12 of the best HR podcasts for leaders and professionals in 2023

Over the last decade, podcasts have boomed in popularity. In the UK there are 21.2 million podcast listeners and in a 2021 survey 41% of respondents said they had listened to a podcast in the previous month. Equally as popular across the pond, 41% of the US population listened to podcasts every month in 2021, up 62% from 2018. Although many listen to podcasts for entertainment, those with a focus on thought-leadership in the workplace have also greatly increased in number and popularity.

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Podcasts are a great resource for all professionals in HR, especially managers and directors. They offer an easy way to keep up-to-date with the latest developments in HR and delve deeper into particular areas such as employee engagement, retention, inclusion and diversity, HR technology and recruitment. But where do you start?

We’ve compiled a list of 12 podcasts that we think are interesting and easily digestible, covering a range of topics.

12 of the best HR Podcasts in 2023:

The Josh Bersin Company
Humans of HR (LeapGen)
Digital HR Leaders
Happiness at Work (Management 3.0)
HR on the Offensive (LACE Partners)
CIPD Podcast
Workology
HRUnconfidential
Humanising the Future of Work (Deloitte)
Why Care? (Nadia Nagamootoo)
The Great Retention
The Employee Experience Podcast (Workvivo)

The Josh Bersin Company

Launched: 2020

Episodes to date: 63

Average episode length: 20 minutes

Topics: Talent, learning, HR technology

Already well-known as an industry analyst and thought leader in the HR world, Bersin’s podcast (technically published by the company he founded in 2020) is packed full of critical insights on the global workforce. Covering a range of topics in the podcast’s 63 episode history, this is essential listening for any leader in HR. As well as the expected areas within HR, timely trends and developments are also featured to help you keep abreast of how real-time events are shaping the world of work going forward.

Our favorite episodes:

What HR leaders and teams need to know about inflation, recession, the economy and the workforce (July 2022)
HR Technology Disrupted: Employee Experience has become the new core (March 2022)
Lessons from the pandemic: What have we learned about change? (January 2022)

Humans of HR

Launched: 2019

Episodes to date: 107

Average episode length: 40 minutes

Topics: HR technology, talent management, diversity and inclusion

These 40-minute episodes created by a group of HR consultants and strategy advisors explore the future of work, with the mantra of keeping conversations “real, raw and refreshing”. The podcast places special emphasis on the human side of HR whilst addressing modern solutions like AI, employee experience and corporate social responsibility.

Although Humans of HR was only launched in 2019, it is more or less a reimagination of two of the creators’ previous podcast - Talking People and Tech - which launched in 2016. So there’s over 100 episodes to get stuck into.

Our favorite episodes:

Discussing AI and much more with Paradox’s Kartik Krishnamurthy (October 2021)
Why Employee Experience matters more than ever (October 2021)
Is “Generation Covid” set to be the best workforce ever? (July 2021)

Digital HR Leaders

Launched: 2019

Episodes to date: 120

Average episode length: 45 minutes

Topics: Data, HR digital transformation, HR technology

In this podcast people analytics expert David Green talks to senior leaders pushing a data-driven and digital HR agenda. Guests include RJ Milnor (Head of People, Uber), Lisa Chang (Senior Vice President and Chief People Officer, Coca-Cola Company) and Jason Averbook (CEO and Co-Founder, Leapgen).

Created from the clear need for a more digital and data driven approach to human resources, this series tackles questions plaguing HR leaders today, such as: How can HR prepare for the future? How can senior players drive transformation in their organizations?

Our favorite episodes:

How to help your teams develop a digital mindset - with Paul Leonardi (July 2022)
What will the future of HR look like in 2030? With Isabelle Chappuis and Gabriele Rizzo (April 2022)
How to build great employee experience - with Jason Averbook (March 2022)

Happiness at Work

Launched: 2016

Episodes to date: 285

Average episode length: 30 minutes

Topics: Culture, employee wellness, mental health

Although not explicitly targeted at HR leaders, professionals can learn a tremendous amount from this long-running podcast about fostering happiness in the workplace. Each episode of Happiness at Work consists of an interview with a successful leader, author or entrepreneur to explore how they embody, embrace and value happiness.

This podcast is even more pertinent in the wake of the pandemic, with topics such as remote workforces, time management and employee burnout taking center stage in more recent episodes.

Our favorite episodes:

The employee journey - and why it’s important (July 2022)
Why leaders need to check their egos at the door (January 2022)
Why companies need to focus more on well-being (July 2021)

HR on the Offensive

Launched: 2020

Episodes to date: 121

Average episode length: 25 minutes

Topics: Remote working, talent, culture

Originally created off the back of LACE Partner’s first whitepaper, HR on the Offensive features senior leaders in human resources talking about their own experiences within a variety of areas.

