John and Jackye bring you a taped highlights edition straight from WorkHuman 2026. They unpack the conversations, themes, and on-the-ground takes that defined this year's gathering of HR and people leaders, and translate it all into what it actually means for the way work gets done now.
Key Takeaways:
- What HR leaders are actually worried about in 2026, in their own words
- The shift from recognition as a perk to recognition as a performance system
- How AI is changing the day to day for people teams, beyond the hype cycle
- Why employee experience is being rebuilt around trust, not tools
- The growing gap between executive narratives and frontline reality
- Practical signals that a workplace culture is healthy, or quietly breaking
- Where talent strategy is heading as the labor market tightens again
- How the best companies are turning recognition into retention
- The questions HR leaders are bringing back to their CEOs
- What to watch for in the second half of 2026
Keywords: WorkHuman, employee recognition, employee experience, HR strategy, talent management, workplace culture, leadership, AI in HR, retention, people analytics
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