Women in HR

SUMMARY

Renee Conklin sits down with Samantha Buttle, Head of HR at Chaos Theory, to talk about what it takes to build trust in a new role, why being strategic and adding value are not the same thing, and why the most useful HR careers rarely move in a straight line. Samantha also shares how she's using AI to extend her own capacity, and why confidentiality, not ambition, is the real constraint on how far she can take it.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Patience built more trust in Samantha's first year at Chaos Theory than any strategy could have.
• Curiosity, not assumption, is what makes HR effective in an organization with different norms than the ones you're used to.
• Being strategic and adding value are not the same thing, and confusing them can hold HR back from the seat it wants.
• A portfolio career, including moves that didn't work out, built more range than a straight line up the ladder would have.
• Authenticity with leadership isn't a soft skill in HR, it's the thing that determines whether the work is even possible.
• AI is already extending what one HR person can do, from market research to building new skills for a team, without adding headcount.
• Confidentiality, not lack of ambition, is the real constraint on how far HR can take AI right now.

CONNECT

Connect with Samantha Buttle: linkedin.com/in/samantha-buttle/

Connect with Renee Conklin: linkedin.com/in/reneeconklin

RC HR CONSULTING NEWSLETTER

If this episode resonated with you, join the newsletter at news.rchrconsulting.com/newsletter for more resources on building a strengths-aligned career.

KEYWORDS

HR leadership, career navigation, strategic HR, HR careers APAC, portfolio career, authentic leadership, workplace AI, AI in HR, women in HR, HR confidentiality

SUMMARY

Renee Conklin is joined by Mukta Arya, Chief Human Resources Officer for Asia Pacific at Societe Generale, based in Hong Kong. Mukta has spent nearly three decades in HR and 20 years at Societe Generale, moving through five roles across India, Hong Kong, and Singapore before becoming CHRO. She and Renee talk about what has kept her at one company for two decades, how internal mobility functions as a retention strategy, how AI is currently showing up inside her HR team, and the one skill she believes will separate HR leaders who thrive over the next five years from those who get sidelined.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Internal mobility across geography and function, not compensation or title, has been the strongest retention lever in Mukta's own career.

• A short-term assignment or role change can reignite motivation, but sustaining curiosity long term has to be driven by the individual, not the organization.

• AI's clearest value right now is efficiency, but Mukta expects its bigger long-term contribution to be effectiveness, freeing HR to spend more time on advisory and creative work.

• Mukta frames AI as a partner to HR, not a replacement for it: HR with AI, not AI instead of HR.

• Curiosity, not a technical skill or certification, is the factor Mukta believes will separate HR leaders who thrive from those who get sidelined by AI.

• Societe Generale invests in HR's own development through a global HR academy, regional strategic development programs, and a dedicated HR for HR function, but Mukta is clear that growth is ultimately each employee's own responsibility.

CONNECT

Mukta Arya on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/muktaarya/

Renee Conklin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reneeconklin/

RC HR CONSULTING NEWSLETTER

If this episode resonated with you, join the newsletter at news.rchrconsulting.com/newsletter for more resources on building a strengths aligned HR career.

KEYWORDS

HR leadership, AI in HR, career navigation, internal mobility, CHRO, Societe Generale, curiosity, Asia Pacific, women in HR, future of HR careers, upskilling, retention

This is the Season 1 finale of Women in HR — and it's a personal one.

In this episode, I share my own story of feeling stuck as a senior HR leader. The 3am wake-ups. The redundancies. The mentor who asked me what I wanted and the silence that followed. And what finally helped me move forward.

If you've ever wondered how someone who spends her career helping others with theirs could completely lose the thread of her own — this episode is for you.

What you'll learn

• Why 42% of HR professionals are considering leaving the profession entirely — and why that number doesn't surprise me
• How career stagnation spreads beyond work into your relationships, your health, and your sense of self
• Why the most capable women in HR are often the most stuck — and the six factors that stack up to keep them there
• Why finding a new job doesn't fix the underlying problem
• Three strategies to start moving: the career audit, building before you need it, and knowing your strengths

Resources mentioned

• Career Audit: resources.rchrconsulting.com/careeraudit
• 2025 HR Mental Wellbeing Report: https://hrzone.com/the-mental-health-of-hr-what-1400-voices-tell-us-about-a-profession-in-distress/
• VIA Character Strengths Survey: viacharacter.org
• RC HR Newsletter: news.rchrconsulting.com/newsletter

Chapter timestamps

• Welcome and season 1 finale
• The data: what's really happening in HR
• My story: the café, the redundancy, and standing frozen
• How being stuck spreads
• Why this happens to the most capable women
• Why the obvious solution doesn't work
• Three strategies to start moving
• Close and newsletter CTA

Keywords

women in HR, HR leadership, career stagnation, feeling stuck, HR burnout, senior HR leaders, career coaching, HR career, imposter syndrome, career transition, HR wellbeing, career audit, executive coaching, women in leadership, APAC HR, career development, job satisfaction, HR professionals

Episode summary

Clarissa Wang has built her HR career across some of the world’s most recognizable organizations including Google, Salesforce and Heidrick & Struggles. Today she leads people strategy at Endowus a rapidly scaling Singapore-based wealth management platform.

