HR leaders now lead AI transformation

In September 2026, three major companies—Atlassian, Moderna, and Lumen Technologies—have restructured their leadership to place HR heads in charge of AI transformation. Atlassian promoted Avani Prabhakar, who now oversees 3,500 employees across the company’s 14,000 workforce, as chief people and AI enablement officer. Moderna merged its HR and IT departments under Tracey Franklin, now chief people and digital technology officer. Lumen Technologies expanded its chief people officer role to include AI enablement. These changes reflect a growing recognition that AI’s challenge lies not in deployment, but in reimagining work and the workforce. Experts argue that traditional job structures, which have long defined organizational roles, are becoming obsolete due to AI’s uneven impact on tasks. The World Economic Forum predicts that 39% of current skills will be transformed or obsolete by 2030. As AI evolves rapidly, the skills required for jobs, their structure, and their value are all shifting. This has led companies to rethink the people function as a critical part of AI integration. Faisal Hoque emphasizes the need for leaders to align purpose, people, process, and technology to turn AI disruption into sustainable progress. The shift highlights the importance of reimagining roles and preparing for an uncertain future where AI reshapes work continuously.