Dan Tynan |
Workforces can only be successfully transformed when the department responsible for preparing employees for the transformation (HR) works closely with the departments responsible for implementing the tools that enable it (IT). To wit: Chief human resources officers (CHROs), chief information officers (CIOs), and chief technology officers (CTOs) must collaborate more strategically than ever before.
“The call for IT and HR to link arms and work together has never been more urgent,” says Lisa Highfield, principal director of HR technology and AI at research firm McLean & Company. “Economic pressures, tightening labor markets, and the rapid advancement of AI and other technologies highlight the need for human centricity in a complex world.”
McLean's HR Trends Report 2025 shows that when people leaders play an active role in creating and executing AI strategy, organizations are significantly ahead of their peers in realizing the benefits of the technology. Personnel departments that use AI are also better at recruiting, managing, and developing talent.
But these companies are the exceptions. Just one out of five HR organizations possess strong data and technology skills, and a mere 7 percent have developed a formal AI strategy, says Highfield.
“... HR leaders need to be invited into technical and AI strategy conversations, and tech leaders need to understand the value that HR can bring in enabling transformation.”
Yet despite the widespread agreement that HR and IT need to become the new power couple of the C-suite, their relationship must be built on a strong foundation of mutual understanding, respect, and communication. In short, they must understand each other and what the other needs. Here’s a primer for bridging that divide.
What IT needs from HR: Help with change management and recruiting
In an era where artificial intelligence is changing nearly every job description, the need for IT and HR to work in tandem is increasingly urgent, notes Jessica Lantis, vice president of people operations for Guru, an AI-powered knowledge platform.
For example, tech leaders can't introduce a radical new technology like Generative AI and expect employees to simply adopt it, she says. That's a recipe for failure.
“IT needs the people team to help employees overcome their fears about the new technology, and show them how it will make them better at their jobs,” Lantis says. “Tech teams need to partner with leaders who can figure out how to adapt their teams’ current processes to make sure the technology gets sticky throughout the organization.”
Tech is also facing critical staffing shortages, particularly in areas such as data science and cybersecurity. An IT manager can’t just ask ChatGPT to write a job description, post it to LinkedIn or Indeed, and expect the perfect candidate to walk through the door. This is an opportunity for HR to build a closer relationship with their tech peers by collaborating on job descriptions, says Daniel Space, principal of the DanfromHR consultancy.
‘You need to go to them and ask, ‘What do you need this person to do? What types of companies should this person have worked at before? Are you looking for more experience, or someone junior you can train and mentor?’ There are lots of great questions you can ask your tech partners, but so many HR people miss this opportunity.”
But IT also needs HR to move faster and communicate better, especially when tech departments are trying to land promising candidates, says George Fironov, co-founder and CEO of Talmatic, which provides teams of remote developers for hire.
“Sometimes you’re on a deadline and need candidate feedback right away,” he adds. “If you don’t get it in a timely manner, communication breaks down and the hiring pipeline gets stuck.”
What HR needs from IT: Help with digital transformation and AI strategy
CTOs and CHROs need to collaborate closely on the technology used by HR teams, says Dieter Veldsman, chief scientist for the Academy to Innovate HR.
“The CTO needs to help people leaders understand what’s possible with new technology, as well as how to integrate it into their existing platforms,” he says. "A key decision point is whether to invest in a hybrid/best of breed bundle of solutions or to work with traditional ERP vendors such as Workday or SAP.”
In large enterprises where HR has its own dedicated tech teams, CHROs and CTOs need to make sure the people team's IT goals align with those of the larger organization, Veldsman adds.
But sometimes tech leaders can suffer from ‘shiny object syndrome’, where they become so enamored with the latest technology that they fail to consider how it fits into existing workflows, warns Paul Carney, CHRO for Carter Bank.
“They see this cool new system and think, ‘It can do all these things while also saving us a ton of money,’” says Carney, who also trains HR pros on how to use AI. “Suddenly they’re bolting it onto an existing process without taking the time to integrate it.”
That can create more work for HR professionals, not less. A July 2024 survey by Upwork found that 77 percent of employees say implementing AI actually increased their workloads and was contributing to higher burnout and attrition rates.
Meanwhile, with the advent of AI agents, organizations will start to deploy semi-autonomous digital workers that can take on many tasks currently performed by humans. Who’s responsible for managing the bots – the tech teams that deployed them, or the departments they serve? Who determines what systems they should and should not have access to?
These are questions that need to be ironed out jointly by the people and tech teams, long before AI agents gain access to sensitive company systems, adds Carney.
Mutual benefits flow when people and tech teams work together.
When the Y2K bug hit 25 years ago, organizations suddenly realized how deeply dependent they were on their technology departments. The AI transformation presents a similar opportunity for people departments to take on a more strategic role, says McLean's Highfield.
“This is HR’s Y2K moment, one where it can really step up for the organization and cement its seat in the boardroom,” she says. “The pandemic showed how important the HR function is. AI is a great opportunity to bring it over the finish line.”
Similarly, tech leaders need to reach across the table to their HR counterparts for guidance on how to integrate their human and digital resources, Highfield adds. Because when the technology and people teams work together, both parties reap the rewards.
Fironov says Talmatic collaborated closely with the HR department of a technology company to create an AI-powered career development platform. By having IT and HR work together from day one, the company was able to increase its internal promotion rate by 30 percent and reduce the average hiring cycle from four months to one.
“When HR and IT break down walls and work together, everybody wins,” he says.