In this conversation, Clarissa and Renee explore what it really takes to scale cultureacross multiple markets, why “I don’t know” is one of the most powerful things a leader can say, how AI is reshaping the day-to-day work of HR, and what it means to be a solo people leader at the top of a growing organization.

Key takeaways

•       Culture cannot be exported from headquarters — sharedvalues and purpose are the anchor, not uniformity across sites.

•       Culture is not owned by HR; when HR waves the flag alone, culture becomes a poster rather than a lived reality.

•       Saying “I don’t know” is a leadership strength, not a gap — seniority does not equal certainty.

•       AI can automate onboarding, surface themes from engagement data, and replace expensive compensation benchmarking tools, but HRjudgment cannot be outsourced to it.

•       As administrative work disappears, HR leaders face a real identity shift toward strategy, frameworks, and judgment.

•       Every career move Clarissa made was guided by one question: what can I learn here, and what can I give?

•       Loneliness at the top is real for solo HR leaders — building a tribe through coaching, LinkedIn, and peer communities is adeliberate act, not an accident.

Connect with Clarissa: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clarissawang/KeywordsHR leadership, culture scaling, APAC HR, AI in HR, solo HR leader, HR community, career design, growth mindset, people strategy, Endowus, senior female HR leaders, HR career development, Heidrick & Struggles, Google, Salesforce

Summary

In this solo episode, Reneeunpacks one of the most common patterns she sees in her coaching work: thehabit of delaying a career move while waiting for the “right moment.” Whetheryou’re thinking about leaving your company, going for an internal promotion, orrenegotiating your current role, the logic of waiting can feel sound. Reneemakes the case that it isn’t — and that the cost of inaction is higher thanmost people realize.

She walks through three distinctscenarios, each with its own version of the cost of waiting: the financial costfor those considering an external move, the leverage cost for those ready for apromotion, and the career capital cost for those who need to reshape their rolefrom the inside. The episode closes with three concrete actions listeners cantake right now, whatever their situation.

Key Takeaways

•       The “one more year” plan applies to three groups: those considering an external move, those ready for an internal promotion, and thosewho need to renegotiate their current role.

•       For external moves, the financial cost of waiting is concrete and calculable. A conservative 15% salary uplift on a USD 230,000base, including bonus, adds up to over USD 40,000 per year in foregone compensation.

•       For internal promotions, the cost is about leverage. The best time to make a case for promotion is at a peak of momentum, not afterwaiting for things to calm down.

•       For role renegotiation, the cost is career capital: every year spent in a role that underuses your strengths is a year not spentbuilding the skills and visibility your next move will depend on.

•       Loss aversion, a well-documented psychological principle, explains why the invisible cost of waiting feels less real than thevisible risks of acting.

•       The pattern is the same regardless of scenario: one reasonable reason to wait becomes two, two becomes three, and before long you’ve been “almost ready” for two years.

•       You don’t have to be ready to start. One conversation, one update, one outreach is enough to build momentum.

The formula mentioned in the episode

For those considering an external move, Renee shares a simple formula to calculate your annual cost of waiting:

Annual cost of waiting =(Current base salary × 0.15) + (Monthly salary × months of bonus × 0.15)

Plug in your own salary andbonus to find your number.

Three actions you can take

1.    Set a real deadline, not a milestone.

2.    Make the cost visible.

3.    Start building from where you are.

Chapters

Intro and welcome

What the “one more year” plan sounds like

Three types of career move

The financial cost of waiting: external moves

The formula: calculating your annual cost

The leverage cost: internal promotions

The career capital cost : renegotiating your role

Why we all wait: loss aversion

The pattern: one reason becomes two

Three actions to take right now

Keywords

HR career development, senior HRleaders, career coaching, women in HR, career transition, internal promotion,salary negotiation, role renegotiation, loss aversion, career capital, jobsearch strategy, APAC HR, strengths-aligned career, career momentum, HRleadership

ResourcesJoin Renee’s newsletter: news.rchrconsulting.com/newsletter

 Connect with Renee on LinkedIn:linkedin.com/in/reneeconklin

Summary

Rachael Fitzpatrick, Global HR Business Partner at Maxeon Solar Technologies, joins the podcast to share how 25+ years across tech, shipping, insurance, and solar energy have shaped her approach to HR leadership. Rachael discusses how she's built trust quickly when moving between vastly different industries, why networking (not job boards) is what gets you across the line when switching sectors, and how volunteering at Changi Prison taught her to lead with less judgment and more calm. She also opens up about her unconventional stress management technique (singing, loudly) and makes the case for HR leaders to adopt a coaching approach with their stakeholders without waiting until they feel "ready."

