HR Is an Impossible Job. Jennifer Says That's Exactly Why It Matters | SHRM ‘26 | WRKdefined Podcast Network: Conversations Pushing The Boundaries of Work

HR doesn't have a finish line. Employees change, work changes, technology changes, and expectations keep moving. Jennifer McClure argues that HR isn't supposed to "solve" the workplace once and walk away. The job is to keep adapting, keep learning, and help people thrive.

Agility, AI, people strategy, employee experience, leadership, workforce transformation. Jennifer sees HR as one of the most important functions in the organization because it can influence every employee, but also one of the hardest because everyone has a different definition of what success looks like.

In this episode… Jennifer McClure talks about why HR needs to stop thinking in fixed plans, how AI is accelerating the pace of change, why 95% of HR leaders in one survey said the work is simply too much, and why 62% had considered leaving the profession. She also shares a simple challenge for the next generation of HR leaders: solve for thrive.

Key Takeaways :

HR has no finish line. People, technology, and work keep changing. Jennifer says HR needs agility rather than rigid long-term plans because something can change every day.
The job is taking a toll. 95% of HR leaders surveyed said working in HR is too much, while 62% had considered leaving the profession altogether.
HR doesn't control its own definition of success. CFOs, CEOs, operations leaders, and employees can all have different expectations of HR. That makes the function uniquely difficult to measure.
Skills have expiration dates. Jennifer and William discuss how quickly skills are becoming outdated, making reskilling and upskilling a fundamental part of the future workforce strategy.
HR should solve for thrive. Jennifer's advice to people entering HR is to figure out what helps each person thrive at work, knowing the answer can change again six months later.
Don't let the noise become the job. Jennifer argues that HR practitioners should focus on creating better experiences and helping people live better lives, rather than getting trapped in policies, negativity, or the idea that the goal is to make everyone happy.

This episode was recorded live at SHRM Annual 2026

The Heroes of HR podcast is a limited series sponsored by isolved.

isolved is an HCM platform that modernizes HR, benefits, and payroll across Healthcare, Hospitality, Manufacturing, and more.

Learn more about isolved: ⁠https://www.isolvedhcm.com/⁠

Guest : Jennifer McClure

Founder & CEO of Unbridled Talent, with a career in HR stretching back to 1986, focused on helping leaders navigate transformation, the future of work, and the increasingly complex role of people strategy

LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifermcclure/

The Heroes of HR Podcast is hosted by

Amy Miller, Product Evangelist at isolved

https://www.linkedin.com/in/amycmiller/

Ryan Leary, Co-founder at WRKdefined

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanleary/

William Tincup, Co-founder at WRKdefined

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tincup/

Connect with WRKdefined :

Site: http://www.wrkdefined.com

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wrkdefined

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wrkdefined