The Modern People Leader: Forward-Thinking HR

Amin Palizban, Co-Founder & CEO of TopicFlow, joined us on The Modern People Leader. We talked about why managers are at a breaking point, how AI is transforming performance management, and what it takes to build AI-native people products that actually support managers in real time.
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Get the AI for Performance Management Toolkit: https://modernpeopleleader.kit.com/aiforperformance
Sponsor Links:
🔗 Explore the 2026 ​Deloitte Human Capital Trends Report
🔗 Book a conversation with Compete at compete.com/mpl
🔗 Learn more about Intuit QuickBooks Payroll at QuickBooks.com/workforce
MPL Links:
🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.
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(03:33) Amin’s Career Journey: From Engineer to CEO of TopicFlow
(07:32) Early Exposure to Performance Management Tools and Market Gap
(10:05) AI’s Impact on Productivity and Internal Workflows (MPL 2.0)
(12:36) Why Managers Are Burnt Out and the “Code Red” Situation
(16:30) The Real Problem: Poor Manager Training and Promotion Practices
(21:34) Why Traditional L&D and HR Tools Are No Longer Effective
(24:21) What Real Manager Support Looks Like in the AI Era
(26:49) Coaching vs Performance Reviews: Why They Should Be Separate
(29:15) Why AI Coaching Can Be More Effective Than Human Coaching
(34:38) The Increasing Span of Control and Manager Workload Challenges
(36:02) Why Performance Reviews Are Still Not Data-Driven
(40:01) What Data Sources Actually Matter for Better Reviews
(46:15) Transcript Data as “Corporate Gold” and Cultural Shift Challenges
(52:05) From Asking AI to Ambient Intelligence and Proactive Coaching
(56:39) Personalized AI Coaching and the “Scale to One” Future
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Past guests on MPL include Brené Brown, Annie Dean (VP of Team Anywhere, Atlassian), Josh Bersin, Katie Burke (Chief People Officer, Harvey), Liz Fosslien, Helen Russell (Chief People Officer, HubSpot), Dave Scott (Chief People Officer, ADT), Melanie Rossenwasser (Chief People Officer, Dropbox), Crystal Boysen (Chief People Officer, Sprout Social), and many more.

In this live episode of The Modern People Leader recorded in Toronto, the crew reflects on the evolving role of HR leaders amid rising AI pressure, shifting expectations, and increasing emotional load. They unpack real-time challenges around strategy clarity, leadership trust, and how people teams must adapt to stay effective in a rapidly changing world.
Our guests for this episode:
- Kate Railton, Chief People Officer @ Mejuri
- Katya Laviolette, Chief People Officer @ 1Password
- Jenny Do Forno, Chief People Officer @ TouchBistro
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Sponsor Links:
🔗 Learn more about Tilt at hellotilt.com/mpl
🔗 Explore the 2026 ​Deloitte Human Capital Trends Report
🔗 Learn more about Intuit QuickBooks Payroll at QuickBooks.com/workforce
MPL Links:
🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.
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(06:00) Building with AI: Creating Tools Without Engineering Background
(08:00) Internal Tools & Using AI to Solve Operational Problems
(10:00) Framing the Conversation: State of HR & Growing Expectations
(12:00) Poll Results Breakdown: Why HR Leaders Feel Split
(14:00) Strategy Misalignment: The Real Organizational Problem
(17:00) Communication Gaps & Repeating Strategy Effectively
(18:00) The Emotional Load on HR Leaders Today
(19:00) How the CPO Role Has Evolved Since COVID
(21:00) Speed of Change & Constant Decision-Making Pressure
(23:00) Balancing Short-Term vs Medium-Term Thinking in HR
(25:00) Transparency, Trust & Decision-Making in Organizations
(27:00) Managing Complexity in Large vs Growing Companies
(29:00) The Future of Career Paths & Organizational Design
(31:00) Challenges in Advising Employees on Career Growth
(32:00) Misunderstandings About the CPO Role
(34:00) Saying No & Avoiding the “Catch-All” HR Trap
(35:00) HR Is Not the Therapist: Redefining Responsibilities
(36:00) HumanOps vs PeopleOps: Where HR Should Focus
(38:00) Aligning AI Strategy with Business Strategy
(41:00) Practical Framework: Building Strategy with “So What?”
(44:00) AI as a Business Driver vs Just a Tool
(46:00) Enforcing AI Adoption & Organizational Expectations
(47:00) Iterating Strategy Across Different Employee Groups
(48:00) Q&A Begins: AI Replacing Roles & Team Structures
(50:00) Headcount Strategy & Reimagining Roles with AI
(52:00) Where AI Will Impact HR Most (TA, Learning, Compensation)
(54:00) Task-Based Thinking vs Role-Based Thinking
(55:00) Rebuilding Teams Around Work, Not Titles
(56:00) Resistance to Change & Leadership Challenges
(58:00) The End of Traditional Org Design Playbooks
(59:00) Revenue Per Employee & New Success Metrics
(01:01:00) Preparing for AI Mandates from Leadership
(01:02:00) Managing Crisis Culture in HR Roles
(01:04:00) Trust, Leadership, and Being Included Early