Find Rachael here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachael-fitzpatrick-b617871/

Key takeaways

• Humans are humans regardless of industry. The fundamentals of what people need don't change, but how you deliver it in different environments does. Learning the business language, understanding cultural nuances and listening first is what earns credibility.

• Switching industries requires relationships, not job applications. Rachael's own move from software to manufacturing came through networking, not through applying online.
• Volunteering at Changi Prison reinforced a core HR principle: leave your judgment at the door and see the human in front of you. Most people have good intentions; some just faced higher hurdles.
• The Changi experience brought more calm to Rachael's leadership. When you've seen a wider spectrum of human situations, the surprises that walk through your office door become easier to navigate.
• Rachael uses singing lessons and karaoke to process the emotional weight of her HR role.
• You don't need ICF certification to coach your stakeholders. Get the basics of coaching conversations and start applying them immediately. Don't stay stuck in fixing mode.
• When coaching business partners, be prepared for them to not take your advice. If they made a different call, work through the outcome together. That's how you build trust for the next conversation.
• Ask "What outcome are you looking for from this conversation?" to figure out whether your stakeholder needs a coaching conversation or an HR answer.

Chapters

• Introduction
• Building trust across different industries
• Why "at my last company" doesn't work
• Switching industries through networking
• Mentorship and Mentor Walks
• A rising tide lifts all boats
• Volunteering at Changi Prison
• Leading with calm after seeing a wider human spectrum
• Singing your HR frustrations out
• Taking a coaching approach as an HR leader
• Just start: you don't need to be fully certified
• Knowing when to coach vs. when to advise

Keywords

HR business partner, coaching approach, industry switching, mentorship, building trust, HR leadership, emotional wellbeing, stress management, stakeholder coaching, career transitions, networking, APAC HR

Episode summary

You're brilliant at developing everyone else's career. But what about your own?

In this solo episode, Renee Conklin shares three patterns she sees repeatedly in the senior female HR leaders she coaches, patterns that are quietly holding them back from their next career step. Drawing on Sally Helgesen and Marshall Goldsmith's book "How Women Rise," Renee breaks down why intelligent, capable HR leaders get stuck and what to do about it.

Whether you're targeting a Head of HR, CPO, or CHRO role, or simply feel like you've plateaued in your current position, this episode will help you identify the habits holding you back and take one concrete step forward.

Takeaways

• Why the relationship-building skills you've worked hard to develop may not be benefiting your career
• The hidden assumptions behind "I don't want to use people"
• Why your expertise, can become the thing that keeps you stuck
• What perfectionism is doing to your ability to delegate, prioritize, and take risks
• Three specific actions you can take this week to start breaking through

Three Reflection Questions

• What is one relationship you could be leveraging right now to advance your HR career?
• What is one area of expertise you could let go of to make space for something more strategic?
• Which will you practice this week: delegating, prioritizing, or taking a calculated risk?

Resources"How Women Rise: Break the 12 habits holding you back from your next raise, promotion, or job" by Sally Helgesen and Marshall GoldsmithKey wordsHR career development, senior HR leader, women in HR, HR career coach, CHRO, Head of HR, CPO, career plateau, career transition HR, HR career APAC, career coaching HR Singapore

Summary

Catherine Chow, Head of HR at Nestlé Hong Kong, shares insights from her 20 year career in HR. In this conversation, Catherine discusses the gap between how HR sees itself versus how the business sees HR, the challenge of building credibility in male-dominated industries like manufacturing and automotive, and the cultural dynamics of working across Hong Kong and Mainland China. She opens up about career moves she made for the wrong reasons—chasing titles instead of fit—and the red flags she overlooked. Catherine closes with powerful advice on self-advocacy for women in HR: your competency won't speak for itself, so stop waiting for opportunities to fall in your lap.

