Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP

President & CEO @SHRM | Author, RESET (WSJ bestseller) | "Ask Johnny" columnist @USAToday | Building better workplaces for a better world.

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

Your best employee decided to quit months ago. You're just finding out now.

SHRM research points to 5 reasons why. Watch the full video.

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

Culture is not a perk. It is what happens when nobody is watching and something goes wrong.

Most leaders do not actually know what theirs is.

Watch the full video.

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

Future-ready is not a title. It's a behavior.

Most people are waiting to be told what to learn, when to learn it, and how it fits their role.

That window has already closed.

The people pulling ahead right now have one thing in common: They do not wait.

They learn before they are asked. They admit what they don't know without hesitation. They share what they are figuring out while they are still figuring it out.

Comfort becomes a constraint faster than most people realize.

The habits that keep you relevant are built before you need them. Not after.
#Leadership #FutureOfWork #SHRM

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

I called an Uber home from Baltimore, and by the end of the ride, I was the one driving it.

True story.

My driver, an older woman, had lost her job. She'd applied 100 times over 2 years and heard nothing back.
Then her phone rang.

It was a live job interview, playing through the car speakers, while we were on the highway.

Then she asked me a question I'll never forget.

What happened in that car is happening in workforces across the country. Workers 50 and older now make up 34% of the U.S. workforce, projected to hit 40% in the coming years (Pew Research).

The hiring game has changed. Most older workers haven't been trained for it.

You'll want to hear how this one ended.

Watch the full story 📷

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

Leadership requires discipline long before results are visible.

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

When you lead with kindness, you build stronger, more committed teams.

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

A resignation email lands in your inbox today.

Did you see it coming?

Trust does not announce itself when it breaks. It shows up in your data.

Four signals I watch for:

1️⃣ Turnover is rising.
2️⃣ Productivity is slipping.
3️⃣ Engagement has drifted.
4️⃣ Your managers are leaving.

SHRM's 2026 State of the Workplace research: 51% of workers who feel their needs are not being met say they will leave within the year.

Trust is a leadership input. You invest in it, or you watch it erode.

Watch the full breakdown 👇
#Leadership #SHRM #FutureOfWork

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

Where attention goes, teams follow. Leadership focus often determines whether people see obstacles or opportunities.

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

Workplace toxicity isn't coming from where most leaders look.

Not the boss, or the policy.

It's the colleague two desks over.

212M acts of incivility daily. $2.3B gone every day.

The fix isn't a new policy. It's the oldest rule we know:

Treat people the way you want to be treated.

#Civility #Leadership

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

The way we identify, promote, and develop talent? It's been disrupted.
At #SHRMTalent26, my friend @Pulsipher_WGU made a point I want all leaders to hear: most schools build talent and hope employers want it. WGU flipped the model; they went to employers first.
That's the foundation of our new @SHRM x #WGU Education-to-Employment partnership.
A degree tells you someone completed a program, and skills validation tells you they're ready on day one.
#SkillsBasedHiring

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

As a leader, accountability is the price of credibility. Pay it willingly.

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

At The AI+HI Project event a couple of weeks ago, every leader in the room had the same question: Who owns the AI transition?

Honest answer: You do.
AI won't take your job. Someone proficient in #AI will.

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

You don't build a global HR community with a strategy deck.

You build it with people who show up because they believe in the work.

This week is Volunteer Appreciation Week, and I wanted to take a moment to speak directly to the @SHRM Volunteer Leaders who keep our network moving forward.

You organize the State Councils and Chapters, you mentor the next generation, and you carry our work into rooms and communities we couldn't reach without you.

Who's a volunteer leader who made a difference for you?

#SHRM #VolunteerAppreciationWeek #Leadership

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

You may not have a talent shortage. You may have a pipeline problem.

Employers compete for the same shrinking pool of candidates. Unfilled roles. Pipelines running dry.

Yet many people with criminal records remain largely untapped.

Second-chance hires bring loyalty, commitment, and hunger. They show up in retention, productivity, and team stability.

#SecondChanceHiringMonth

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

Grateful for time with the @LA_SHRM team and three leaders from the @USEEOC at yesterday's 2026 State Conference: Michael Kirkland, Rayford Irvin, and Jeremy Crosbie. This is what it looks like when HR shows up for HR.
#LASHRM26 #SHRM #HR

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

Honored to sit down for a fireside chat at the 2026 @LA_SHRM State Conference this morning. 400 HR leaders. Real questions on AI, civility, and skills-based hiring.

Thank you, Lafayette.

#LASHRM26 #SHRM #HR

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

Watch the latest on The AI + HI Project by @shrm here: https://t.co/wRXqGQmQLv
Follow for more on leadership, hiring, and the future of work.

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

April 2023. ChatGPT had been out for a few months.
I walked into a room full of academics, CEOs, and data scientists.
The mood was fear. 🧵

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

Technology has always changed the nature of work.
The leaders who handle it well focus on one thing:
Making sure their people are equipped for what's next.

[Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP @JohnnyCTaylorJr]

The mood in the room shifted.
Most people had never been given a way to think about AI that didn't start with loss.