The new power couple in the C-Suite: why HR and Digital must lead together

Digital transformation is not just about systems - and people strategy is not just about headcount. The two have become inextricably linked. 

For CEOs, this signals a profound shift. The C-Suite’s new “power couple” is HR and Digital.

We caught up with Caroline Basyn, CDIO and Daniela Seabrook, CHRO (both at the Adecco Group), to explore the changing dynamic. As Caroline summarised: “The collaboration between HR and Tech is more important than ever. It’s not about who is more important, it’s about how the 
combination of the two can make a difference.”

You can listen in to the full conversation in our C-Suite Table Talk.

Tune in to the full conversation

Technology and talent are no longer separate strategies

Talking in the Table Talk podcast, Daniela set the scene: “Technology is not only an enabler anymore… with integration, it can create something bigger and greater of what talent can also be.” 

That integration is where competitive advantage lives. Companies that treat digital adoption and workforce planning as parallel tracks will always lag those that design them together. The questions are not just: What technology should we deploy?  Or what skills to do we need?

The real question is: How do people and technology create value together?

What integration looks like in practice

Daniela and Caroline model what this partnership should look like:

• Regular, informal alignment: they speak daily - text, calls, projects - because their work is naturally intertwined.
• Joint ownership of projects: every major digital initiative includes a workforce enablement plan. Every talent initiative considers digital adoption.
• One voice to employees: they align decisions in advance, then back each other publicly to avoid “mixed messaging” that confuses their workforce.

This level of integration transforms technology projects into organisational change programs.

Growth mindset as the foundation

What’s clear, is that the joint HR–Digital agenda must be framed in growth terms: “The growth mindset will be the most fundamental as we want to drive change,” said Caroline.

More than a slogan, a commitment to growth mindset at the C-Suite level reframes AI and automation not as cost-saving threats, but as opportunity multipliers. That reframing matters because it drives alignment.

Employees hear “growth” instead of “replacement,” investors hear “scale” instead of “savings” and customers see innovation, not disruption fatigue.

Only a unified CHRO/CDIO front can deliver that narrative consistently.

Why CEOs should care

For CEOs, the question is not whether you have a CHRO and a CDIO. The question is whether they are working as in sync or operating in silos.

Caroline captured the stakes best: “If we understand each other better, then we’ll move together towards the growth the company is looking for.”

The CEO’s role: elevate the partnership

This partnership does not emerge by accident. CEOs must elevate both roles and set the expectation that they co-lead. Practical moves include:

• Structuring joint OKRs between HR and Digital.
• Making leadership development part of every tech rollout.
• Ensuring both leaders sit at the table for strategic planning.

The payoff is significant: an organisation that can scale technology while bringing its workforce along for the journey. 

The future is collaborative

The age of AI is not an IT story or an HR story. It’s both - and the companies that thrive will be those whose CHROs and CDIOs act less like parallel executives and more like partners.

For the modern CEO, the takeaway is clear: in your C-Suite, make sure the new power couple has the platform - and the mandate - to lead together.

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