The HR Research Institute, powered by HR.com, has announced the formation of its 2026 Employee Productivity and Engagement Advisory Board, bringing together senior HR leaders, workforce strategy experts, and engagement specialists. The board will help shape upcoming research and a virtual event focused on one of the most critical challenges facing organizations today: optimizing productivity and engagement in a rapidly evolving workplace.
As organizations adapt to hybrid and remote work and the rise of generative AI, understanding how to improve productivity and engagement has become more important than ever. The Advisory Board will guide a 2026 research initiative and virtual event centered on turning insights into practical strategies HR leaders can use in today’s evolving workplace. The board will consider how organizations define and measure engagement, which HR and management practices have the greatest impact, and how productivity and performance are viewed across different contexts. It will also examine how engagement, productivity, performance, and retention are connected to drive better business outcomes. Findings from this work will inform both the research survey and a virtual event scheduled for August 19, 2026, which will focus on actionable strategies for HR leaders.
The newly formed 2026 Employee Productivity and Engagement Advisory Board features a distinguished group of experts, including Deepti Chaudhary, Senior HRIS Manager at Dover Corporation; Madeline Des Jardins, Global Senior Director of Internal Communications & Employee Engagement at WalkMe; Janiece Ferrell, Global Program Manager for Talent Supply Chain, Workforce Planning, Effectiveness and Efficiencies at Dell Technologies; Bridgett Hart, Vice President of Employee Experience at Ibex; Shipra Kamra, Vice President of People Team (Head of HR - Global) at Responsive; Susana Kelly, Employee Experience & Engagement Analyst at Numeracle; Sandra Loughlin, Chief Learning Scientist at EPAM Systems Inc.; Cassandra Lowery, Global Human Resources Manager at Liminal; Lauren Mutz, Director of Employee Experience & Engagement at Daiichi Sankyo Inc.; Jason Richmond, Chief Culture Officer at Ideal Outcomes, Inc.; Kristen Ruttgaizer, Chief People Officer (on sabbatical); and Siri Svay, Program Manager for Culture and Engagement at IAT Insurance Group.
“We are thrilled to bring together such an outstanding group of experts to guide this important work,” said Debbie McGrath, CEO of HR.com. “Their real-world experience will help HR leaders better connect productivity and engagement in a time of rapid change, and we look forward to the impact this collaboration will bring to the HR community.”
The HR Research Institute releases annual “State of the Industry” reports in a variety of HR topic areas, including last year’s research report, HR.com's State of Employee Productivity and Engagement 2025, covering the same topic. This and other free research reports and infographics can be downloaded at hr.com/researchinstitute.
For HR leaders, this announcement underscores the growing urgency to address productivity and engagement in the face of hybrid work and AI disruption. The insights generated by the advisory board and subsequent research will likely provide benchmarks and best practices that organizations can adopt to enhance workforce performance and retention. The virtual event on August 19, 2026, will be a key platform for disseminating these findings, offering practical strategies that can be implemented immediately.
