Sakita Douglas
Interim Chief People Officer
Harris County
Episode 372
Public Sector HR: How AI & Data Are Transforming Government Talent
Current chapter: Covering monthly expenses is the number one concern for employees in 2024
Built By PeopleDecember 19, 2024 · 17:37
Thesis
“HR transformation, especially in large and complex public sector organizations, is an ongoing modernization effort that requires leveraging technology, AI, and data-driven insights to create holistic talent strategies that address the evolving needs of a diverse, multi-generational workforce.”
Show notes
Harris County has nearly 20,000 employees, 90 departments, 5 bosses in commissioners court plus a county administrator—and until Sakita Douglas arrived in 2021, no one had ever held the title of Chief HR Executive. She was building the plane while flying it, and she did it in one of the most complex organizational structures in American government.
Douglas's conversation surfaces the pressures that are unique to public sector HR at scale: a workforce that's rapidly becoming majority Gen Z (across five simultaneous generations), average tenures dropping from 18+ years to 7–10, and roles ranging from auto mechanics to epidemiologists to law enforcement that each carry their own recruiting challenges. The response she's built is systematic: an end-to-end human capital management system, AI-powered talent acquisition tools, predictive workforce analytics, and a modernized benefits philosophy that accounts for the fact that what a Boomer needs from their employer looks nothing like what a Gen Z employee is looking for—sometimes including IVF coverage and pet insurance.
Her most direct observation: stakeholder alignment is the constraint that governs all of this. It doesn't matter how sophisticated your HR transformation roadmap is—if your six bosses don't believe it's important, it's not happening. That political reality shapes her approach to every initiative she builds.
- Standing up the inaugural CHRO function inside a 200-year-old public institution with decentralized HR and complex stakeholder dynamics
- Managing five generations simultaneously—including a workforce rapidly shifting toward Gen Z majority with fundamentally different benefit expectations
- AI in government HR: using algorithmic tools for talent acquisition and predictive analytics to shift from reactive to future-ready decisions
- Building internal talent pipelines as average tenures shorten from 18 years to 7–10
- Benefits modernization for generational diversity: designing packages across the full lifecycle from IVF to retirement
- Stakeholder alignment as the ultimate constraint: why no HR transformation succeeds without belief from the top
Built by People is brought to you by Previ, a no-cost voluntary benefit that saves employees over $1,200 a year on household expenses.
What you'll take away
- 1Public sector HR transformation demands a multi-year modernization focused on technology, data, and comprehensive talent strategies to move from legacy, decentralized models.
- 2Effectively managing a multi-generational workforce requires deliberately modernizing benefits and creating flexible career paths to meet diverse employee priorities and address changing tenure expectations.
- 3Implementing AI tools and strengthening workforce analytics are critical for shifting HR from reactive to predictive decision-making, particularly in talent acquisition and development.
- 4Successful large-scale HR initiatives necessitate strong stakeholder alignment and buy-in, especially in complex organizational structures with multiple reporting lines and department leaders.
- 5Proactively building internal talent pipelines and development programs is essential for retention, anticipating shorter average employee tenures compared to historical norms.
What most organizations get wrong
In Sakita's words
“Well, at Harris County, I have 6 bosses. I have 5 members of commissioners court and the county administrator who I report to on a day-to-day basis. And so I think that's probably the greatest difference...”
Highlights the unique challenge of HR leadership in a public sector context with complex reporting structures.
“Currently, we have 5 generations in our workforce, and our workforce is very quickly becoming majority Gen Z. And of the 5 generations, their priorities are very different.”
Emphasizes the critical challenge of catering to a rapidly shifting and generationally diverse workforce.
“We're, we're looking, we're using AI tools in talent acquisition, identifying algorithms to be able to effectively vet and identify candidates better. That's just one area.”
Illustrates a specific, actionable application of AI within HR to improve recruitment efficiency.
“Our newer generations don't want to work anywhere necessarily for that long. And so they want to know, hey, how do I, how do I move in my career?”
Captures the evolving expectations of modern employees regarding career progression and tenure.
“If your stakeholders don't believe it's important, I don't care where you work, right? It's not happening.”
Underscores the absolute necessity of leadership and stakeholder buy-in for successful HR transformation initiatives.
The problems this episode addresses
- •Navigating complex stakeholder landscapes with often misaligned priorities in large public sector organizations (e.g., 6 bosses, 90 department 'CEOs').
- •Modernizing legacy, decentralized HR models into comprehensive, strategic, and technology-driven service delivery.
- •Designing benefit packages that effectively meet the diverse and sometimes conflicting needs of a multi-generational workforce (e.g., IVF/pet insurance for Gen Z vs. retirement planning for Boomers).
- •Developing intentional internal career pathways and fostering internal mobility as traditional long employee tenures (18+ years) decrease to 7-10 years.
- •Recruiting and retaining talent in high-demand, specialized roles like auto mechanics and law enforcement within a large public entity.
- •Transitioning from reactive HR decision-making to predictive insights using workforce analytics and AI.
- •Securing consistent stakeholder belief and support for ongoing HR transformation as a multi-year endeavor.
In this episode
Covering monthly expenses is the number one concern for employees in 2024
Built by People
Dave Schumacher has spent nearly 30 years in human resources
Top HR Executives on Their Career Journey
You made a transition from the private sector to the public sector
Harris County's Chief HR Executive Discusses the Transition
How do you ensure hiring the talent the organization needs while balancing the desires of employees
Harris County Human Resources: The modernization challenge
Sikita Saketa says Harris County's HR transformation is ongoing
Harris County Human Resources Director Saketa On Ending Her Career
Topics covered
Organizations and entities mentioned
Full transcript
Expand transcript (0 words)
Transcript is not available yet.