HiBob wins HR Pacesetter award for AI transformation

HiBob has won a 2026 HR Pacesetter Award for AI Transformation from The Josh Bersin Company, recognising its approach to AI adoption across the workforce.

The London-based HR software group said the recognition focused on a three-layer operating model that weaves AI into daily work, leadership processes, and decision-making. HiBob has used the model internally as companies move from limited AI trials to broader adoption across business functions.

About 95% of employees now use AI every week, according to HiBob. More than 150 AI agents are embedded in departmental workflows, more than 300 AI proof-of-concept initiatives have been submitted, and more than 70 AI Leaders have been enabled across the business.

Additional figures released by HiBob show more than 1,800 participants in AI workshops and learning programmes, company-wide AI usage growth of 111%, and the development of more than 60 AI-related skills over the past year.

Internal model

HiBob said the award recognises an operating model that treats AI as part of broader organisational design rather than as a standalone technology project. The approach links workforce data, management processes, and business planning in a single structure designed to support day-to-day use.

The Josh Bersin Company tied the award to that model and its role in workforce transformation, highlighting how HiBob aligned people, processes, and technology as AI moved from isolated experiments into broader use.

"HiBob is recognised as a 2026 HR Pacesetter Award winner for pioneering an operating model that aligns people, processes, and technology to 'do more with more,'" said the The Josh Bersin Company team. "By evolving AI from isolated experimentation into a strategic work partner, HiBob has engineered a scalable, people-first infrastructure that redefines how leaders, managers, and employees drive business impact."

The advisory firm also commented on the structure of the model.

"This three-layer operating model transforms AI from a passive co-pilot into a foundational engine for daily workflows and executive decision-making. Through this HR-connected architecture, HiBob demonstrates how a human-centered AI strategy serves as the essential infrastructure for sustainable adoption, responsible innovation, and long-term market dominance," the team said.

People focus

HiBob said the main barriers to AI adoption lie in organisational design and workforce change rather than software deployment alone. Its internal AI effort has been led by an AI Mind Team and supported by designated AI Leaders across the business.

Ronni Zehavi, Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder of HiBob, said the company's experience shows that AI programmes depend on how companies organise work and support employees.

"AI transformation is often viewed as a technology challenge," said Ronni Zehavi, Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder of HiBob. "At HiBob, we prove it is a human-centered organisational challenge. By building an operating system for the AI era, we are not replacing the human element. We are elevating it and creating the strongest partnership between human creativity and AI-driven scale."

He also pointed to the need for closer links between HR systems and broader business execution.

"Organisations today need more than automation. They need intelligence, orchestration, and the ability to connect people strategy directly to business execution. That means bringing people, payroll, performance, and planning together so leaders can understand what is happening across the workforce and act with confidence," Zehavi said.

Market shift

The award comes as HR technology suppliers and employers try to show practical returns from AI after an earlier period dominated by pilots and experimentation. For many employers, a central question has been whether AI tools can move beyond individual productivity gains and become part of routine management, planning, and workforce processes.

HiBob sells Bob, an HR platform used by more than 5,400 organisations worldwide, including eToro, Fred Perry, Huel, team.blue, SmartRecruiters, and Save the Children. The company positions the platform as a system that combines HR, payroll, workforce, and operational data for multinational employers.

The Josh Bersin Company describes itself as a human capital advisory firm focused on talent, leadership, and organisational performance. Its HR Pacesetter Awards recognise companies for work in areas including workforce transformation.

Among the figures highlighted by HiBob, the clearest sign of internal uptake is that roughly 95% of employees use AI every week.