workforce

Hiring in High-Stress Professions: What Law Firms Reveal About Burnout, Retention, and Talent Fit

February 14, 2026 by HRSAdmin

February 14 2026

Hiring in High-Stress Professions: What Law Firms Reveal About Burnout, Retention, and Talent Fit

By the HR Spotlight Team

In nearly every industry, HR leaders are grappling with the same challenge: burnout is rising, retention is unpredictable, and traditional hiring indicators aren’t delivering long-term stability.

Few workplaces expose these cracks faster than law firms.

Legal environments are deadline-driven, adversarial, and emotionally demanding. Client expectations are high. Stakes are often personal. The margin for error is thin. When hiring decisions miss the mark in these settings, the consequences appear quickly, in performance gaps, morale issues, or early departures.

For HR leaders, law firms offer a valuable case study in what happens when high performance expectations meet imperfect hiring systems.

Law firms have historically prioritized pedigree: top schools, clerkships, trial experience, technical precision. But credentials alone rarely predict durability in high-pressure roles.

Tim Wheeler, Partner at Greene Broillet & Wheeler, has seen this firsthand.

“Technical competence is table stakes,” Wheeler explains. “What separates long-term contributors from short-term hires is judgment under pressure. In litigation, stress is constant. The people who succeed are typically steady, collaborative, and able to manage intensity without letting it disrupt the team.”

For HR leaders outside the legal field, the lesson is clear: high-stress roles magnify soft-skill deficiencies. Emotional regulation, communication under pressure, and adaptability are foundational.

Organizations that overweight résumé signals and under-evaluate resilience often discover the mismatch only after the hire is embedded in high-stakes work.

Burnout is frequently framed as a workload problem. But in high-pressure professions, it is often a hiring alignment issue.

Justin Lovely of Lovely Law Firm Injury Lawyers notes that expectations play a decisive role.

“In plaintiff litigation, cases move quickly and emotions run high,” Lovely says. “If candidates don’t have a realistic understanding of that intensity before they join, the adjustment can be overwhelming. Transparency during hiring is critical. It’s better to lose a candidate upfront than lose them six months in.”

This insight resonates beyond law. Across industries, organizations often soften job previews to remain competitive in talent markets. But when reality diverges from recruitment messaging, disengagement accelerates.

HR leaders who prioritize honest role descriptions (including the difficult aspects) reduce attrition driven by surprise and misalignment.

In calmer settings, onboarding gaps can go unnoticed. In high-demand environments, they become liabilities.

The pressure can compound rapidly if new hires enter roles without:

Clear performance expectations
Defined communication channels
Decision-making boundaries
Access to mentorship

Legal workplaces, where time sensitivity and client accountability are constant, demonstrate how essential structured onboarding is. The same holds true in healthcare, technology, finance, and other performance-driven sectors.

HR teams that treat onboarding as an operational ramp-up rather than a cultural integration period may inadvertently increase early burnout risk.

While high-stress roles may be unavoidable in certain professions, work design still matters.

Frederic S, co-founder of RemoteCorgi, observes that flexibility (when structured correctly) can extend sustainability even in demanding careers.

“Remote and hybrid options don’t eliminate pressure,” Frederic explains, “but they give professionals greater control over how they manage it. The key difference we see is autonomy. When employees feel trusted to structure their work around outcomes rather than constant presence, resilience improves.”

However, Frederic cautions that flexibility without clarity can backfire.

“Organizations that advertise flexibility but maintain unclear performance standards create confusion, not relief. High-performing teams need both autonomy and clearly defined expectations.”

For HR leaders, the takeaway is not simply to expand remote options, but to ensure that flexibility aligns with measurable outcomes and accountability systems.

Law firms are not unique in facing burnout challenges. What makes them instructive is the speed at which hiring misalignments surface.

From their experience, several consistent themes emerge:

Resilience must be evaluated, not assumed. Behavioral interviewing and situational assessments are critical in high-pressure roles.
Honest job previews reduce early attrition. Transparency builds trust and improves retention.
Onboarding is risk management. Structured mentorship and expectation-setting prevent performance shock.
Autonomy supports sustainability. Flexibility works when paired with clarity.
Culture amplifies stress or mitigates it. Competitive environments without collaboration accelerate burnout.

High-stress professions will always demand more from employees. But the solution is not simply about reducing expectations but you must also improve alignment.

