S6 E9: HR’s Secret Weapon: Bridging the Gap Between People and Business with Halai Shukran

As People Leaders, we love our people, but sometimes we miss how the two worlds of business strategy and people strategy need to work together to drive results. 

Joining me is the brilliant Halai Shukran, COO at Pluribus Digital, who’s built her career around understanding exactly how people and business strategy intersect. From leading talent functions to overseeing operations, IT, and comms, Halai’s insight is next level. 

She’s breaking down how to speak the language of other business units, why you should get your seat at the table, and how to prioritize when resources are tight.

Plus, we talk about the big picture—how seeing the whole organization helps shape better leadership and decision-making.

So, if you’ve ever felt stuck in the HR bubble, today’s episode is your guide to breaking out and making a real impact. 

Now, Working Not Working is helping to keep that talent with NTRNL— the new platform that unlocks employee passions and ignites productivity. So you can see your people as they see themselves: as humans, not headcount. Visit seeyourpeople.com to learn more or book a demo.

00:02:27 - One Thing People in HR Should Rethink

00:06:10 - How Halai Discovered Her Zone of Genius

00:10:43 - Keeping Business and People Strategies Aligned

00:18:10 - The Process for Diagnosing Organizational Challenges

00:23:30 - Prioritizing When Resources are Limited

00:37:18 - Approaching Prioritization When Working Across Multiple Teams

00:42:57 - How Seeing the Bigger Picture Influences Leadership and Decision-making

00:48:14 - Advice for Leaders who Want to Cultivate the “Big Picture” Mindset

00:50:58 - What Excites Halai About the Future of Work

And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.

https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/

And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!

Follow Halai:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/halai-shukran-sphr/

Follow Hebba: 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef

Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef