HR Most Influential Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

Tim Pointer, HR magazine's #1 Most Influential HR practitioner for 2025, focuses on the transformational power of agility in business, offering tips on how to adapt to succeed.

Pointer, who is portfolio chief people officer and operating partner for the asset management business Three Hills, argues that, to stay ahead of the curve, HR must supercharge transformation and become even better at navigating change. 

Drawing on his extensive experiences of boardrooms around the world, Pointer offers tips for HR leaders on how to become more agile, and how to adapt to succeed in business.

Chief people officer Jacky Simmonds shares how Experian has fostered a thriving culture of innovation throughout the business, offering tips that other businesses can learn from.

Since Simmonds joined the global data and technology company Experian, in 2020, Experian has celebrated a fourth consecutive year on the UK’s Best Workplaces™ list and was recognised as a World’s Best Workplace™ for the first time in 2024. Experian's continuous improvement programme, which boosts innovation, has delivered annual savings of $140m. 

In a thought-provoking discussion, Simmonds addresses: 

·         How to maintain cultural alignment;

·         Why hackathons aren’t just for tech experts;

·         The value of HR professionals tailoring their approach when engaging different stakeholders, and more.

Many thanks to our sponsor Great Place To Work UK for this episode.

Once, HR professionals could walk around the office or factory floor and see employees' mood for themselves.

Now, the workforce is more separated than ever. So how can HR rebuild connections within its organisation, whether for hybrid office workers, or far-off franchisees?

The task that now faces HR is to rebuild its ability to 'take the pulse' of its organisation. It is a task that Samaritans executive director of people and culture, and two-time HR Most Influential practitioner, Tiger de Souza, is busy tackling.

In episode 6 of series 3, Tiger sat down with HR magazine editor Charissa King at Samaritans' HQ, to discuss how HR leaders can intentionally rebuild their connections with employees and C-suite staff alike.

No matter where you are in your career, it's important to get on with your boss.

But for an HR leader, it's vital – and not just for selfish reasons.

In episode 5 of series 3, we dive into why CPOs and HRDs are uniquely positioned to support their chief executive, and how a healthy partnership between the two delivers long-term success for both parties' objectives.

To explore how these two strategic leaders can work together to transform their organisations' fortunes, Kerry Smith, chief people officer of the British Heart Foundation – and five time HR Most Influential practitioner – joined HR magazine editor Charissa King in the studio. 

You've seen the headines: "DEI must die," "Progressive diktat," "A lightning rod for controversy."

It is no secret that diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives are taking flak in the court of public opinion.

But beyond the media spats, like Elon Musk's "DEI must die" quip, HR leaders across the western world are seeing real cuts to their DEI budgets.

In Episode 4 of series 3, Woosh Raza, director of people, culture and inclusion for the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) joins former HR magazine editor Jo Gallacher to explore why DEI is encountering scepticism, and what HR leaders can do to safeguard their own efforts. 

The UK is in the grip of a mental health crisis.

Some 20-30% of UK working adults showing signs of emotional exhaustion, and burnout has been stuck firmly on HR's agenda for the past four years.

And while HR is well adapted to support employees' mental wellbeing – does the responsibility really lie fully on HR?

In the latest episode of the HR Most Influential Podcast, Rachel Lewis, multi-award winning occupational psychologist and programme director at Birckbeck, University of London, sits down with former HR magazine editor Jo Gallacher to explore the suffocating world of stress.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to transform HR.

But just like any tool, it needs direction.

After all the hype of 2023, it's fair to say that we're all quite excited – or worried – about AI. But how many of us actually know how to start introducing it to our jobs in a useful way, beyond asking ChatGPT a few questions and getting bored?

In the third episode of HR Focus, we look at how HR leaders can introduce AI to their talent management processes – in a controlled and purposeful manner.

HR magazine Jo Gallacher sits down with experts Duncan Miller, global head of marketing at HR software company Cornerstone, and Natalie Sheils, chief people officer at AI-forward marketing company Mosaic Group, to find out the practical steps behind introducing AI to your talent management processes.

Many thanks to our sponsor Cornerstone, the cloud-based people development software provider.

Read Cornerstone's UK Talent Health Index ebook now here.

The Talent Health Index self-assessment is available here.

Change – the only constant of the past few years – is notoriously difficult to navigate.

And for every successful change initiative dreamed up by HR strategists, there are several more that never survived contact with reality.

In episode two of series three, Pam Parkes, executive director at Essex County Council for people, service transformation and technology services, shares from her long experience of leading change to show how even the best change strategies can fall apart.

Exploring the idea of organisational resistance, she sat down with HR magazine editor Jo Gallacher to discuss how HR can best see change through.

The skills needed by employees have evolved rapidly over the past few decades, with employees racing to keep up with time.

But with just 30% of CEOs confident that their business has the skills it needs, why do talent teams so often find themselves fighting a losing battle?

Jo sits down with experts Dominic Holmes (Cornerstone) and Suki Kaur (Avask Group) to find out exactly how to supercharge a skills strategy.

Read Cornerstone's UK Talent Health Index ebook now here.
The Talent Health Index self-assessment is available here.

 Does your phone ever show you adverts for things you hadn't even realised you wanted?

Hyper-personalisation may not be new to customer experience teams, but has only recently broken onto the people profession scene.

To explore the phenomenon, we kick off season three with Bertie Tonks, chief people officer of Collinson Group, and 2023's #1 HR Most Influential practitioner.

Tonks delves into his own efforts at introducing a hyper-personalised approach to the people profession, covering its application to wellbeing, benefits, engagement and much more...