Jennifer McClure joins David Turetsky to unpack how her career in HR, executive search, speaking, and coaching led to Disrupt HR. The conversation focuses on why HR gets blamed for business problems, how leaders can stop using HR as a scapegoat, and why true disruption means rethinking both broken processes and the ones that only seem fine. Jennifer McClure shares a practical case for moving HR beyond administration and into real business influence, while David Turetsky pushes on the everyday realities of performance management, remote work, compensation, and accountability. Key topics In this episode, Jennifer traces her path from nearly 20 years in corporate HR leadership to executive search, then into speaking, coaching, and launching Unbridled Talent. She explains how Disrupt HR began as a way to surface ideas from people who may not have a speaker reel or prior speaking experience but still have something meaningful to say about the future of work. Jennifer argues that HR was originally built as an administrative function, but the profession has evolved and now has a chance to influence business strategy far more directly. She challenges the old “seat at the table” mindset and says the real issue is not seating, but whether HR leaders actually understand the business and how people drive results. David and Jennifer discuss how HR often becomes the dumping ground for decisions leaders do not want to own, especially around performance management, compensation, culture, and employee relations. Jennifer emphasizes that HR should not automatically say “no” and take the blame. Instead, managers should be required to make the case and own their decisions. The conversation uses examples from remote work and compensation to show how easily leaders pass responsibility to HR without first having the difficult conversation themselves. Jennifer explains that Disrupt HR is not just about fixing broken systems. It also asks whether working processes could be simpler, faster, more human, or more useful. She compares workplace experiences to consumer experiences, like Netflix recommendations, Amazon suggestions, and frustrating phone trees, to show how people expect better design at work. David and Jennifer talk about the value of short-form ideas, different audience reactions, and why a talk or process does not need to please everyone to be worthwhile. Jennifer closes by encouraging listeners to disrupt themselves, their organizations, and even processes that appear to be working well, because innovation often starts with a better question. Timestamps 00:00 - Intro to Jennifer McClure and the HR Data Labs conversation 01:10 - From corporate HR leadership to executive search and speaking 03:34 - Why Unbridled Talent got its name and what Jennifer does now 04:37 - Executive coaching, speaking, and the origins of Disrupt HR 05:20 - A fun fact: farming, horses, and Tennessee roots 07:08 - Why the topic of HR disruption matters right now 08:12 - Why HR has been seen as ripe for disruption 09:23 - From administrative personnel work to “seat at the table” 10:20 - What “being strategic” in HR really means 11:06 - Talent strategy and business strategy should be integrated 12:04 - The real opportunity for HR influence and business impact 13:32 - Why some leaders still only want transactional HR 14:19 - Business leaders blaming HR for problems they do not want to own 16:10 - Reframing “HR always says no” into manager accountability 17:45 - A real example of remote work, blame, and chain-of-command confusion 19:48 - Compensation example: when a late request cannot be approved 21:27 - How HR can remove itself as the scapegoat and push ownership back up 23:08 - What Disrupt HR actually is and how the format works 24:30 - Bringing in voices from outside HR to improve work 25:57 - Disruption is not only for broken things 26:46 - Looking at consumer experiences to redesign workplace processes 28:32 - Why outdated phone trees and apply processes frustrate people 29:05 - The importance of asking why a process exists in the first place 30:42 - Over 11,000 five-minute Disrupt HR talks and why the format works 31:55 - Why not every presentation lands with every person 33:47 - Preparing a keynote and accepting mixed audience feedback 35:02 - Why short, focused presentations fit how people consume information now 36:39 - Where to learn more about Disrupt HR and why disagreement matters 37:07 - Laurie Ruettimann, strong opinions, and learning from disagreement 38:32 - What listeners should take from short talks and different viewpoints 40:20 - Final thoughts on disrupting work, organizations, and yourself Notable quotes “I think HR gets blamed for a lot.” "I challenge you to disrupt yourself, your organization, your people.” “This is the definition of innovation.” Action items Ask why a process exists before assuming it should stay the same. If a manager wants to take action, ask them to own the decision and make the case. Look for one process that is broken and one that seems fine but could be better. Compare your workplace experience to the consumer experience you expect outside work. Revisit assumptions about HR being the default owner of every uncomfortable business problem.
