Can you imagine writing and publishing 200 novels over 50 years? Now, add a debut business book co-authored with a leadership visionary. That’s the powerful insight a newly announced keynote duo is bringing to the stage at HR Tech 2025 when James Patterson and his co-author, Patrick Leddin, Ph.D., will share insights from their new book, Disrupt Everything.

New to the HR Tech 2025 agenda

Presented by FranklinCovey, the read is the framework for an HR Tech presentation designed to provide HR leaders with fresh, actionable strategies that will bring ideas to life within their organizations. Patterson and Leddin will take the main stage at 8 a.m. Sept. 17 for their session titled Disrupt Everything and Win: Take Control of Your Future. They’ll dig into insights from the book that support HR teams as they navigate today’s fast-paced work environment.

After the keynote, attendees will get the chance to meet the authors and grab a signed copy of Disrupt Everything, published by Little, Brown & Company—available on a first-come, first-served basis.

And yes, the HR Executive editorial team will be on site (like we’d ever miss this), and we hope to see you there. If you haven’t registered yourself and your team yet, now’s the time. Early bird pricing ends Aug. 1. Save your spot now.

HR tech in the news

Johnson Controls has named Chris Scalia as executive vice president and CHRO. He will lead HR strategy to support the company’s growth-focused, customer-centric transformation. Scalia succeeds Marlon Sullivan, who steps down from Johnson Controls soon and will remain on as an advisor for a few months.

Carta compensation benchmarking solution expands its partnership with consulting firm Sequoia. The collab empowers growing companies to build fair pay strategies with integrated advisory services and market insights.

Paychex has partnered with SoFi to offer SoFi at Work’s financial wellness tools—like personal and student loans, refinancing and more. This is available to users of Paychex Flex Perks, a 2024 HR Tech Top Product.

A ResumeBuilder survey found that only about one-third of managers using AI for people oversight report receiving formal ethical training. Another 43% have had informal guidance, while nearly 24% say they’ve received no training at all.

Michelle Vaz, managing director, AWS Training and Certification, announced a new initiative that offers free training via AWS Skill Builder to 2.7 million learners, preparing them for high-growth careers in cloud, data and cybersecurity.

Greenhouse’s 2025 Workforce & Hiring Report shows nearly half (46%) of U.S. candidates abandon job applications when asked to manually re-enter resume details. The lack of autofill alone drives 31% to quit mid-process, with Gen Z leading at a 44% abandonment rate.

Socure digital identity verification platform announced Workforce Verification to combat hiring fraud. The solution detects synthetic identities and deepfakes using AI and behavioral signals to help guard organizations against fake applicants and compliance risks.

New from HR Executive

Thomson Reuters’ 2025 Future of Professionals report reveals that organizations with visible AI strategies are twice as likely to experience revenue growth compared to those with informal adoption approaches. Yet, 31% of organizations still have no significant plans for AI adoption. Why is that? 

Rather than solve HR complexity, many companies have chosen to live with it—accepting inefficiency as a cost of doing business. But in a labor market where success is defined by agility and a thirst for AI, that compromise is losing ground. See how Hitachi Digital chose a different path. 

A baker’s dozen of HR teams at leading companies (including Johnson Controls, mentioned above) have been named finalists for the 2025 HR Icons Awards. All will be honored in September for their outstanding achievements leading workplace transformation through innovative strategies and practices. See who made the list.