Last year was a whirlwind for HR leaders everywhere. 

AI reinvented some aspects of the job, while presenting a host of other problems. People leaders scrambled to put together wellness programs that could attract and retain the best talent. Recruiting became turbocharged for some companies. And of course, the RTO wars raged on, while DEI faced one challenge after another in a reckoning that will likely continue into this year. 

At the dawn of 2025, my colleague Emma Burleigh asked HR leaders to weigh in on a host HR topics, including recruiting, employee experience, and AI. Here are some of the most notable quotes from top people leaders on each subject, and a glimpse into what you can expect from this upcoming year.

Recruiting

“Recruiting in 2025 isn’t about finding the best resumes; it’s about discovering the best possibilities.” —Rebecca Perrault, global VP of culture, diversity and sustainability at Magnit

“We’ll see a premium on human-centric skills, with organisations striving to hire well-rounded teams.” —Jennie Rogerson, global head of people at Canva

“As a direct response to the growing use of AI candidate matching technologies, recruitment strategies will shift in a major way toward skills-based hiring.” —Victoria Myers, global head of talent attraction at Amdocs

Employee Experience

“Leaders need to not only invest in strong trainings, but also find new ways to offer thoughtful development programs including rotations, shadowing, internal mobility and mentoring.” —Tracey Arnish, head of HR at Google Cloud

“As the conversations and demand for self-care and mental wellness continues to grow, HR teams will focus on not just offering resources and benefits, but co-creating these programs with employees, leveraging data and feedback to provide the support that truly makes a difference in their lives inside and outside of work.” —Laura Fuentes, chief human resources officer at Hilton

“Heading into next year, [we will be] uplifting our ERGs, allowing them the opportunity to grow and influence company initiatives, and will create an even stronger culture of inclusion in our workplace.” —Calvin Crosslin, chief diversity officer at Lenovo

AI

“2025 will be the year of agentic AI. Agents—or digital labor—will fundamentally transform how we all approach work, not only increasing productivity for companies, but also helping humans focus on more meaningful work and find better balance.” —Nathalie Scardino, chief people officer at Salesforce

“In 2025, AI will play an important role in unlocking efficiencies in how People teams operate, but it won’t replace the essential human elements, like empathy, communication and relationship building.” —Jennie Rogerson, global head of people at Canva

“Agentic AI will take over more workplace tasks, creating opportunities for people managers to focus on strategic, value-added roles in talent engagement and retention.” —Piyush Mehta, chief human resources officer at Genpact

You can read a more comprehensive roundup of the latest 2025 HR trends here: AI, employee experience and recruiting.

Brit Morse
brit.morse@fortune.com

Around the Table

A round-up of the most important HR headlines.

New advancements in technology including the increased prevalence in AI means workers today are more productive than ever. That doesn’t mean they’re happy about it. Wall Street Journal

One of the “most feared” companies to work for renovated its new Manhattan headquarters into an oasis. Now the question remains: Is that enough to convince the firm’s cutthroat attorneys to return? Fast Company

Here is what HR leaders need to take into consideration when hiring neurodiverse workers. Inc.

Watercooler

Everything you need to know from Fortune.

Micro-retirement. Many young professionals are taking extended sabbaticals, also known as mini-retirements as a means to avoid burnout. —Chloe Berger

Life after work. After selling his startup for $1 billion, this founder discusses the difficult adjustment time that follows retiring at a young age. —Amanda Gerut

Holiday bonuses. Here is what some of the most successful CEOs spent their annual bonuses on this year. —Orianna Rosa Royle