Only 29% of CFOs plan to increase HR budgets in 2026. If your workforce strategy still assumes more resources are coming, it is time to rethink the plan.
 | Aug 5, 2026 · Weekly |
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Workforce Strategy & HR Budget Planning When the Budget Shrinks, the Strategy Has to Get SharperOnly 29% of CFOs plan to increase HR budgets in 2026. If your workforce strategy still assumes more resources are coming, it is time to rethink the plan. |
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Hello Community,
This week we are looking at one of the most consequential planning challenges HR leaders face right now: how to build and defend a workforce strategy when the budget conversation has already started with cuts, not growth.
The numbers are sobering. And they make the work of connecting workforce decisions to real financial realities more urgent than ever.
| 29% of CFOs plan to increase HR budgets in 2026 |
| 22% of CFOs expect to cut HR budgets this year |
| Sep 8 Workforce Strategy and HR Budget Planning Summit begins |
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Inside This Edition
▸ The budget reality HR leaders need to plan around — and why the Workforce Strategy Summit was built for exactly this moment
▸ CraftNote — the meeting assistant built for HR interviews and conversations
▸ BUILD Conference 2027 — the official Hacking HR in-person gathering, Scottsdale, March 10
▸ The Executive Network — and partner events worth your attention
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Partnership Announcement
Meet CraftNote
How many hours a week do you lose writing up interviews, reviews, and 1:1s?
CraftNote gives them back — and no bot ever joins the call, so nothing interrupts and no one's bothered. It quietly captures each conversation and turns it into an executive summary, a to-do list, and a ready-to-send follow-up email. You can even chat with your notes mid-meeting and get answers in real time.
Invite your team to share notes and stay aligned on one record. And everything syncs across iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, and the web — start on your phone, finish on your laptop.
Save hours on every conversation, and be fully present in each one.
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This Week's Focus
The conversation HR needs to be leading right now
Most workforce planning conversations start from the wrong place. They start with last year's headcount, last year's programs, and an implicit assumption that the budget will be roughly the same or a little better. In 2026, that assumption is costing HR credibility in the room.
When 22% of CFOs are planning cuts and only 29% are planning increases, the question is not "how do we grow the team?" The question is "how do we make the clearest possible case for every line item, and what do we stop doing if something has to give?"
That is a fundamentally different planning discipline. It requires HR leaders to connect workforce decisions directly to business outcomes, to model scenarios instead of presenting single-point plans, and to walk into the budget conversation with a clear narrative about capability gaps and what it costs to leave them unfilled.
The bottleneck is no longer access to workforce data. It is knowing what to do with it when the CFO is asking hard questions. |
The good news is that the skills required to do this well are learnable. Scenario modeling, financial fluency, capability mapping, and data-driven narrative are not mysteries. They are disciplines. And they are exactly what the Workforce Strategy and HR Budget Planning Summit is designed to build.
Three days. September 8 to 10. Free and virtual. Built around the planning cycle that most HR teams are entering right now. If you are building or defending a workforce plan this fall, this is where you want to be.
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Upcoming Event
Workforce Strategy and HR Budget Planning Summit
Only 29% of CFOs plan to increase HR budgets in 2026. 22% expect cuts. If your workforce strategy still assumes more budget is coming, it is time to rethink the plan.
Join us at the Workforce Strategy and HR Budget Planning Summit, September 8 to 10, 2026. Three days, 100% virtual and free, built to help you connect workforce planning to real budget realities and walk out with a plan you can actually execute.
This event is brought to you in partnership with our amazing sponsors: Kudos, HiBob, Leading Pathways Consulting, and Emtrain.
- All attendees who attend live or watch the post-event recordings get a certificate of completion.
- Premium members also gain 13.5 HR Credits (SHRM + HRCI + 13.5 IHRIM) and a Pearson badge.
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Hacking HR 2027 · In-Person
BUILD Conference 2027
One day designed for HR people to build better organizations. The only immersive Hacking HR conference built around participation — practical learning, collaborative problem solving, and honest conversations with practitioners doing the real work.
March 10, 2027 · Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts, Scottsdale, AZ · In-Person Only
Early bird rate is $199 through September 30. Rate rises to $399 on October 1. Groups of 4 to 6 save 10%. Groups of 7 or more save 15%.
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Upcoming Mini Masters & Certificate Programs
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HR OS With Claude · Aug 3
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AI Essentials · Sep 7
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Affiliate Program
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Here is how it works
| ✅ Earn 20% commission on every qualifying referral |
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| ✅ Start receiving payouts after generating $500 in referral revenue |
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