HR Search Insights: Interview with Helen Kiely

Introducing Helen Kiely

Helen Kiely is an experienced HR leader with a track record in advancing workplace culture, well-being, and employee engagement. Having worked across multiple sectors and companies, including Vodafone Ireland and Tirlán, Helen has developed human-centric strategies that embed purpose and values into daily work life. Using data-driven insights and inclusive practices, she strengthens connection and performance, while bringing a deep understanding of how evolving work models and employee needs are reshaping the workplace and the requirements of impactful leaders.

The Importance of HR Strategy Heading into 2026

HR Search: Helen, how has the role of HR strategy evolved in your experience?

Helen Kiely: Having worked in HR for more than 30 years, I’ve seen the workplace undergo a profound transformation from hierarchical, transaction-heavy, and compliance-driven environments to fast-paced, high-tech, and human-centric cultures. Alongside this transformation, employees’ priorities have shifted from job security and tenure to flexibility, wellbeing, transparency, and values alignment.

The COVID era accelerated some of these changes, creating a period of unprecedented disruption. However, by 2025, disruption has become the norm. Heading into 2026, businesses operate in a persistent state of flux, with global political and economic uncertainty and changing employee expectations reshaping the way we do business.

This landscape makes HR’s role as a strategic partner more critical than ever. HR must evolve from transactional delivery to strategic leadership,shaping culture, building capability, and supporting change to deliver better business outcomes.

HR’s Role in the Future Workplace

HR Search: What should organisations be focusing on for the future workplace?

Helen Kiely: Agile operating models are replacing rigid hierarchies. To keep pace with global supply chains, technology, and market changes, HR needs to enable faster decision-making, flatter structures, and the flexibility to adapt. Skills-based talent strategies will overtake static job descriptions, and organisations will focus on capability deployment rather than just individual roles.

AI is also accelerating change. It allows HR to become more efficient, automating administration, surfacing workplace insights, and personalising the employee experience. This gives HR the opportunity to focus on strategic impact. But it also brings a responsibility: guiding organisations and their culture to embrace new technologies in a way that enhances human-technology collaboration.

Finally, changing workplace expectations make the human experience a competitive advantage. Younger generations value purpose and experience over job security and pay checks. HR must develop leaders who navigate uncertainty with emotional intelligence and lead change with humanity at the core. The employee experience must reflect care, connection, and meaning to positively engage these generations.

Advice to the C-Suite

HR Search: What advice would you give to the C-Suite as we head into 2026?

Helen Kiely: My advice is to evolve your expectations of HR. Move beyond viewing it as an overseer of HR policy and practices. Instead, empower HR to lead cultural transformation for better business outcomes through redesigned work, adoption of AI and development of a more human-centric employee experience.

Greater agility in deploying people resources will be critical. AI integration will transform how we work, and younger generations will continue to influence the employee experience. Change is inevitable, but the organisations that succeed in 2026 will balance digital transformation with human connection where HR strategy is not just about doing things better but about helping people be better

Thank You

We’d like to extend our thanks to Helen Kiely for sharing her invaluable insights. Her perspective reinforces what we see across the HR landscape: the organisations most likely to succeed in 2026 will be those that balance digital transformation with human connection, where technology enhances, rather than replaces, the human experience, and HR strategy empowers people to perform, grow and thrive.