A recent survey by workplace software provider Nexthink found that 64% of IT executives in large organizations expect their human resources and IT departments to merge within the next five years, largely because of advancements in AI.
At biotech firm Moderna, this shift is already in motion. The company’s chief people and digital technology officer, Tracey Franklin, oversees both IT and HR for its 5,000-plus employees. Her role covers traditional IT support as well as the digital tools needed for drug research, production, and sales.
Franklin says the old model kept HR focused on workforce planning and IT on fulfilling system requests. Her approach is different: she sees herself as a designer of workflows, evaluating how tasks move through the organization, when technology should take the lead, and how human skills fit alongside it.
Moderna partners with ChatGPT’s OpenAI and has trained all staff in using AI. The goal is to give employees the skills to reshape their processes, become confident AI users, and rethink how their work gets done. Franklin says her job is less about technical expertise in one area and more about setting a vision, managing resources, removing obstacles, and fostering a productive culture.
A similar integration has happened at Covisian, a customer service provider with 27,000 employees, most in call centers. In 2023, the company placed HR and IT under the leadership of Fabio Sattolo, formerly its CTO. Sattolo says combining the teams allows a unified strategy for developing both people and technology, ensuring staff can adapt to AI-driven tools while those tools are designed with human use in mind.
In call centers, for example, agents still interact with customers but hand off problem resolution to AI. According to Sattolo, training employees to use AI effectively is just as important as developing the technology itself. The combined structure has improved efficiency, with one leader able to quickly resolve conflicts between technical possibilities and HR requirements.
Sattolo admits cultural differences between HR and IT teams were the hardest hurdle, as communication styles often clashed. To bridge the gap, he appointed people with no strong ties to either discipline to guide mixed teams and mediate discussions.
However, not everyone is convinced that merging the departments is the right move. At Bunq, the HR and IT departments work differently but under the same broader team. Chief strategy officer Bianca Zwart says both build systems that support the wider business, making close cooperation natural.
The fintech firm aims to automate 90% of its operations by late 2025 without layoffs, using AI to handle repetitive tasks and freeing employees for more complex work.
David D’Souza from the CIPD warns that while collaboration makes sense, the two functions have distinct expertise that could be diluted if merged too closely. As AI firms like D-Wave Quantum Inc. (NYSE: QBTS) continue to bring innovative products to the market, more changes could happen in the way organizations are structured.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to D-Wave Quantum Inc. (NYSE: QBTS) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/QBTS
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