Culture, compliance and capacity: What HR leaders told us at SHRM26

The responses were short, honest and remarkably consistent:

• Operational challenges: Compliance, documentation, tax deductions and the speed of hiring
• People challenges: Manager accountability, leadership buy-in, retention and culture change
• Lean HR realities: "I am solo," "Department of 1" and simply "People"

The feedback collected at SHRM wasn't just a list of frustrations. It revealed how connected today’s HR challenges have become. Culture, compliance, retention, hiring, and manager accountability may seem like separate issues, but they often point to the same underlying pressure: HR is being asked to keep people, processes, and policies moving even when visibility and accountability are spread across the organization.

That’s where People First, powered by MHR, comes in. The platform brings HR, payroll, recruitment and talent processes together in a single system, helping HR teams spend less time chasing processes and more time supporting people.

Culture, communication and recognition are business-critical

Nearly one-third (32%) of the responses MHR collected centered on culture, communication and recognition. Responses pointed to culture change, communication issues, recognition, generational gaps and even “colleagues who villainize HR.”

For HR leaders, this is more than an engagement issue. Culture often becomes visible only when something is already breaking down: employees feel unheard, managers interpret policies inconsistently or HR is seen as the function enforcing rules rather than enabling people.

Technology alone cannot create culture, but People First can make the right behaviors easier to sustain by giving employees more ways to be heard, recognized and connected.

Manager accountability keeps landing back on HR

Culture does not live in HR policies. It shows up in the daily decisions managers make, the conversations they have and the processes they either follow or ignore. That may be why 13% of responses pointed to manager accountability, leadership buy-in, annual appraisal completion and “managers not following formal processes.”

When managers don't consistently follow through, HR often becomes responsible for keeping the process on track and handling the fallout when it doesn’t. Without clear visibility into expectations, deadlines and responsibilities, HR ends up chasing updates instead of focusing on strategic priorities.

This is where visibility matters. People First gives HR, managers and employees a shared view of goals, check-ins and key tasks, making accountability easier to build into the rhythm of work.

That includes:

• Automating reminders to keep reviews, check-ins and other key tasks on schedule
• Supporting goals and regular check-ins so managers and employees stay aligned throughout the year
• Giving HR greater visibility into progress without relying on manual follow-up

Retention is still the pressure point

Retention is often where culture and manager accountability become measurable. Employees may leave for many reasons, but inconsistent communication, limited development, lack of recognition and weak manager follow-through all influence whether people see a future with the organization.

That may be why 13% of responses mentioned challenges such as staff retention, clinical turnover and “balancing growth with employee retention.”

By the time someone resigns, HR is already reacting. People First connects employee listening, recognition, learning and goal setting so HR teams can spot signals earlier and help managers support growth before retention becomes a rescue effort.

Compliance and documentation cannot depend on memory

Compliance risk rarely comes from one dramatic failure. More often, it builds through small gaps: an inconsistent process, a deadline that lives in someone’s inbox or a policy step that depends on one person remembering to follow up.

Fourteen percent of the feedback MHR received focused on compliance, documentation and following established processes. Responses also mentioned ERISA and 401(k) administration, tax deductions and background checks.

The goal is not to add another process. It is to make the right process easier to follow. People First centralizes records, workflows and reporting so HR teams can stay organized, reduce manual follow-up and maintain more consistent documentation.

Lean HR teams need leverage

“I am solo.” “Department of 1.” “Getting in weeds.”

Some of the clearest responses at SHRM26 came from HR professionals who were not naming one process problem. They were naming the capacity problem underneath all the others.

As responsibilities continue to grow, many teams are expected to support the entire employee lifecycle without additional time or headcount. Routine administrative work leaves little room for strategic priorities. That can make it difficult to invest in initiatives such as employee development, engagement and long-term workforce planning.

For stretched HR teams, leverage comes from reducing the manual work that keeps HR stuck in the weeds. People First brings HR processes, employee self-service and centralized information together, giving teams more room to focus on people, priorities and long-term planning.

People First: One platform. Less chasing. More leading.

The responses from SHRM26 point to a clear need: HR teams need better ways to create visibility, strengthen follow-through and support employees without adding more manual work.

That is the role People First, powered by MHR, is built to play. By bringing HR, payroll, recruitment, talent management and employee engagement together, People First helps organizations reduce administrative friction, improve consistency and create a better experience for employees, managers and HR teams.

Explore the HCM platform built to simplify HR.