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As artificial intelligence reshapes how organizations operate, Gurleen Knight, chief of staff for CHRO and global HR transformation leader at NEC Corporation, looks toward a future in which technology strengthens rather than replaces human connection. Her work centers on creating systems, cultures, and leadership models that help people thrive in an AI-driven world.
"AI should never impede humanity," she says. "Its role is to enhance it."
By combining data with empathy and global vision, Knight is helping NEC build a workplace where innovation and humanity move forward together.
Transformation, Knight believes, is a mix of momentum, the continuous movement of ideas, and human connection that turns intention into impact. For NEC, a company with a long legacy of innovation, that idea is increasingly centered on one essential truth: that true progress depends on people as much as technology.
Knight has spent the past six years ensuring NEC's global transformation is not only digital but cultural. Her work sits at the intersection of human capital, data analytics, and a clearly defined purpose, three forces she believes must move in harmony if an organization is to thrive in a world increasingly shaped by AI.
Humanizing Human Resources in the Age of AI
As NEC positions itself as an AI-native organization, Knight is focused on ensuring technology strengthens human impact rather than replaces it. She sees AI as a tool that can remove complexity, reduce administrative burden and give employees more time for the tasks that require judgment, creativity and connection.
For her, the role of HR in the AI era is to help people do more meaningful work. Automating routine tasks frees teams to focus on coaching, problem-solving and shaping stronger employee experiences. It also creates space for conversations that build trust, which she views as the foundation of any high-performing culture.
"Data can tell us a story," she says. "But people give it meaning."
Knight believes leaders must evolve to meet this moment. Skills such as adaptability, empathy and emotional intelligence are becoming as essential as technical capabilities. Leaders will also need to model learning behaviors, she says, especially in an environment where AI continues to shift expectations and ways of working.
"Leaders will need to create environments where it's okay to experiment, fail, and try again," she says. "That is how innovation happens."
A Global Mindset Grounded in Curiosity
Knight's worldview was shaped by movement across continents, cultures, and perspectives. Born in India, and having lived in Singapore, Australia and the United Kingdom, she learned early how to adapt without losing her roots. Her parents' belief in both discipline and exploration formed the foundation of her approach.
"They taught me that strong values and open minds are not opposites," she recalls. "You can honor where you come from while embracing what is different."
Knight's early career followed a somewhat traditional path. With degrees in economics, finance, and international business, she expected to pursue strategy or academia. But an early role in organizational development showed her that meaningful change depends as much on people as it does on systems.
"I realized that HR's real power is in shaping leadership, capability, and performance at scale, rather than simply administering systems."
That insight led to leadership roles across industries before she joined NEC. Each experience deepened her conviction that culture and strategy must evolve together, not in sequence. "You cannot transform a business if the people behind it do not feel connected to the vision," she notes.
Global Ways of Working
When Knight arrived at NEC, she inherited a landscape familiar to many multinational companies eager to grow their workforce. Regions operated with different systems, processes and traditions, making it difficult to work as one global organization. What began as a technical conversation about HR tools quickly evolved into a broader cultural transformation.
In 2020, Knight partnered with global and regional HR teams to launch “Global Ways of Working”, a program that aligns NEC's HR lifecycle and helps global people leaders take a data-driven approach to hiring, performance management, motivation and retention. The effort focused on defining principles, streamlining processes and building a foundation that respects local needs while ensuring global consistency.
The work ultimately led to “Career Connect”, a customizable platform that brings core processes into one place for employees across nearly 50 countries. For HR teams, this means more consistent workflows, clearer data and the ability to manage talent across regions transparently and with purpose. For our people, it means a better digital experience, easier access to information, and improved visibility into roles, development and team structures.
Having one view of the workforce made it easier to understand where people are, how teams are structured and the diversity that shapes NEC. She sees this visibility as essential to humanizing the organization because it helps leaders look beyond the data to bring alive business requirements and match those to individual aspirations.
Uniting Through Culture and Connection
Amilton Aires, global head of HR CoE – HR digital and HR culture enablement, who partnered closely with Knight on the initiative, recalls how she helped elevate a technical rollout into a unifying vision. “Her cultural awareness is very high,” he says, noting her ability to bring alignment across diverse regions with both consistency and flexibility.
He believes the next phase of Global Ways of Working will require technology that helps teams adapt quickly in today's fast-moving environment and sees Knight's leadership as essential in shaping that evolution. "Curiosity creates psychological safety," he adds. "And Gurleen uses it to bring people in. NEC is a 126-year-old company where we can still build new things. We have an opportunity to invent, to try, and to learn by doing."
Transforming Together
Knight believes large-scale change is also personal. "When you are part of transformation," she reflects, "you give up a part of yourself. And in that process, you transform too."
Her next focus is on translating the company's vision into a lived experience for every employee, wherever they sit, so they feel connected to our purpose of creating social value through people-centered technology.
"Leading change across an organization of more than 100,000 employees is a complex challenge. "We're a big ship," she says with a laugh, "but we are navigating with intent and purpose. And we are proving that transformation can be strategic and people-centered." She wants each person to be connected to NEC's purpose, creating social value through technology while remaining deeply human in impact.
