This International HR Day, we take a moment to honor and recognize the professionals who are the emotional anchors and strategic pillars of organizations—our HR professionals. In 2025, their role has never been more vital or more multi-layered. But beneath the applause and admiration lies a growing paradox: HR professionals are driven by purpose, but burdened by pressure.

A global survey by SHRM in 2024 shows that 95% of HR professionals take deep pride in their work and consider it a significant part of their identity. Yet, 75% also describe their work as emotionally exhausting. Managing expectations from leadership, navigating employee burnout, and bridging the gap between leadership visionR stands at the crossroads of organizational functioning.

And if researched deeper, one aspect is clearly under-utilized in addressing challenges faced by HR – learning.

Learning isn’t just about skills or academic courses anymore. It’s the invisible force that connects leadership, culture, talent engagement, and employee wellbeing. In short—it’s the missing link for HR to truly lead transformation in 2025. 

The HR Paradox: Purpose vs. Pressure

On paper, HR is more dynamic than ever. With a seat at the leadership table, HR is shaping business continuity, digital transformation, and employee experience. But the lived reality tells another story— stretched bandwidths, constant firefighting, and misaligned teams. 

Most HR leaders are being asked to solve for retention, engagement, performance, and now—mental health. And they’re expected to do all this while juggling tactical deliverables and managing cross-functional demands.

The result? Chronic emotional fatigue. And when the emotional health of the enablers suffers, the ripple effect reaches every level of the organization.

What’s Really Pressing HR in 2025?

  1. Capability Gaps in Leadership
     In many companies, HR is handed a vision for transformation—but not the leadership muscle to execute it. Mid-to-senior leaders are often promoted for functional skills, not true leadership capabilities – people . This creates an invisible ceiling where execution falters due to lack of interpersonal effectiveness, influence, or alignment.

  2. Wellbeing Begins at the Top
     Despite numerous wellbeing programs and employee support groups, emotional burnout and mental breakdown continues. Why? Because organizational culture is set by leadership behavior. If managers are not modeling psychological safety, empathy, or clarity—no amount of mindfulness apps, offsites or course programs can fix it.

  3. Relevance Over Retention
    The talent landscape has shifted. Employees want more than just pay hikes and perks—they want growth and relevance. L&D needs to move beyond traditional learning and off the shelf modules and invest in contextual, applied learning that supports career development in the real time.

  4. Content Isn’t Enough—Culture Is Key
     While many organizations have upgraded their LMS platforms or curated vast content libraries, what’s missing is the cultural push for everyday learning. HR’s new challenge isn’t just adoption—it’s blending learning in their daily activity – in the way teams think, interact, and grow together.

Why the Future of HR Demands a Shift in Learning

If HR is to thrive—not just survive—learning must evolve beyond traditional content and delivery. It must:

  • Be contextual to real business challenges

  • Equip leaders to model the change they seek

  • Build cross-functional trust and alignment

  • Create spaces for reflection, feedback, and dialogue

  • Support HR’s own development as strategic leaders

HR can’t enable the future of work without enabling themselves first. This means prioritizing learning ecosystems that are strategic, measurable, and emotionally intelligent.

So Where Do We Go from Here?
  1. We believe that the top teams must view learning as infrastructure—not just an intervention. It’s not just about learning programs; it’s about building organizations where people learn, thrive and adapt every day.

  2. Second, HR must be given the space to reflect, align, and renew. The emotional load cannot be invisible anymore. Leaders must step in to be accountable for culture and learning outcomes—not just delegate them to HR.

  3. And finally, organizations must invest in journeys that go beyond tick-the-box leadership training. Programs that build trust, enable feedback, encourage courageous conversations, and strengthen collaboration across levels.

At TransforMe Learning, we’ve seen what’s possible when leadership, learning, and HR come together with intention.

Over the last decade, we’ve co-created learning journeys with organizations to align top teams, enable managers, build inclusive leadership, and drive transformation with purpose.

Programs like Synergizing Strengths, The Art of Storytelling, Personal Mastery Labs, and manager development journeys are not just tools—they’re spaces for real change. They’ve helped HR leaders find alignment in chaos, and unlock the leadership capabilities that fuel business and culture forward.

This International HR Day, let’s honor HR not just with gratitude—but with action.

Let’s give them the support they give everyone else.

Let’s invest in learning not as an initiative, but as the missing link that makes people, and workplaces, thrive.