LACE Partners is an HR Consultancy based in London - they help organizations with HR Tech, transformation, change and adoption challenges. In the below webinar, LACE Partners and Applaud talk about lessons HR can learn from consumer grade technology.

Our favorite episodes:

Who is responsible for good employee experience? (July 2022)
What does the future hold for the payroll function? (March 2022)
Five workplace trends of 2022 (March 2022)

CIPD Podcast

Launched: Pre-2011

Episodes to date: 186

Average episode length: 30 minutes

Topics: Leadership, culture, trends

CIPD’s monthly podcast is a must-listen for those in human resources, especially if you are based in the UK. Each episode sees a selection of special guests explore a topic - and with over 180 episodes dating back nearly 15 years there’s a lot to choose from.

CIPD started as the Welfare Workers’ Association in 1913 and has since evolved into a professional body for human resources and people development.

Our favorite episodes:

What value does HR bring to today’s organizations? (July 2022)
Adopting a growth mindset: Soundbite or science? (February 2022)
Embracing and leading organizational change (July 2021)

Workology

Launched: 2014

Episodes to date: 363

Average episode length: 25 minutes

Topics: Trends, insights, HR technology

This long-standing podcast is hosted by Jessica Miller-Merrell, who invites weekly guests to discuss the latest on the HR landscape. Previously featured guests include HR professionals from companies like Addias, Accenture, Microsoft, GAP and AT&T.

Looking for lots of podcasts on a particular area? Check out the Future of Work, CHRO or HR Tech Insights series.

Our favorite episodes:

Being a disruptor in HR (August 2022)
Creating a truly inclusive workplace (May 2022)
How tech adoption drives employee experience (November 2018)

HR unCONFIDENTIAL

Launched: 2018

Episodes to date: 68

Average episode length: 50 minutes

Topics: Anecdotes, culture, people management

This no-nonsense and jargon-free podcast is hosted by Gina Flaig and Turiya Gray - who have a combined 30+ years of HR experience. Comprised of true stories from HR on various topics, this series is both hilarious and relatable for most professionals managing the workforce.

Helpfully, the creators have organized the episodes into categories including leadership, workplace shenanigans and navigating the workplace. Although the podcast is targeted at non-HR listeners too, there is also a series of episodes for HR only.

Our favorite episodes:

Working parents (March 2022)
Workspace 2.0 (November 2021)
Employee Experience (January 2020)

Humanizing the Future of Work

Launched: 2019

Episodes to date: 20

Average episode length: 30 minutes

Topics: HR Technology, employee experience, digital transformation

Launched by Deloitte in 2019, Humanizing the Future of Work sees host Daniel Hind sit down with a range of experts across the organization to explore how companies can transform whilst keeping human experience as a focal point.

Looking to keep updated with the latest in HR? Try the Human Capital Trends series.

Our favorite episodes:

Human powered shared services (September 2021)
HR in disruption (September 2021)
Being human first - gearing up to deliver experience (February 2020)

Why Care?

Launched: 2020

Episodes to date: 23

Average episode length: 45 minutes

Topics: Diversity and inclusion, culture, mental health

Hosted by Nadia Nagamootoo, this podcast provides actionable insights to support HR leaders on their organization’s journey towards inclusion. She covers topics from visible fathering to racial inequality with the help of expert guests in each episode.

This podcast is a must-listen for those in HR (and all business leaders) who want to keep abreast of the latest thinking in inclusion and diversity.

Our favorite episodes:

Count, share, change with Nina Goswami, Creative Diversity Lead, BBC (July 2022)
Leading outside the cookie cutter with Alvin Nagamootoo, Head of Product, Shell Energy (May 2022)
Everyday experiences with Emma Codd, Global Inclusion Leader, Deloitte (December 2021)

The Great Retention

Launched: 2022

Episodes to date: 12

Average episode length: 25 minutes

Topics: Talent management, culture, leadership

Significant numbers of employees are leaving their roles due to burnout and disengagement - the Great Resignation. This fairly new podcast from the co-founders of Cooleaf explores advice from business leaders who are making strides towards improving the employee experience for their organizations’ workforce.

With new episodes twice a month - this is a great podcast to support HR leaders looking to transform their company culture and retain talent.

Our favorite episodes:

Building a winning culture in a distributed workforce (August 2022)
Helping team members combine unique passion with a unified mission (May 2022)
Employees choose employers because… (March 2022)

The Employee Experience Podcast

Launched: 2022

Episodes to date: 14

Average episode length: 25 minutes

Topics: Employee experience, HR technology, leadership

Each episode of The Employee Experience Podcast features a special guest pushing the envelope when it comes to EX. Guests include authors, consultants, business leaders and entrepreneurs who give advice on delivering EX that helps realize the potential of your workforce.

Our favorite episodes: