Over the past two episodes, I've had two sharp conversations. One with Trish Steed, Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of H3 HR Advisors. One with Dennis Di Lorenzo, Director of Workforce Strategy at Micron.
They hit the same nerve. From two very different angles.
Trish comes from years of research, strategy, and advising global CHROs. Dennis brings decades in higher ed. He now leads workforce strategy for one of the most AI-forward companies in the world.
Without planning it, they both said the same thing:
Workforce strategy is stuck in outdated structures. Unless we rebuild the infrastructure of work itself, no amount of capability-building will help.
From broken job architectures to the misuse of AI. From L&D programs that lag behind business needs to the total mismatch between workforce priorities and CEO pressure. This was the week we connected the dots.
Here's what I heard from both of them. These two episodes are essential listening for anyone building an AI-ready workforce.
Trish: "Workforce leaders need to stop seeing themselves as service providers. They need to think like strategic operators."
Dennis: "We designed systems for workforce processes. Not for the business."
Takeaway: Both warned that unless workforce strategy reframes its purpose, it risks irrelevance in the AI-powered enterprise.
Trish: Called out the limitations of static role structures and legacy systems. They get in the way of agility.
Dennis: "Job architectures are a 1980s construct. Built for compensation, not for work."
From Job Architecture to Work Architecture.
Takeaway: You can't redesign work or implement AI meaningfully without rethinking the foundational structure. Jobs, roles, and tasks all need to change.
Trish: Emphasized that capability-based models are no longer enough. What matters is aligning capability to business need.
Dennis: "Capabilities are just a placeholder for what the work requires."
Takeaway: Capabilities are only useful when you know what work needs to be done. And whether your people can do it now.
Every enterprise is deploying AI. Almost none can see the work they're deploying it into.
Trish: Warned that workforce leaders are underestimating how fast AI reshapes work.
Dennis: "AI isn't just an addition. It's a business engine. If you don't adapt, you'll be obsolete."
Takeaway: AI already changes how work gets done. Leaders need to redesign now. Not wait 3 years.
Trish: Talked about the need for stronger Work Intelligence and usable data.
Dennis: "You can't reengineer your workforce without data on what people actually do."
AI capability is compounding. Work visibility is not.
Takeaway: Redesign without a task-level data layer is just guesswork. You need real-time visibility into work. Only then can you make strategic decisions.
Let's be honest. Workforce strategy doesn't need more programs. It needs a system upgrade. If you're ready to stop mapping capabilities and start reengineering work, let's talk.
Siobhan 💜