Top 10: HR Leaders Transforming Culture

The HR function has undergone significant transformation in recent years. No longer a primarily administrative function, HR leadership is playing a key role in company culture, digital transformation and the employee experience.

As businesses navigate rapid change, many are looking to develop a people strategy that can evolve alongside the changing needs of their workforces. 

Here, we look at 10 of the most influential HR leaders transforming culture – from leading initiatives to upskill workers in AI to developing new, people-centric ways of working. 

10. Jacqui Canney

Company: ServiceNow

Revenue: US$13.96bn

Location: California, US

As Chief People and AI Enablement Officer for ServiceNow, Jacqui Canney leads a global talent strategy for the company’s rapidly evolving workforce.

Her role focuses on improving the employee experience at ServiceNow, while also preparing staff for the changing workplace through continuous and personalised learning to build AI skills. 

She joined ServiceNow as Chief People Officer in 2021, before her role was updated to include AI Enablement in January 2025. Prior to that, she held the Chief People Officer role at Walmart and held various senior HR roles at Accenture – where she worked for 25 years, playing a pivotal role in the company’s growth. 

9. Elisabetta Caldera

Company: Chanel

Revenue: US$18.7bn

Location: London, UK

Elisabetta Caldera joined Chanel in 2025 as the company’s Global Chief People and Organisation Officer under the leadership of CEO Leena Nair, who previously held the CHRO role at Unilever. 

Under this leadership, the company is looking to build a more people-centric and inclusive model, rather than a top-down approach – with a focus on employee empowerment and mentoring.

Before joining Chanel, Elisabetta held the Global CHRO role at Aegon, and spent 17 years at Vodafone, leaving the company as a Regional Human Resources Director.

8. Anna Lundström

Company: Spotify

Revenue: US$20.22bn

Location: Stockholm, Sweden

Spotify’s CHRO Anna Lundström leads the company’s ‘bandmate’ style culture, where flexibility and trust leave bandmates feeling empowered to be creative and drive impact. 

As the company grows, Anna and the wider people team have continued to build a culture of creativity and innovation while also prioritizing mission and business goals. The team believes the two go hand in hand. 

This includes establishing new values and refreshed benefits, a company-wide AI Momentum Program, Spotify’s well-known Work From Anywhere program, Core Week, as well as supporting a variety of initiatives across Social Impact and nurturing talent at Spotify. 

7. Heidi Sichien

Company: Philips

Revenue: US$21.15bn

Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands

Heidi Sichien first joined Philips in 2006 as the HR Director for its Phillips Lighting Lamps and LED business function. Since then, she has held a variety of HR roles across the company, before becoming CPO in 2023. 

In this time, the company says she has led transformation initiatives, built talent pipelines and successfully led the acquisition and integration of several companies to support business growth. 

As the company has grown and changed over 20 years, she has played a key role in strengthening its workforce and building a culture that encourages collaboration and inclusivity. 

6. Kelly Mahon Tullier

Company: Visa

Revenue: US$40bn

Location: California, US

As Visa’s Chief People and Corporate Affairs Officer, Kelly Mahon Tullier leads the company’s people, communications, government engagement, inclusive impact and sustainability, transformation and corporate services functions. 

This involves fostering a company culture that, according to Visa, prioritises impact, growth and inclusivity to help it attract and retain top talent while advancing its advocacy and external reputational initiatives.

Before joining Visa, Kelly spent close to 20 years at PepsiCo, holding roles such as Senior Vice President, Deputy General Counsel and Senior Vice President and General Council for its Asia, Middle East and Africa Division. 

5. Nathalie Scardino

Company: Salesforce

Revenue: US$41.5bn

Location: California, US

Nathalie Scardino holds the role of President and Chief People Officer at Salesforce, where she is responsible for cultivating the company’s values-led culture through AI implementation, employee engagement initiatives and hiring and workforce planning. 

Having spent more than a decade at Salesforce, Nathalie is accelerating the adoption of AI agents in the workplace to lead what the company describes as the “digital labour revolution.”

By leading reskilling programmes to help employees learn critical skills, she is striving to make Salesforce a great place to work for employees who are looking to grow their careers. 

4. Payal Sahni

Company: Pfizer

Revenue: US$62.6bn

Location: New York, US

As Chief People Experience Officer of Pfizer, Payal Sahni is responsible for the overall college experience for more than 80,000 global employees. 

Under her leadership, the company’s people strategy is focused on fostering an environment where employees can thrive, grow and contribute to the company’s core purpose of ‘Breakthroughs that Change Patients’ Lives’. 

She first joined Pfizer in 1997 as Senior Vice President of Human Resources, progressing to CHRO in 2020 and Chief People Experience Officer in 2022. During that time, Pfizer says she has “spearheaded numerous transformations,” as the company underwent significant change in its business structure and cultural strategy. 

3. Sara Wechter

Company: Citi

Revenue: US$85.2bn

Location: New York, US

Sara Wechter leads the HR function at Citi as its CHRO – a role she first took on in July 2018. 

In her role, she is responsible for the company’s overall talent strategy and key functions – such as recruiting, learning and development, talent management, total rewards and employee relations. 

She has led several key change initiatives during her tenure, including the company’s early commitment to pay transparency and its transition to a hybrid work model for more than 200,000 employees. 

Before taking on the CHRO role, she held the role of Citi’s Head of Talent and Diversity, and Chief of Staff for Mike Corbat, the company’s former CEO.

2. Sonia Coleman

Company: The Walt Disney Company

Revenue: US$95.72bn

Location: California, US

Sonia Coleman first joined The Walt Disney Company in 2008 as Vice President of Human Resources, and has since progressed to Senior Executive Vice President and CPO. 

In her role, she leads the company’s global people and culture strategy, which Disney says is designed to inspire optimism and drive innovation “for all employees, at all levels.”

To achieve this, it says it pays “mindful” attention and intention to creating a supportive workplace, with continuous adaptations made to support the evolving needs of its workforce. Sonia leads these changes through the company’s talent, compensation, inclusion, organisational effectiveness and employee services functions. 

1. Darcie Henry

Company: AT&T

Revenue: US$125.6bn

Location: Texas, US

As AT&T’s CHRO, Darcie Henry is building a high-performance, market-based culture for its more than 135,000 employees. In her role, she oversees talent, culture, leadership development and employee experience, all to ensure that AT&T remains a top destination for talent. 

Prior to AT&T, Darcie spent more than 20 years at Amazon, in roles such as Vice President of HR at Amazon Worldwide, VP of HR at Amazon Devices and Director of EU HR, Corporate. 

During her time at Amazon, she played a significant role in launching innovative go-to-market distribution initiatives and supported key business units. She also expanded Amazon’s human resources function across Europe and Asia.