Organizations that refine how they hire, communicate role intensity honestly, and build support structures around performance can convert demanding environments into sustainable ones.

Law firms offer a clear example: when talent fit, transparency, and structured leadership align, pressure becomes a catalyst for growth rather than a driver of turnover.

For HR leaders across industries, the message is practical: burnout prevention does not start at resignation. It starts at recruitment.

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At Work, Relationships Are Operational

February 13, 2026 by HRSAdmin

February 13, 2026

At Work, Relationships Are Operational

By Tim Mobley, President, Connext Global

Valentine’s Day is usually framed as personal, but it’s also a useful moment to zoom out at work and ask a different question. What makes a professional relationship healthy in the first place? It’s not the perks or the forced bonding exercises. Instead, leaders should focus on whether people feel clear, safe, and supported enough to do great work with their colleagues, despite differences in their roles, backgrounds and pressures.

That’s why I keep coming back to a simple idea: Healthy workplace relationships rarely happen by chance. HR’s job is to design the conditions that make them possible.

Workplace relationships are shaped by structure, not just personality. How work gets assigned, how decisions get made, how feedback is delivered, and how conflict is addressed all determine how relationships feel day to day.

Consider a long-term initiative that spans multiple departments, such as a year-long systems rollout involving operations, IT, finance, and customer support. These kinds of complex projects inevitably have overlapping deadlines and shifting priorities. Even when the entire team puts forward their best effort, pressure builds.

Without clear ownership and decision rules, small miscommunications start to feel personal. A delayed response reads as avoidance, and a blunt message sounds dismissive. Tension grows even when no one intends harm.

This dynamic intensifies in distributed teams. In a shared office, misunderstandings get corrected quickly because you can clarify intent in real time. In remote or global teams, it takes a more deliberate effort for those corrections to happen.

Returning to that cross-department project, imagine contributors spread across time zones. Scheduling constraints can cause some team members to miss meetings, while late-night emails may arrive without the context needed to interpret them right away. When this happens, silence fills the gaps and assumptions take hold.

In distributed teams, relationship issues surface faster when expectations are not written down. HR has to formalize how teams communicate, collaborate, and course correct, or small misunderstandings quietly turn into long-term disengagement.

Many organizations misunderstand team building. They treat it as an event rather than an operating principle. Real team building is created through predictability. People need to know who makes decisions and how to communicate respectfully.

On complex projects, this clarity matters even more. When teams know how tradeoffs are decided and how feedback flows, conflict becomes manageable instead of personal. HR sets those guardrails so the work can stay focused on progress rather than unspoken rules.

That’s how we create psychological safety — by delivering predictable outcomes when people speak up.

Boundaries have become nonnegotiable in remote and hybrid environments. Without clarity, flexibility often turns into constant availability. People burn out when they never know where the edges are.

Team members stay online late to avoid being seen as uncommitted and they jump into issues outside their scope to keep projects moving. Over time, that leads to exhaustion and faltering collaboration.

One of HR’s most important responsibilities now is protecting boundaries. Clear norms around response times, escalation paths, and ownership prevent burnout before it starts. These norms do not need to be complex, yet they do need to be explicit.

Trust at work comes from consistency. When performance is measured predictably and feedback is delivered fairly, relationships feel steadier.

Inconsistent standards turn relationships political. People chase visibility instead of progress and credit becomes competitive. Employees are afraid to take the risks required to innovate. But if employees have a clear understanding of what good looks like and how growth is supported, collaboration becomes easier.

HR is responsible for building that consistency into the system.

I have seen firsthand how quickly relationships improve when these guardrails are treated as part of the operating system rather than personal preference. At Connext Global, we led a team transition for a U.S.-based managed service provider, and found that the real challenge was rebuilding trust, morale, and operational reliability after a strained outsourcing relationship. By establishing clear communication rhythms and consistent expectations, the team scaled while improving retention and satisfaction.

By designing expectations and boundaries into the system, relationships stop depending on guesswork and start supporting performance.

Ultimately, modern HR must lead this transformation. HR is creating the environment where relationships form and live. To be healthy, these relationships don’t require everyone to be close friends, but they do demand consistency and guardrails that protect people from unspoken expectations.

Valentine’s Day may be the reminder, but the work is ongoing. When HR designs the conditions for healthy relationships, teams spend less time managing friction and more time doing their best work.

About the Author

As President and Founder of Connext Global Solutions, Tim Mobley brings over 20 years of executive leadership experience to the team, including 10 years in the healthcare industry. He is a proud United States Military Academy graduate with an MBA from Harvard Business School. Tim enjoys mentoring young professionals, snowboarding in Japan and delivering Hawaiian chocolates to our offshore teams.

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Black History Month Series – In Conversation with Marcia Armstrong

February 12, 2026 by HRSAdmin

HR Spotlight Interview

Marcia Armstrong

Black History Month Interview Series

In Conversation with Marcia Armstrong

“Financial stress does not stay at home. It follows people into meetings, decision-making, and team dynamics.” This is the core philosophy of Marcia Armstrong, a Financial Wellness and Employee Wellbeing Practitioner who is reshaping how organizations view performance. For this HR Spotlight feature, we sat down with Marcia to discuss the “invisible weight” employees carry, why empathy must be paired with structure to be effective, and how financial clarity can restore agency to a workforce.

HR Spotlight: Thank you for joining us, Marcia. Can you share your professional journey and the work you do in financial wellness and employee wellbeing?

Marcia Armstrong:

My professional journey has been shaped by a deep curiosity about how money influences behaviour, confidence, and opportunity. I saw early on that financial stress does not stay at home. It follows people into meetings, decision making, and team dynamics.

Today, my work focuses on financial wellness and literacy within organisations. I collaborate with HR teams and leaders to create practical learning spaces where employees can better understand their finances, reduce stress, and make informed decisions. It is not just about budgeting. It is about restoring clarity and agency so people can contribute fully at work and beyond.

HR Spotlight: What workplace challenge are you most passionate about addressing through your work with HR and leaders?

Marcia Armstrong:

I am most passionate about addressing the invisible weight employees carry due to financial stress. Many organisations focus on performance metrics without fully acknowledging the personal pressures that shape that performance.

When financial wellbeing is integrated into workplace culture, it changes how people engage. Conversations become more honest. Planning becomes more intentional. Teams operate with greater stability. Supporting financial wellness is ultimately about strengthening both the individual and the organisation.

HR Spotlight: What skill has been most important in working effectively alongside HR teams?

Marcia Armstrong:

Empathy paired with structure. HR professionals operate at the intersection of policy and people. To work effectively alongside them, I have had to listen carefully, understand organisational constraints, and design solutions that are realistic and respectful.

Clear communication has also been essential. Financial topics can feel intimidating. Translating complex ideas into accessible language builds trust, and trust is foundational in any people focused work.

HR Spotlight: What advice would you give to young Black women entering HR or people focused roles?

Marcia Armstrong:

Do not underestimate the value of your perspective. Many Black women have developed resilience, discernment, and emotional intelligence through lived experience. Those qualities are powerful assets in people centered roles.

At the same time, continue building technical expertise. Confidence grows when competence and conviction meet. And remember to care for yourself as intentionally as you care for others.

HR Spotlight: What do you want people to better understand about the role Black women play in workplace wellbeing?

Marcia Armstrong:

Black women often contribute to workplace wellbeing in ways that extend beyond formal titles. We mentor quietly. We mediate thoughtfully. We advocate courageously. We create spaces where others feel seen.

Black History Month invites us to recognise not only historic milestones but also present day leadership. The impact Black women make in workplaces today is part of a broader legacy of strength, strategy, and service. Acknowledging that contribution is not about symbolism. It is about ensuring that influence is supported and sustained.

Marcia’s insights remind us that wellbeing is not just about physical health or perks—it is about “restoring clarity and dignity.” Her powerful reminder that Black women often “mentor quietly and mediate thoughtfully” challenges leaders to recognize and support this unseen labor.

We at HR Spotlight thank Marcia for sharing her expertise on building organizational stability through financial literacy.

Marcia Armstrong is a financial wellness and employee wellbeing practitioner who partners with HR teams and organisational leaders to address the impact of financial stress in the workplace. Her work focuses on practical financial literacy, behaviour change, and creating safe spaces for honest conversations about money. She is passionate about strengthening workplace culture through clarity, dignity, and empowerment.

