At the beginning of 2026, Brandon Hall Group™ CEO Mike Cooke described this as the “Year of Progression.”
His observation reflected what we have been seeing across our research, advisory engagements, and conversations with organizations around the world.
“The old playbook assumed you could sequence your initiatives: implement this technology, then upskill your people, then work on culture. That assumption is dead.”
Organizations today are facing multiple challenges simultaneously. Artificial intelligence is reshaping work. Skills requirements continue to evolve. Leadership expectations are changing. Employee experience has become a competitive differentiator. The pressure to improve performance while maintaining agility has never been greater.
The organizations succeeding in this environment are not waiting for change to slow down. They are building the capability to advance continuously.
That is progression.
The Evolution of Our Progression Research
Last fall, Brandon Hall Group introduced the AI Progression Model for Empowering HR Excellence. Built from research with 1,000 HR and business professionals worldwide, the model provided a structured roadmap for organizations seeking to advance their AI maturity and realize measurable business value from AI investments. The research showed that nearly half of organizations remain in the earliest stages of AI maturity, while only a small percentage have achieved advanced levels of adoption and optimization.
What made the AI Progression Model so valuable was not simply its focus on technology. The model demonstrated that successful advancement depends on leadership, governance, people, skills, process maturity, and organizational readiness just as much as technology itself.
That research led us to a broader realization.
Every critical business function follows a progression.
Organizations advance through identifiable stages of maturity. They face predictable challenges. They develop specific capabilities. They build upon previous successes. The organizations that outperform their peers understand where they are and what it takes to move forward.
This realization became the foundation for our expanded Progression Model research.
A New Series of Progression Models for HR Excellence
Brandon Hall Group is now expanding the Progression Model framework across the functions that have the greatest impact on organizational performance.
Learning & Development Progression Model
Many organizations invest heavily in learning but struggle to connect those investments to business outcomes. The Learning & Development Progression Model for HR Excellence helps leaders understand how L&D evolves from a reactive training function into a strategic capability that drives workforce readiness, performance improvement, culture development, and long-term competitive advantage. The model identifies the capabilities, governance, technologies, and operating practices that distinguish high-performing learning organizations from the rest of the market.
https://web.brandonhall.com/learning-development-progression-model-for-empowering-hr-excellence
Talent Management Progression Model
Talent management has become increasingly complex as organizations face skills shortages, workforce mobility, succession challenges, and changing employee expectations. The Talent Management Progression Model for HR Excellence helps organizations assess whether their talent practices are truly integrated and aligned with business strategy. It provides a roadmap for moving beyond isolated talent programs toward a comprehensive talent ecosystem that supports growth, retention, and organizational resilience.
https://web.brandonhall.com/talent-management-progression-model-for-empowering-hr-excellence
Human Resources Progression Model
HR leaders are under constant pressure to deliver both operational excellence and strategic business impact. The Human Resources Progression Model for HR Excellence shows how HR evolves from an administrative support function into a proactive strategic partner that influences business performance, workforce planning, organizational effectiveness, and transformation. It helps organizations identify the structures, governance, analytics capabilities, and technologies required to elevate HR’s role within the enterprise.
https://web.brandonhall.com/human-resources-progression-model-for-empowering-hr-excellence
Talent Acquisition Progression Model
Recruiting has become one of the most competitive challenges organizations face. The Talent Acquisition Progression Model for HR Excellence examines how organizations move from transactional hiring practices to strategic talent acquisition functions that improve quality of hire, strengthen employer brand, accelerate workforce growth, and create sustainable talent pipelines. The model helps leaders identify the capabilities needed to compete effectively in increasingly dynamic labor markets.
https://web.brandonhall.com/talent-acquisition-progression-model-for-empowering-hr-excellence
Leadership Development Progression Model
Organizations consistently tell us that leadership capability remains one of their most important priorities and one of their biggest gaps. The Leadership Development Progression Model for HR Excellence provides a framework for developing leaders at every level of the organization. It helps organizations move beyond episodic leadership training toward systematic leadership development strategies that build stronger pipelines, increase organizational agility, and prepare future leaders for increasingly complex business environments.
https://web.brandonhall.com/leadership-development-progression-model-for-empowering-hr-excellence
Rewards & Recognition Progression Model
Recognition and rewards programs often struggle to keep pace with changing workforce expectations. The Rewards & Recognition Progression Model for HR Excellence helps organizations understand how recognition evolves from occasional programs into a strategic driver of engagement, performance, retention, and culture. The model highlights the practices used by organizations that successfully connect recognition to business objectives while creating more meaningful employee experiences.
https://web.brandonhall.com/rewards-and-recognition-progression-model-for-empowering-hr-excellence
Progression Is Not a Project
One of the most important lessons from our research is that progression is not a project with a defined start and finish.
It is an operating philosophy.
Organizations that consistently outperform their peers understand that improvement is continuous. They measure where they are today, identify the capabilities needed tomorrow, and build the systems, processes, leadership, and culture required to advance.
As Mike Cooke noted in the HR Outlook report:
“The organizations that treat progression as their operating system, that build the muscle to sense, adapt, and execute continuously, won’t just survive this era. They’ll define it.”
That belief is at the heart of Brandon Hall Group’s Progression Model research initiative.
Begin Your Progression Journey
Each Progression Model includes a complimentary Research Summary designed to help leaders understand current market realities, benchmark their organizations, and identify opportunities for advancement.
Explore the latest research:
- Learning & Development Progression Model
- Talent Management Progression Model
- Human Resources Progression Model
- Talent Acquisition Progression Model
- Leadership Development Progression Model
- Rewards & Recognition Progression Model
You can also explore the AI Progression Model, the research that launched this initiative and continues to help organizations understand how to advance their AI maturity while preserving the human elements that drive performance.
The future is arriving faster than ever. The organizations that thrive will not be those waiting for stability. They will be those committed to continuous progression.
