Hello HR Pros,

In this edition we will discuss hard pivots and sharper strategies.

Boards are stepping into scenario-planning mode, top candidates are ghosting uninspired job posts, pay transparency laws are going live, and AI is moving from shiny object to strategic tool.

This edition breaks down what’s changing—and how to stay ahead—whether you’re fine-tuning your comp bands, rewriting a job post, or trying to pick the right AI model to get actual work done.

📰 Upcoming in This Issue

• 🧲 Why Top Talent Skips Your Job Posts—And How to Fix It

• 🎓 Your No-Nonsense Guide to Using AI Right Now

• 📊 HR Checklist: 6 Steps to Get Ahead of Massachusetts’ Pay Transparency Law

• 🧩 How the Board and C-Suite Can Actually Build Resilience

✨ Helpful HR Resource

• 🎁 Top HR tools & offers curated for The HR Takeaways readers

📣 Trending HR News

• Meta to cut 600 roles in Superintelligence Labs AI unit (Reuters)

• Feds launch site for employers to pay controversial H-1B fee, clarify exemptions (Yahoo)

• Amazon plans to replace half a million jobs with robots (NY Times)

• JPMorgan offers staff AI chatbot to help write performance reviews (Financial Times)

🧲 Why Top Talent Skips Your Job Posts—And How to Fix It

Job postings are broken—90% fail to convert because they speak to the wrong audience.

This article lays out exactly why top performers ignore your listings: they’re not interested in your perks or job duties—they want to know if they’ll be solving big problems, working with smart people, and getting the freedom to make an impact.

Dr. John Sullivan offers a field-tested strategy: restructure your job posts around “the work” itself, using phrases that signal excitement, autonomy, innovation, and challenge.

With the right language, your job ad becomes less of an HR formality—and more like a magnet for talent that would otherwise never apply.

Key Takeaways:

• 📝 Rewrite your intro with “dream job” language: Open with phrases like “do the best work of your life” to instantly hook top performers.

• 🎯 Add 3+ “trigger phrases” to each job post: Include specifics like “you’ll see your impact,” “maximum freedom,” or “game-changing tech.”

• 🧃 Remove filler that repels talent: Cut jargon and generic perks—ditch anything that doesn’t highlight the actual day-to-day excitement.

• 📊 Track what works and iterate: Test which phrases boost applications from high-quality candidates, and update your templates accordingly.

(From “Your Job Postings Are Boring Top Performers!” by Dr. John Sullivan, read the full 1,762-word article here)

🎓 Your No-Nonsense Guide to Using AI Right Now

I just finished reading a brutally honest—and incredibly helpful—guide on how to actually pick and use AI tools right now.

Spoiler: the free version might be fine... until you realize it’s using the “GPT-5 mini” instead of “GPT-5 Pro.”

This article isn’t hype. It’s a straight-shooting breakdown of how to get the most out of AI—without wasting money, time, or brain cells.

From understanding model tiers like “agentic” vs. “wizard” to which tool plays nicest with your calendar and inbox, this one’s a gem for any HR pro trying to get strategic about AI adoption.

Key Takeaways:

• 💰 Free isn’t always cheap: Free AI models often default to weaker versions unless you pay to manually select advanced tiers.

• 🧠 “Agentic” AIs get stuff done: These models take longer but can autonomously research, code, or write reports with better consistency.

• 🔍 Deep Research = real insights: Activating Deep Research mode results in impressively accurate reports lawyers and consultants actually trust.

• 📸 Claude sees your day: When linked to your calendar/email, Claude can give a surprisingly useful “briefing” of your day based on real data.

(From “An Opinionated Guide to Using AI Right Now” by One Useful Thing, read the full 2,119-word article here)

[Q&A] How can HR add 401(k) without adding work?

Q: Is setting a 401(a) up going to feel like legal homework?
A: Not even close—plans can be set up in just a few minutes, and much of the heavy lifting is automated.

Q: What about fees—will they eat up returns?
A: No. Human Interest makes it easy and affordable to help your employees save for retirement with very low investment fees well below industry averages.

Q: Can it stay up-to-date effortlessly?
A: Yes—payroll integration with over 500 providers ensures contribution changes sync automatically.

Let’s reinvent the 401(k) in your HR workflow and make retirement planning easy for your team!

📊 HR Checklist: 6 Steps to Get Ahead of Massachusetts’ Pay Transparency Law

Massachusetts’ pay transparency law goes live October 29, requiring all covered employers to post pay ranges in job listings—and it’s not just about applicants.

HR teams must also be ready to provide current employees with pay range info for their roles, promotions, and transfers. This means your internal data, salary structures, and communication plans need to be ready before the law kicks in.

From remote employee counting rules to EEO-1-style reporting, this law brings more than meets the eye—and the article breaks down exactly how to prepare now.

Key Takeaways:

• 📍 Count every MA-linked head: Include all employees (even remote) whose primary place of work is Massachusetts to determine if you're covered.

• 📝 Build credible salary bands: Use market data to set and post realistic, narrow ranges—vague “catch-all” figures could raise red flags.

• 🎓 Prep your people-facing teams: Train HR and managers on range disclosure, internal equity conversations, and anti-retaliation rules.

• 📤 Don’t skip the state filing: If you submit EEO-1 data to the EEOC, you must also send it to Massachusetts by February 1 annually.

(From “Six Compliance Steps Employers Should Do Before 29 October 2025 to Prepare for Massachusetts' Pay Transparency Law” by Cooley, read the full 1,284-word article here)

🧩 How the Board and C-Suite Can Actually Build Resilience

Geopolitical instability, tech disruption, economic swings—it’s a lot for any leadership team to juggle. This article takes a hard look at how boardrooms are adapting in real-time, shifting their focus from reacting to risks toward building long-term, strategic resilience.

Short-term concerns like cyber threats and volatility dominate for now, but by 2026, boards expect tech and talent to be their biggest levers for growth.

The most effective leaders are changing how they work—leaning into tighter collaboration, regular scenario planning, and more honest conversations between CEOs and board chairs.

Key Takeaways:

• 🌐 Resilience ≠ Survival: Resilient companies don’t just endure—they innovate through uncertainty and keep future growth front and center.

• 🛠 Boards need upgrades too: 46% of C-suite leaders say boards lack the right mix of skills to support modern strategic demands.

• 📞 Micro-meetings drive macro-results: Some boards now hold short, frequent check-ins to stay aligned and make faster decisions.

• 🔑 Trust powers transparency: Strong CEO–board chair relationships were cited as the single most critical factor in organizational resilience.

(From “How Board and C-Suite Collaboration Can Build Organizational Resilience” by Harvard, read the full 2,865-word article here)

The bottomline

Resilient organizations aren’t just built on process—they’re built on people who thrive in uncertainty.

The best HR leaders are helping boards think long-term, candidates think "impact," and teams think beyond compliance.

This week’s takeaways offer a blueprint for exactly that.