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Black History Month Series – In Conversation with Keyana Jones

February 11, 2026 by HRSAdmin

HR Spotlight Interview

Keyana Jones

Black History Month Interview Series

In Conversation with Keyana Jones

“The most important skill in my growth has been the ability to say yes to an opportunity and turn it into influence.” This mindset has propelled Keyana Jones through a 15-year career spanning almost every facet of Human Resources. From her start as a talent acquisition coordinator to her current role as Senior Manager of Learning and Development at Optiv, Keyana has built a “well-rounded view” of how organizations operate. HR Spotlight sat down with her to discuss why L&D leaders must be human-centered in the age of AI, the influence of Simon Sinek on her leadership style, and why navigating complex systems makes Black women uniquely qualified for strategic roles.

HR Spotlight: Thank you for joining us, Keyana. Please share with our readers your experience in HR, what you currently do for work, and any passion projects you’re involved in.

Keyana Jones:

I’ve spent the past 15 years in HR, working across multiple capacities that have given me a well-rounded view of how organizations and people operate. I began my career as a talent acquisition coordinator, and over time, moved into roles such as HR administrator, onboarding specialist, HR business partner, and training specialist. Each role allowed me to see the business from a different angle and helped me sharpen my skills while clarifying what I truly enjoyed and wanted to focus on within HR.

Currently, I serve as a senior manager of learning and development at Optiv, the cyber advisory and solutions leader, where I have an amazing opportunity to work at the intersection of strategy, engagement, growth and development, and organizational change. I partner closely with colleagues and business leaders to design solutions that foster personal growth, improve performance, build leadership capability, and help the organization navigate change in meaningful and sustainable ways.

Outside of my corporate role, my passion projects center on service, mentorship, and knowledge sharing. I am an active member of the historically Black sorority, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Inc., where I focus on building strong foundations for Black women to be successful through governance, leadership development, mentorship, and building sustainable systems that support long-term impact. I also have a deep love for public speaking and teaching.

Whether facilitating workshops, mentoring emerging leaders, or diving into a good book, I find true joy in building new things and sowing seeds into others like so many did for me. One book that strongly influences how I approach my work is, “Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action,” by Simon Sinek. It shapes how I think about purpose, intentionality, and impact. Overall, I genuinely love connecting with people and talking about work, growth, life, and occasionally my favorite show, “The Golden Girls.”

HR Spotlight: What HR problem are you most excited to be working on right now?

Keyana Jones:

An organizational opportunity I’m excited about is how we continue to equip employees with the skills they need to be successful in a constantly changing environment while still investing in them as people. With rapid adoption of new tools, including AI, the question isn’t just what we adopt but how we help people build confidence, capability, and relevance alongside those changes. For me, this work is about being intentional, thinking carefully about impact, and designing opportunities that are human-centered, inclusive, and sustainable.

HR Spotlight: What skill has been most important to your growth in HR so far?

Keyana Jones:

The most important skill in my growth has been the ability to say yes to an opportunity and turn it into influence. My grandfather always taught me to never say no to an opportunity simply because it fell outside the scope of my role. My very first chance to move within HR was when I accepted the responsibility of facilitating the new employee orientation program. That opened more doors for me to work cross-functionally, build my personal brand and visibility, and partner with leaders across the organization, including executives. Through that experience, I learned how influence can be created from any level through preparation, consistency, and the ability to add value.

HR Spotlight: What advice would you give to young Black women in HR or entering the HR profession?

Keyana Jones:

My advice to someone entering the field: Stay curious and raise your hand even for opportunities that may not seem desirable or perfectly aligned. Those experiences often teach you what truly brings you joy while also building depth of knowledge that becomes valuable in the future. Build intentional community, and surround yourself with people who won’t just mentor you, but who will actively help you move toward your goals and advocate for you. Use every role and opportunity to build trust and credibility. You are in the driver’s seat of your career. Own your path, your voice, and your value!

HR Spotlight: What do you want people to understand about Black women in HR that often gets missed?

Keyana Jones:

What often gets missed is the level of complexity Black women have had to navigate and how that experience translates into value for organizations. We bring more than representation to an organization. We bring perspective shaped by navigating systems, people, and power simultaneously. We actively juggle multiple priorities with care and discernment and, as a result, we bring strong judgement, complex thinking, and the ability to identify risks and opportunity.

We create waves for change through our voices and passion rooted in purpose. When Black women are trusted and empowered, we foster environments that promote long-term outcomes, sustainable decisions, and a deep care for others.

Keyana Jones is a Senior Manager of Learning and Development at Optiv, the cyber advisory and solutions leader. With nearly 15 years at Optiv and 25 in the industry, Keyana’s experience spans enterprise learning, career pathways, and performance cycles, with an emphasis on adoption at scale and real-world application. She is known for turning strategy into usable capability by connecting learning, performance, and employee growth.

