Thanks to social media, the HR world has become more connected than ever. No longer are we only hearing the loudest voices from the biggest companies — we’re getting groundbreaking ideas and fresh perspectives from people from all types of backgrounds.
In 2026, I expect to see HR and People teams navigate AI adoption, tightening budgets, renewed scrutiny on DEI, and yet another wave of workplace change. The leaders below are some of my favorite follows, people who are constantly experimenting, sharing what works (and what doesn’t), and helping the rest of us build a more human, resilient, and data-informed workplace.
No matter your industry, it’s a bit like a shortcut to success when you have the right models, mentors, or just people you can look up to.
So, without further ado, here’s my list of today’s top HR thought leaders and pioneers of impact:
1. Hebba Youssef
Maybe you’ve heard of Hebba Youssef as the Chief People Officer at Workweek or the founder of “I Hate It Here,” a platform dedicated to supporting HR and People Operations professionals through a newsletter, podcast, and community.
Over the last few years, especially, she’s become one of the most important voices in HR, especially for those on the front lines who are burnt out on corporate jargon and want honest, practical advice.
She’s built People Ops teams from the ground up and scaled companies, and she brings a wealth of experience to her daily LinkedIn content, which includes advice on:
- Creating a company culture employees love
- Developing leadership skills (including how to push back and say no)
- Fostering inclusive workplaces that go beyond optics
- Integrating technology and AI into your HR processes in a real, non-hypey way
You can also watch her“I Hate It Here” podcast on Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube. It’s become a go-to source for HR pros who want to feel seen and supported.
2. Heather Doshay
Heather Doshay is a Partner and Head of Talent at SignalFire, bringing extensive experience in scaling teams and developing talent strategies in the tech and venture capital industries.
She’s an up-and-comer, but her CPOHQ membership, advisory role at PeopleTech Partners, and past involvement with the Forbes HR Council establish her as an authority in the space. And her wildly successful tenure as VP of People at Webflow (where she grew the department from 2 to 35 employees) proves her hands-on experience.
You can follow her for cutting-edge insights on people operations in high-growth environments.
3. Melanie Naranjo
Melanie Naranjo is the VP of People at Ethena, a modern compliance training platform, where she leverages over a decade of HR experience to build inclusive and ethical workplaces. Or, as one of her LinkedIn followers put it, “the epitome of relatable and knowledgeable on the modern People and employee experience.”
Her expertise is further recognized through her roles as an Advisor at TroopHR and CPO Council Member at Lattice, as well as a media presence in NBC, HR Brew, and Bloomberg.
In 2026, you’ll find her content especially relevant if you’re a leader trying to balance compliance, psychological safety, and performance. You can follow her for innovative insights on compliance training, team scaling, and executive coaching (so leaders can be better humans, not just better managers).
4. Jessica Zwaan
Jessica Zwaan is the current COO at Talentful, a London-based staffing agency. She advocates for applying product management principles to HR and people operations. Drawing from her experience as a startup and technology executive, her content focuses on developing people-centered ways of working and fostering a culture of continuous feedback and iteration. From my own comment thread:
“Her thoughts on People teams operating like Product teams and also structuring HR metrics like GTM ones (like employee LTV) are epic!! 🔥”
Follow her for insights on topics like hiring, employee experience, performance management, operational efficiency, AI in the workplace, and remote work.
5. Q Hamirani
Q Hamirani joined HighLevel as its Chief People Officer in July of this year. He’s also the founder of PeopleGPT, a global community of more than 500 people leaders and AI enthusiasts. Also from my own comments:
“Q Hamirani in general has some brilliant thoughts — in the past year he’s had particularly thought-provoking engagements related to gen AI usage in HR 💡”
In his content, he brings forth his firsthand experience across his own startups, venture growth, private equity, management consulting, and Fortune 100 companies across 25+ countries to discuss innovative approaches to people management, insights into building strong leadership frameworks, and his take on modern work trends like AI and digital nomadism.
6. Siobhán (shiv-awn) McHale
Siobhán McHale is a renowned change leader and author, recognized for her expertise in organizational transformation and culture change.
“Siobhán McHale makes it onto my list! A systems thinker that not only shares her knowledge but actually applies her thinking in practice.”
