The HR Research Institute, powered by HR.com, has announced the formation of its 2026 Employee Productivity and Engagement Advisory Board. This board brings together senior HR leaders, workforce strategy experts, and engagement specialists to guide upcoming research and a virtual event focused on one of the most critical challenges facing organizations today: improving productivity and engagement in a rapidly evolving workplace.
As organizations adapt to hybrid and remote work models and the rise of generative AI, understanding how to enhance productivity and engagement has become more important than ever. The Advisory Board will help shape a 2026 research initiative and virtual event aimed at turning insights into practical strategies that HR leaders can use in today's changing workplace.
The Board will consider how organizations define and measure engagement, and which HR and management practices have the greatest impact. It will also examine how productivity and performance are viewed across different contexts, and how engagement, productivity, performance, and retention are interconnected to drive better business outcomes. Findings from this work will inform both the research survey and a virtual event focused on actionable strategies for HR leaders.
The newly formed 2026 Employee Productivity and Engagement Advisory Board features distinguished experts including Deepti Chaudhary (Dover Corporation), Madeline Des Jardins (WalkMe), Janiece Ferrell (Dell Technologies), Bridgett Hart (Ibex), Shipra Kamra (Responsive), Susana Kelly (Numeracle), Sandra Loughlin (EPAM Systems Inc.), Cassandra Lowery (Liminal), Lauren Mutz (Daiichi Sankyo Inc.), Jason Richmond (Ideal Outcomes, Inc.), Kristen Ruttgaizer (on sabbatical), and Siri Svay (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.
The HR Research Institute, powered by HR.com, identifies key trends and best practices to help more than 2 million HR professionals and their organizations make strategic decisions with informed and insightful research findings. The institute has published hundreds of high-quality reports across a wide array of HR topics.