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5 Ways to Manage Your Team Like an Olympic Coach

February 11, 2026 by HRSAdmin

February 10, 2026

5 Ways to Manage Your Team Like an Olympic Coach

By Ashley Herd, Leadership Speaker and Podcast Host

Every two years when the Olympics roll around, we all become experts in sports we may not have even tried ourselves (though curling does make a surprisingly fun team outing). We’ll yell to the slalom racer on TV, “You should’ve taken that turn tighter!” even though we wouldn’t want that same racer showing up on Monday morning to give us play-by-play feedback in the office.

But Olympic athletes don’t succeed because of random commentary from the sidelines. They succeed because of consistent coaching, years of preparation, and the kind of feedback that’s based on trust. Those breakthrough moments aren’t luck; they’re the result of practice, support, and someone helping them get better over time.

This is where HR comes in. One of the most valuable things HR can do is help managers move from “sideline commentary” to real coaching, with practical tools for feedback, trust, and development. If you want to empower your managers to set their team members up for their own “gold medal” moments, here are five tips to share:

Olympic coaches don’t prepare athletes for vague success. They train for the exact conditions of competition.

Managers sometimes do the opposite. We tell employees, “Do your best,” and “Be successful,” but we don’t clarify what success actually looks like. Or we assume people know what the finish line is, because we can see it.

Olympic-level management means being specific:

What does a great outcome look like?
What’s expected of them, and what will they receive from others?
How will you each measure it along the way?

Teams can’t hit a target that hasn’t been clearly, and specifically, communicated.

No Olympic coach waits until the gold medal round to say, “By the way, your form was off.”

Feedback happens in real time. It’s part of the process. If managers are only talking about performance at review time, this can be a training gap, not necessarily a motivation problem. The strongest leaders build a culture where feedback sounds more like coaching than criticism:

“This was great. Keep doing that.”
“Here’s one tweak that could help.”
“Let’s look at that together.”

Consistent, constructive feedback makes it feel supportive, not stressful.

Olympic coaches absolutely challenge their athletes. They stretch them, and raise the bar. But the best coaches also know the difference between growth and burnout. They support, and require, recovery. They notice when someone can do more, but also when they need a break. They understand that performance isn’t just about effort. It’s about sustainable effort.

Managers need that same awareness. If your team is always sprinting, they’ll eventually stop running. A good question to ask your team is “How can we make sure you’re able to balance getting your work done and taking time to recharge?”

That check-in can prevent a lot of breakdowns later.

When an athlete steps onto the world stage, they’re not wondering if their coach believes in them. That trust was built long before the spotlight.

In workplaces, trust works the same way. You can’t wait until the big moments to try to build it. It comes from showing up regularly, following through, and communicating clearly day to day.

Trust isn’t extra. It’s what makes everything else work.

Olympic athletes are chasing excellence, which means no one’s perfect on Day One. They get there through repetition, learning from mistakes and adjusting along the way.

Managers sometimes forget that work is developmental, too. If someone isn’t getting it, the question isn’t always, “Why can’t they do this?” It’s often: “How can they learn and grow?”

A manager’s job isn’t to lead a team of flawless performers. It’s to lead real humans who are learning, trying, growing, and doing it all over again.

A team member’s presentation next week might not come with medal chances, but it can still feel like they’re on the world stage. That’s where good coaching matters. Managers can use these tips to help people not only understand what’s expected, but feel supported in how they’ll succeed. And HR can play a role in making that kind of leadership the norm.

About the Author

Ashley Herd is a former Chief People Officer and General Counsel , leadership speaker, and podcast host who has trained over 250,000 managers through LinkedIn Learning and live corporate trainings. Ashley has spent her career helping professionals navigate leadership challenges with clarity and confidence. Ashley built Manager Method after leading HR and Legal teams at McKinsey, Yum! Brands and Modern Luxury. She’s a top LinkedIn Learning instructor and co-host of the HR Besties podcast. As the CEO of Manager Method, Ashley works with organizations of all sizes to equip their managers with practical, proven tools that drive clarity, accountability and stronger teams – because better managers build better workplaces.