As an author of two bestselling books — “The Insider’s Guide to Culture Change”(2020) and “The Hive Mind at Work” (2024) — Siobhán’s contributions to the field have earned her accolades, including being named among Thinkers360’s 50 B2B Thought Leaders & Influencers and ranked as one of the Top 30 Culture Gurus.
7. Daniela (dani) Herrera
dani Herrera is a Talent and DEI Consultant at Kay & Partners. She shares insights on:
- Strategies for fostering inclusive workplaces
- Tips on recruitment best practices, employer branding, and attracting top talent
- Methods to enhance employee satisfaction, retention, and overall workplace culture
- Developing leadership skills and building effective teams
8. Alex Seiler
Alex Seiler is a People Operations exec-turned entrepreneur who’s currently building his HR consulting and advisory services biz, where he helps startup and growth stage companies grow their teams as they scale.
He posts valuable thoughts on and experiences with:
- His personal entrepreneurship journey
- HR advice for VC and private equity firms, fast-growing startups, and board members
- Talent acquisition and culture-enhancing best practices
- How CPOs can drive real organizational change
He also regularly appears on podcasts and interviews, which you’ll be the first to know about when he shares them in his feed.
9. Kim Rohrer
Kim Rohrer is someone whose firsthand experience speaks for itself — as a founder of PeakHR, Patchwork Portfolio, TendLab, and several other companies (plus a whole slew of corporate exec positions), she’s got a deep understanding of how to build thriving teams and company cultures. She now provides advisory, consulting, and content services to companies and individuals, including Compt. You might see some of her expertise on our blog.
Her content centers around innovative approaches to employee engagement, performance management, and organizational development. I especially love her takes on how to gather meaningful employee insights through better listening and translating employee feedback into actionable change initiatives.
On LinkedIn, she’ll also share her latest HR Confessions podcast episodes, which you can watch on Apple Podcasts.
10. Enrique Rubio
Over the past two decades, Enrique Rubio has worked at the intersection of HR and technology. Most recently, he’s the Head of Global Community at Transform and the founder of Hacking HR, a global learning community that brings together thousands of HR professionals, business leaders, and enthusiasts to collaborate on advancing the HR profession.
His content emphasizes AI, the digitization of the workplace, and the evolving role of HR in the tech‑driven future of work. Hacking HR has grown into one of the most active global HR communities, with events, micro‑learning, and collaborations that make it easier to stay ahead of trends without getting overwhelmed. If you want practical, forward‑looking conversations about the future of work (without losing the human side), he’s a non‑negotiable follow.
11. Tracie Sponenberg
Tracie Sponenberg is one of the top voices out there when it comes to hiring and workplace culture, and her new newsletter (Work. Community. Coffee.) exemplifies that. I love her unfiltered takes on what it takes to inspire organizational change as a CEO, founder, or HR pro.
Almost daily, she also posts on LinkedIn about her journey as a solopreneur growing her consulting biz, and her 30+ years of experience in Corporate America.
12. Mita Mallick
With more than 180,000 LinkedIn followers and growing, Mita Mallick is one of the most prolific voices in the HR space. If you aren’t following her already, her content is a must — through storytelling, she opens up about her challenges and triumphs with…
- Succeeding as a woman in the corporate world
- Leading with empathy and compassion
- Fostering meaningful relationships in your personal and professional life
What I love most about her content is she doesn’t just tell, she shows. All her content is based on her own experiences, so it’s relatable and actionable.
13. Christie Hoffman
Christie Hoffman is the expert on employee engagement. She’s the founder of Engagement Academy, where she hosts weekly live events, workshops, and courses on how to help founders and HR professionals fix culture issues and grow thriving teams.
On her socials, she gives actionable tips for every aspect of employee engagement — benefits, productivity tools, communication strategies, and so on — in bite-sized, easy-to-follow posts.
In addition to LinkedIn, you’ll find her on Insta andTikTok (@corporatechristie).
14. Jessica D. Winder
Jessica Winder uses her expertise to give advice to employees on everything from job applications and interviews to promotions at work and handling difficult coworkers. Her content is primarily focused on personal and professional development, with a few hiring, management, and employee benefits tips sprinkled in.
If you’re a leader in your company, I recommend reading her content as a way to get into the minds of your team (and its future members) and understand how to attract, support, and retain them.
15. Saná Walker
Saná Walker is a founder of HR Girlfriends — a networking community for women in HR. She’s an HR and DEI consultant, and she posts content related to compliance, HR technology, productivity, diversity, and mental health in the workplace.
Psst: Check out our “Getting Personal” episode with her: 300 Years Until Gender Equity?! Unacceptable.
16. Angela Jackson
Dr. Angela Jackson is a founder of Future Forward Strategies, lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and board member/advisor to numerous companies. She’s also a frequent keynote speaker and podcast guest, where she shares her firsthand experiences and expertise on topics like:
- The intersection of education and labor markets
- Trends and strategies related to the evolving workforce
- How to create equitable opportunities in education and employment
- Innovative approaches to workforce development, including initiatives like the Future of Work Grand Challenge
She’s one to bookmark if you’re a founder or People Ops leader who wants to keep a pulse on what’s next for HR and the workforce as a whole.
17. Christine Song
As a serial entrepreneur and the current CPO of a massive DTC brand (Knix), Christine Song brings a unique perspective on scaling teams, internal communication, talent management, and leadership development.
Her guiding belief is that you should ‘challenge people so they can use their passion to fuel their growth,’ after which their success will become yours. If you’re part of a startup or high-growth HR/People Ops team, her content is a must-read.
18. Adam Karpiak
No ‘HR influencer’ or ‘top HR thought leaders’ list is complete without the one and only Adam Karpiak. With more than half a million followers, he’s one of the most prolific faces in the HR space. He’s a seasoned recruiter and the President of Karpiak Consulting, which specializes in placing public accounting professionals in the New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania markets.
For HR professionals, his insights into effective hiring practices and the ever‑changing nuances of the job market are invaluable. In a 2026 market that’s still weird and uneven, his posts offer a great reality check on what candidates are actually thinking and feeling. His guidance for job seekers (resume tips, interview prep, career strategy) also gives HR teams a window into candidate expectations — which is incredibly useful when you’re trying to refine your employer brand and hiring process.
In addition to LinkedIn, you can follow him on Instagram, X (Twitter), and his newsletter,Jobseeking is Hard.
19. Suzanne Lucas
Also known as the ‘Evil HR Lady,’ Suzanne Lucas brings 20+ years of experience in HR management to her social media content. She’s a fantastic resource for everything related to HR compliance, benefits and total comp, and creative, practical solutions to common workplace challenges.
20. Meghan M. Biro
When she’s not running her company (TalentCulture) or contributing to Forbes, Huffington Post, and other publications, Meghan M. Biro is posting helpful LinkedIn content and hosting the WorkTrends Podcast.
She covers topics like culture,employee well-being, empathetic leadership, remote and hybrid work, and the growing role of HR technology. What makes her especially valuable to follow in 2026 is the way she connects the dots between HR practitioners, vendors, and the broader future‑of‑work conversation. If you want a curated, big‑picture view of where HR is headed — and which ideas are worth your time — she’s a great person to keep on your radar.
21. Joel Lalgee
When it comes to talent acquisition strategy, few people have the same level of expertise as Joel Lalgee. Across LinkedIn, X, and TikTok, he posts some of the best content around candidate sourcing, interview techniques, recruitment technology, and employer branding.
What makes Lalgee great is his sense of humor. He’s always finding ways to inject levity into the often stressful world of HR, and his advice is actionable and backed by experience.
Did I miss any top HR thought leaders?
If so, I’d love to hear from you:
- Who should I follow right now?
- Who’s doing particularly cool, groundbreaking work in HR, people analytics, or AI?
- And who isn’t being heard enough but deserves a platform?
Tag them on my post here, and I’ll update this list.
Looking for more insight from the HR community?
I’d be missing a beat if I didn’t shout out our own Head of Brand & Comms, Lauren Schneider. A former journalist-turned-PR-Pro-turned-Marketing-mastermind, she hosts our podcast here at Compt, Getting Personal, and pens the accompanying newsletter. It drops every month and is packed with candid conversations about AI, culture, equity, and the realities of working in HR right now!
You can sign up to get it in your inbox and keep learning from leaders like you.
