As South African organisations enter the year-end planning cycle, artificial intelligence (AI) has shifted from prediction to practice, changing how employers design work, develop skills and reward performance.

For 2026, the key question is no longer whether to use AI, but how to adapt workforce strategies and leadership models to keep people and technology moving in step. These questions were at the centre of Old Mutual’s Thought Leadership Forum on the future of work, which explored how South African businesses can align digital progress with human capability.

Valter Adão, Chief Executive of Cadena Growth Partners, cautioned against the idea that AI will simply replace people. “AI is a general-purpose technology. Like electricity, it changes how we live and work across every sector. But its real impact isn’t elimination, its redefinition,” he said. His remarks set the tone for a practical discussion with senior executives on how South African organisations must adapt workforce strategies to keep pace.

There was clear consensus among the panellists: the challenge facing employers today is not whether to embrace change, but how to do so effectively. More than half of today’s roles will require reconfiguration rather than replacement, and HR professionals are central to leading this transition.

Personalisation, not paternalism

An integrated and customisable employee value proposition has become an essential part of an effective workplace strategy. “For example, generic approaches to employee benefits are no longer sufficient to attract, engage, or retain talent,” remarked Lindiwe Sebesho, Managing Director at Remchannel. “Flexibility is increasingly central to the employee experience, but it must be underpinned by a structured and responsible design framework that balances employees’ short-term needs with long-term financial wellbeing for both employees and employers. Without that balance, flexibility becomes unsustainable.

The 2025 Employee Benefits Trends Survey highlights stark generational differences in what employees’ value most: 69% of Gen Z employees rate flexibility in pay structure as “extremely valuable”, compared with just 41% of Baby Boomers. Yet despite these shifts, the fundamentals remain the same. Company retirement funds, medical benefits and life cover continue to rank as the top three most valued benefits across all employee groups.

Echoing Sebesho, Absa’s Managing Executive for Talent Management and Transitions, KG Bako, emphasised that the role of HR is to balance personalisation with protection. “You cannot design for the ‘average’ employee anymore. You have to understand where people are in their lives, what they value, and give them options that speak to that, without compromising long-term financial wellbeing.”

HR’s expanding mandate

If leaders set the tone for transformation, it is HR’s mandate to translate that vision into workforce strategy, skills development and systemic change.

AI is raising the bar for skills, particularly in digital fluency and adaptive learning. Colin Smith, Executive for Human Resources at Northam Platinum, said the company’s approach in a heavily mechanised environment is to “put people first” and prioritise training before rolling out technology.

“There’s a wave of AI coming, but we believe we need to take people first on this journey. The technology comes after people.”

Valter Adão emphasised that effective transformation depends on leadership understanding and ownership. “The weakest link in many strategies is at the top. Too often, executives approve digital programmes they don’t fully understand. For organisations to succeed, C-suite leaders need to build their own fluency and lead the change from the front.”

From workforce planning to job architecture and skills strategy, the demands on HR have never been greater. “HR must now operate both strategically and systemically,” said Michelle Acton, Chief Customer Officer at Old Mutual Corporate. “The tools to personalise pay and benefits are already in place. What’s needed now is the willingness to use them effectively.”

A call to action

The discussion closed with a clear message to business leaders and policymakers: as AI reshapes the workplace, policy, people strategy and technology must evolve together. That means updating labour policies and enabling responsible benefits flexibility to keep work relevant and sustainable.

As Adão put it, “The question isn’t whether jobs will survive AI, but whether organisations are evolving fast enough to keep the jobs they have, and the people they want.” For South African organisations grappling with skills shortages, structural challenges and digital divides, the real risk is not disruption by AI but inertia.

“Businesses that delay rethinking their workforce strategy will be locked out of the talent economy,” concluded Acton. “HR is not a support function; it is one of the most powerful levers for building sustainable, agile organisations.”