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Black History Month Series – In Conversation with Stephanie Clergé

February 10, 2026 by HRSAdmin

HR Spotlight Interview

Stephanie Clergé

Black History Month Interview Series

In Conversation with Stephanie Clergé

For our latest Black History Month feature, HR Spotlight sat down with Stephanie Clergé, the VP of People Development at Kolbe Corp. Stephanie’s journey to the C-Suite was anything but linear; she began her career as an engineer in high-tech manufacturing.Today, she leverages that operational background to bridge the gap between human instincts and artificial intelligence. We spoke with her about leading AI adoption from a people-first perspective, the power of curiosity, and why understanding the “unwritten rules” of business is vital for career growth.

HR Spotlight: Thank you for joining us, Stephanie. Please share with our readers your experience in HR, what you currently do for work, and any passion projects you’re involved in.

Stephanie Clergé:

I currently serve as Vice President of People Development at Kolbe Corp, where I oversee our organizational culture, employee training, and performance. In addition to leading our internal people and learning strategy, I also work directly with client organizations around the world by training and consulting with leaders and supporting our global network of independent consultants who do similar work across industries and geographies.

My path into HR has been anything but traditional. I began my career as an engineer in high-tech manufacturing and later moved into senior program management roles focused on scaling new technologies. One of those assignments included leading the hiring, onboarding, and training of more than 700 employees in a single year. At the time, our business unit intentionally built its own people and talent team outside of traditional HR because leaders believed it was critical to deeply understand the operational realities of the business.

For much of my early career, I was doing HR work without carrying the HR title, and I will admit that I once viewed HR as a bit of a dirty word. That experience shaped how I approach people development today. I stay deeply grounded in business needs, operational realities, and measurable outcomes.

Later, I formally moved into HR and served as a program manager for a large-scale cultural transformation initiative across a global organization of more than 100,000 employees. While it was energizing to work closely with senior leadership, I also became very aware of how difficult it is to create meaningful and lasting culture change without clarity and alignment.

After running my own coaching and consulting practice, I joined Kolbe nearly ten years ago. What I love most about my current role is the ability to combine internal HR leadership with external consulting. I work with organizations of many sizes and industries while also building and shaping culture inside our own company.

My primary passion today sits at the intersection of human instincts and artificial intelligence. With a background in engineering and human-machine interaction, I am actively helping drive both internal AI adoption and the integration of AI into our external products and services. As organizations move into increasingly AI-infused workplaces, I believe this is an essential responsibility for HR leaders so that technology strengthens, rather than diminishes, human potential.

HR Spotlight: What HR problem are you most excited to be working on right now?

Stephanie Clergé:

The HR challenge I am most excited about right now is helping organizations move beyond access to AI and into real, human adoption of it.

For many years, we talked about a digital divide as a lack of access to technology. In most organizations today, that is no longer the real problem. Employees and leaders already have access to AI tools. The barrier is much more human, including lack of interest, fear, distrust, uncertainty about skills, and anxiety about what these technologies might mean for their future.

At Kolbe, I have been focused on building practical, people-centered approaches to AI adoption that go beyond traditional change management. Clear communication and executive buy-in are no longer enough. Unlike past technology shifts, such as when new tools only existed inside a factory or workplace, employees now encounter AI constantly in their personal lives. Their emotions, assumptions, experiences, and concerns come into the workplace with them.

To address this, I created an internal AI working group made up of representatives from every department. We share emerging AI use cases and news, and each member is responsible for implementing a small and practical AI project within their own function. I intentionally began with a coalition of the willing, with the longer-term goal of developing internal champions who can help engage others and better understand what may be preventing broader adoption.

The deeper challenge I am working on is helping employees understand how AI can enhance not only their productivity, but also their long-term value as contributors. Leaders are focused on performance, efficiency, and business results. Employees are often quietly asking very different questions. Will I be replaced? Can I learn fast enough? Will new roles truly exist for me?

My work now focuses on finding the right motivation and a sustainable pace for both groups. I use surveys, in-person sessions, and one-on-one conversations to understand what employees actually want, what they need, and what they will naturally engage with. This is where Kolbe’s instinctive strengths framework is especially valuable, because it helps us design AI adoption strategies that align with how people are naturally wired to take action.

HR Spotlight: What skill has been most important to your growth in HR so far?

Stephanie Clergé:

The most important skill in my growth, both in HR and in leadership more broadly, has been curiosity.