James Seechurn, Author of ‘What Pay Costs’ and ‘Nothing Left to Take Away’, joined us on The Modern People Leader.
We talked about why traditional “pay for performance” systems often fail—both because individual performance is hard to measure in knowledge work and because incentives don’t actually drive better outcomes. We also explored a new definition of performance centered on innovation, and how companies can unlock it by creating the conditions of autonomy, competence, and relatedness instead of relying on compensation levers.
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Sponsor Links:
🔗 Learn more about Intuit QuickBooks Payroll at QuickBooks.com/workforce
🔗 Book a conversation with Compete at compete.com/mpl
🔗 Learn more about Cloverleaf at cloverleaf.me/mpl
MPL Links:
🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.
---- 
📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps
💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn
😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn
😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn
---- 
Past guests on MPL include Brené Brown, Annie Dean (VP of Team Anywhere, Atlassian), Josh Bersin, Katie Burke (Chief People Officer, Harvey), Liz Fosslien, Helen Russell (Chief People Officer, HubSpot), Dave Scott (Chief People Officer, ADT), Melanie Rossenwasser (Chief People Officer, Dropbox), Crystal Boysen (Chief People Officer, Sprout Social), and many more.

Claude Silver, Chief Heart Officer at VaynerX, joined us on The Modern People Leader. 
We talked about why workplace dread is increasing in today’s environment, what Claude has learned from Gen Z employees, and how leaders can leave their “heart print” on the people they work with.
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Sponsor Links:
🔗 Learn more about Cloverleaf at cloverleaf.me/mpl
🔗 Learn more about Tilt at hellotilt.com/mpl
MPL Links:
🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.
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(04:24) Claude’s Career Story: From Athlete to Chief Heart Officer
(10:54) What VaynerX Does: Modern Marketing and Creative Ecosystem
(13:13) Building a Learning Culture and Developing People Internally
(15:51) Why Workplace Dread Is Increasing in Today’s Environment
(18:16) The Importance of Self-Awareness and Emotional Control
(20:30) Supporting Teams Without Having All the Answers as a Leader
(20:56) What Claude Has Learned from Gen Z Employees
(23:06) The Challenge of Patience and Career Growth Expectations
(24:42) Why Relationships Matter More Than Ever at Work
(26:51) The Impact of COVID and Isolation on Younger Generations
(29:23) Overcoming Workplace Dread Through Action and Learning
(31:51) Paying It Forward and Supporting Others in Their Growth
(33:38) What It Means to Leave a “Heartprint” at Work
(35:17) Emotional Optimism, Bravery, and Efficiency Explained
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📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps
💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn
😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn
😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn
---- 
Past guests on MPL include Brené Brown, Annie Dean (VP of Team Anywhere, Atlassian), Josh Bersin, Katie Burke (Chief People Officer, Harvey), Liz Fosslien, Helen Russell (Chief People Officer, HubSpot), Dave Scott (Chief People Officer, ADT), Melanie Rossenwasser (Chief People Officer, Dropbox), Crystal Boysen (Chief People Officer, Sprout Social), and many more.

Zachary Parris, who’s re-imagining talent development for the AI era at Google, joined us on The Modern People Leader. 
We talked about how AI is turning HR leaders into builders, why product thinking is replacing traditional HR programs, and how anyone can now create impactful tools without a technical background. 
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Sponsor Links:
🔗 Book a conversation with Compete at compete.com/mpl
🔗 Learn more about Wellthy at wellthy.com/mpl
MPL Links:
🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.
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(08:39) Zach’s Career Story
(13:56) The Shift into AI Product Building and Internal Tool Creation
(14:29) Zach’s New Role at Google and Product-Driven HR
(16:07) What People Get Wrong About Google Today
(18:26) How HR Used to Operate vs. How AI Is Changing Everything
(20:21) Early Skepticism Around Product-Led HR
(22:00) The Breakthrough Moment: Building an AI Agent in Days
(25:09) Shifting from Programs to Products in HR
(25:53) New Skills Required: Problem Statements and Deep Focus Work
(28:20) Example: Driving Product Adoption Through Onboarding Design
(30:39) How User Research Changes in a Product-Led HR Model
(32:30) Expanding Inputs: From Surveys to Real User Interaction and Feedback
---- 
📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps
💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn
😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn
😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn
---- 
Past guests on MPL include Brené Brown, Annie Dean (VP of Team Anywhere, Atlassian), Josh Bersin, Katie Burke (Chief People Officer, Harvey), Liz Fosslien, Helen Russell (Chief People Officer, HubSpot), Dave Scott (Chief People Officer, ADT), Melanie Rossenwasser (Chief People Officer, Dropbox), Crystal Boysen (Chief People Officer, Sprout Social), and many more.