and AI can move organizations beyond backward-looking reports toward forward-looking scenarios, enabling leaders to test assumptions, anticipate talent shortages, and understand the downstream effects of hiring, upskilling, redeployment, or attrition before those decisions are made. The discussion explores how automated supply and demand modeling allows companies to shift from annual planning cycles to ongoing, adaptive workforce strategies that respond to business change in near real time. Throughout the episode, we dive into the challenges of standardizing job taxonomies across large enterprises, the risks of relying on inconsistent job titles and legacy role definitions, and how aligning internal structures with external labor data can unlock far more accurate forecasting. Peter shares real-world examples of how organizations are using workforce planning not only to support HR, but to inform finance, strategy, and executive decision-making. He also discusses how AI can augment human judgment in workforce planning, rather than replace it, by giving leaders better inputs, clearer tradeoffs, and stronger confidence in their decisions. We also explore the future of workforce planning as AI adoption accelerates, roles continue to evolve, and skill requirements change faster than traditional planning models can keep up. Peter offers insights into where HR technology is heading, what capabilities organizations should prioritize, and how workforce planning can become a competitive advantage rather than a compliance exercise. This episode is especially relevant for HR leaders, people analytics teams, finance partners, and executives who want to move from reactive headcount management to proactive talent strategy. If you like this episode, you’d also love exploring prior episodes—visit colenapper.com for the full archive and show links.

Check out this episode of the #1 people analytics podcast with special guest, JR Keller, Associate Professor & Faculty Director of the Executive Master of Human Resource Management Program at Cornell! In this wide-ranging and deeply practical conversation, JR joins the show to unpack what actually works when organizations try to build internal talent marketplaces, rethink career mobility, and align people strategy with real business outcomes. Drawing on his academic research, teaching experience, and extensive work with practitioners, JR challenges common assumptions about skills-based organizations, career paths, and the role of managers in enabling growth at scale. Throughout the episode, JR and the hosts explore why so many internal mobility efforts fail despite good intentions, and what separates meaningful progress from surface-level adoption. JR explains how organizations can move beyond buzzwords to create systems that truly connect employees to opportunities, while also meeting leaders where they are. The discussion digs into the tension between central talent strategies and frontline realities, and why ignoring that gap often derails even the most sophisticated people analytics initiatives. Listeners will hear thoughtful insights on how data, transparency, and trust intersect in talent systems, as well as the cultural and structural barriers that slow momentum. JR shares examples from both research and practice that illustrate how internal marketplaces can reshape careers when designed with clarity and empathy, and why incentives, governance, and leadership capability matter just as much as technology. The episode also touches on the evolving expectations of workers, how organizations should think about skills versus jobs, and the implications for HR leaders trying to future-proof their workforce. This conversation goes beyond theory, offering grounded guidance for HR, people analytics, and talent leaders who are wrestling with real-world constraints. JR’s perspective brings nuance to debates around AI, skills taxonomies, and internal opportunity platforms, emphasizing that sustainable change comes from aligning systems, behaviors, and values over time. Whether you are just beginning to explore internal mobility or trying to course-correct an existing program, this episode delivers practical takeaways and strategic framing you can apply immediately. Listenin challenge your assumptions. If you like this episode, you’d also love exploring prior episodes—visit colenapper.com for the full archive and show links.