My decision to leave a large corporate environment and look for work where I could make a meaningful difference at scale began with curiosity, even if it did not feel that way at first. It started with frustration. I found myself spending a great deal of time mentoring colleagues and feeling discouraged when people did not act on my advice. In a conversation with a trusted colleague, she suggested that what I really needed was not more mentoring, but a coaching approach. That single comment led me to pursue a coaching certification, and it fundamentally changed how I work with people.

Becoming a coach taught me how to use curiosity differently. Instead of assuming I had the right answers, I learned to ask better questions, listen more deeply, and test what I was hearing across different people, teams, and environments. That shift from problem-solving for others to learning with them has shaped how I lead, how I partner with executives, and how I support employees navigating complex change.

I have also learned that curiosity needs to be directed inward. The more clearly we understand our own instincts, reactions, and assumptions, the better equipped we are to navigate challenges such as remote and hybrid work, division in the workplace, and the rapid pace of technological change, including AI.

Not everyone needs to pursue a formal coaching credential. Adopting a curious, coaching-oriented mindset is one of the most practical and powerful tools I know for managing teams, partnering with senior leaders, and navigating relationships outside of work.

HR Spotlight: What advice would you give to young Black women in HR or entering the HR profession?

Stephanie Clergé:

This is a difficult question to answer in today’s environment, because my early career was shaped by organizational values and systems that do not always exist in the same way anymore.

I began my career in an organization that emphasized results, quality, customer focus, and personal ownership of employability. There was a strong expectation that employees would not only do their jobs well, but also help co-create a great place to work. That environment gave me the freedom to focus on my role while also taking on additional projects and leadership opportunities.

I was also fortunate to have entered the company as an intern before becoming a full-time employee, which meant I learned many of the unwritten rules early. I learned how things really worked, how decisions were made, and how credibility was built. Not everyone had access to that same head start, and I became intentional about mentoring others and helping them understand the parts of organizational life that often take years to learn.

For many employees, especially those who are not naturally included in informal networks, social gatherings, or relationship-building spaces outside of work, access to those unwritten rules and informal learning matters even more.

My advice to young Black women in HR is to be proactive about building trusted relationships at work. Find a mentor, a peer partner, or a small circle of colleagues you can learn with and from. Look for people who are willing to share how influence, performance, and advancement really operate in your organization.

Earlier in my career, formal employee resource groups and affinity communities created powerful spaces for learning, belonging, and shared insight. In environments where those structures are limited or inconsistent today, it becomes even more important to intentionally create your own support system. Find people who can help you navigate both the visible and invisible sides of your career.

You do not have to navigate this work alone, and you should not have to guess your way into influence.

HR Spotlight: What do you want people to understand about Black women in HR that often gets missed?

Stephanie Clergé:

What often gets missed about Black women in HR is the depth and breadth of our business leadership.

For a long time, I was reluctant to even label myself as an HR professional because of the perception that HR was less strategic, less rigorous, or simply a support function rather than a true business partner. I also observed that Black women in HR leadership were frequently concentrated, or visibly recognized, only in diversity and inclusion roles rather than across the full spectrum of organizational strategy, operations, and leadership.

At a recent conference, the CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management described what CEOs most want from HR leaders as three things: competence, being a trusted confidant, and courage. That framework captures what I believe Black women in HR bring every day.

We are deeply competent in the people and business space. We build trust across organizations and are often the leaders others turn to when situations are complex, sensitive, or high-stakes. We bring courage, especially when it comes to raising issues that are uncomfortable, systemic, or easy to ignore.

Unfortunately, Black women in HR are sometimes pigeonholed. Advocacy for employees can be misread as being driven by emotion rather than professional judgment. Our leadership presence can be filtered through stereotypes instead of being recognized as strategic influence and organizational stewardship.

The reality is that Black women in HR are not only culture carriers or champions of inclusion. We are business leaders who help organizations navigate risk, performance, talent, and change. When that full contribution is recognized, organizations are better positioned to make smarter, more human, and more sustainable decisions.

As the VP of People Development at Kolbe Corp., Stephanie Clergé is positioned at the forefront of the human performance and assessment industries, playing a key role in how Kolbe continues to empower more lives through the power of instinctive strengths. She is responsible for many of the innovative, high-quality training programs that Kolbe Corp provides for leaders, teams and individuals, as well as the development of many new Kolbe products and solutions. Prior to joining Kolbe Corp, she created her own strengths-based coaching and training practice, partnering with organizations pioneering in the art of talent development. She also held a variety of operational leadership roles during a nearly 15-year career at Intel Corporation.

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