February is coming fast.And with it, the real start of 2026 — budgets locked, goals set, teams mobilized.But there’s one conversation most executives still haven’t had with HR — the one that will determine whether yourorganization spends the year executing brilliantly or firefighting desperately.It’s not about headcount requests or compensation benchmarks.
It’s about redesign readiness.
The 62% Wake-Up Call
BLS task analysis shows 62% of U.S. jobs will require significant redesign by 2032. That redesign isn’t evenly distributedover seven years. It accelerates sharply in 2026 as AI tools move from pilot to enterprise-wide and economic volatility forces faster role adjustments.
Yet most executive teams treat workforce planning as an annual HR exercise — not a strategic imperative tied to revenue,innovation, and risk.The Conversation You Need to HaveSchedule it this week. 60 minutes. You, your CHRO (or head of talent), and one finance leader.
Ask these five questions and seek real answers, not PowerPoint platitudes.
- Which of our top 20 roles have >50% routine tasks at risk of automation in the next 24 months? (Use the free O*NET database to find out.)
- What percentage of our workforce has the non -automatable skills we’ll need most in 2032 such as complex problem-solving, resilience, learning agility?
- If unemployment rises to 4.7% mid-year (consensus forecast), how quickly can we hire for redesigned roles?
- If AI adoption accelerates and a competitor cuts 20% headcount, what’s our response plan?
- What one workforce experiment should we launch in the first three months of the year to test redesign at scale?
Why This Conversation Can’t Wait Until February
- Budgets are still fluid in January. You can reallocate training dollars before they’re locked.
- Competitors are having this conversation now, the ones who move first will poach your best people.
- Your people are watching and they know change is coming. Silence from leaders breeds disengagement.
The Organizations Already Winning
The leaders who had this conversation in 2025 are entering 2026 with:
- Redesigned roles already in mind
- Upskilling budgets protected
- Internal mobility programs planned or activated
The ones who waited or ignoring the shift? They’re already behind.
Your Move This Week
Start thinking about “2026 Workforce Redesign Strategy right now. The payoff lasts the decade.