Connect with Catherine here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/catherine-chow-kawing/

Takeaways

• HR is still viewed as operational "firefighters" rather than strategic partners in many APAC organizations
• Women in HR face a double challenge: the function is seen as nurturing and supportive, which can undermine strategic voice
• Building credibility starts with speaking the business language—understand their pain points and prove you can solve problems
• Cultural context matters: in Chinese business culture, there's a belief that competency will speak for itself, but in commercial environments you must advocate for yourself
• Red flags to watch: being drawn to bigger titles or scope without examining if the role actually fits your strengths
• HR professionals excel at advocating for others but struggle to promote themselves

• Don't let self-doubt eliminate your previous achievements

Chapters

Introduction - Meet Catherine Chow and her 20-year HR career across APAC

The perception gap - How HR sees itself versus how business sees HR, and why it's harder for women

Speaking their language - Building credibility in male-dominated industries through business acumen

Cultural balancing act - Navigating APAC norms while pushing for progressive HR practices

Career red flags - When bigger titles lead to wrong moves and what to watch for

The self-advocacy gap - Why HR professionals struggle to promote themselves and what to do instead

You are good enough - Final advice on trusting yourself and voicing your aspirations

Keywords

women in HR, HR leadership, self-advocacy, career development, Asia Pacific HR, building credibility, female HR leaders, strategic HR, business partnering, imposter syndrome, cultural dynamics, Hong Kong HR, career progression, male-dominated industries, HR career advice

Summary

In this episode of the Women in HR podcast, host Renee Conklin discusses the unique challenges faced by accomplished HR professionalsin their job searches. She highlights how their behind-the-scenes roles can hinder their visibility and self-promotion, which are crucial for a successful job search. Renee emphasizes the importance of building a support network anddeveloping a tailored job search strategy that aligns with your strengths and experience. The conversation also touches on the emotional toll of job searching and the need for community and accountability.

Takeaways

• Accomplished HR leaders often struggle with self-promotion.
• Visibility is crucial for a successful jobsearch.
• Many HR professionals default to passive jobsearch strategies.
• Isolation intensifies during job searches for HR professionals.
• Support and validation are essential during the job search process.
• A tailored job search strategy is necessary for success.
• Building a peer community can alleviate feelings of loneliness.   
• Internal work is needed to uncover truestrengths.    
• A growth mindset is vital for careeradvancement.  
• Job search strategies should align with personal strengths.

Chapters

00:00 The Job Search Dilemma for HR Professionals

03:08 The Challenges of Self-Promotion

05:56 The Importance of Strategy, Support, and Structure

08:42 Building a Community and Mindset Shift

Keywords: HR career, job search, self-promotion,visibility, networking, women in HR, job search strategy, support, isolation,personal brand

In this episode, Sarah Boulton shares her personal experience of overcoming redundancy, rebuilding confidence, and landing a senior role at MSD. She emphasizes the power of networking, self-reflection, and strategic patience in a competitive job market-valuable insights for HR leaders seeking their next opportunity.

Key Topics

• The importance of networking before you need it
• Overcoming the stigma of redundancy and rebuilding confidence
• Strategic self-reflection to identify what you truly want from your career
• How to maintain patience and resilience during a job search
• Practical tips on scheduling your job hunt and networking efforts
• The value of intentionality in networking conversations
• Recognizing transferable skills within your industry
• The role of community and peer support during career transitions
• How to balance work-life priorities during a job search

Timestamps

00:00 - Introducing Sarah Bolton and her careerbackground

01:00 - How Sarah secured her role at MSD amidcompetitive market conditions

02:39 - Navigating career changes and redundancy in senior HR roles

03:19 - Key lessons from networking and focusing priorities

05:00 - The importance of self-confidence and valuing your experience

06:16 - How Sarah's participation in the Job Search Accelerator boosted her clarity

07:20 - Networking strategies: Building genuineconnections with purpose

08:33 - The significance of asking for help and removing stigma around job transitions

09:48 - Balancing personal life and patience during unemployment or career shifts

11:35 - Recognizing that staying within your expertise can be advantageous

12:56 - The critical role of networking in securingstrategic opportunities

14:24 - Practical advice on scheduling and managing your job search efforts

15:39 - The importance of enjoying the present while planning for the future

18:12 - Evolving your networking approach to include knowledge sharing and relationship building

19:12 - Crafting your personal message and valueproposition in networking

20:11 - Giving more than you receive and buildingreciprocal relationships

21:42 - Final thoughts and gratitude for the shared journey

Resources & Links

Sarah Bolton's LinkedIn

Job Search Accelerator for Women in HR

Keywords

• HR career transitions
• Networking strategies
• Job search tips
• Redundancy recovery
• Career self-reflection
• Work-life balance

• Transferable skills
• Professional development

HR leadership