i4cp Announces Finalists for the 2026 Next Practice Awards
The i4cp 2026 Next Practice Awards recognize groundbreaking innovations in HR, talent, and workforce strategy—honoring organizations that have developed cutting-edge approaches to people practices and demonstrated remarkable business impact as a result.
In the most competitive year of this time-honored awards program, the 15 finalists exemplify the next practices that set high-performance companies apart; each was selected for extraordinary work in areas such as talent development, workforce transformation, wellbeing, culture renovation, and AI-powered strategies.
Announcing the 2026 Next Practice Award Finalists:
- 8x8 — Scaling Innovation Through an AI Hackathon: The Three Pillar AI Challenge
- BorgWarner — Reconnect: Energy-Based Well-Being Programs
- Bristol Myers Squibb — Wired for Growth: Transforming Talent Development through AI-Powered Skill Building
- Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and Medical Center — Transforming Talent Acquisition Through Automation, Engagement, and Experience
- Citizens Financial Group — Citizens Talent Matters: Building a Future-Ready Workforce Through Skills-First Growth
- Cox Enterprises — Cox Gigs: Minimum Hours, Maximum Experience Without Ever Leaving Your Day Job
- Dolby Laboratories — Elastic Talent at Dolby: The Art of Possibility, Not Policy
- E.W. Scripps — Scripps’ AI Enterprise Workforce Transformation
- Greif — Greif University: Building a Unified Global Culture of Leadership & Learning
- Lumen Technologies — Reinventing Performance through AI-Powered Goal Setting
- Lumen Technologies — Culture Renovation: Fueling Lumen’s Transformation
- Mondelēz International — Next-Generation Talent Acquisition Metrics & Recruiting Dashboard: Predicting & Optimizing Hiring with Data-Driven Insights & Governance
- Trane Technologies — Talent Without Limits: Trane Technologies' Skills-Based Hiring
- Veeam Software — Veeam Together: Reimagining Culture
- Zachry Corporation — Workplace Mental Health: Moving from Awareness to Action
The discovery of next practices—human capital strategies that are highly correlated with better market performance, but that most companies have not yet adopted—is a primary focus of i4cp’s research. To that end, i4cp looks to its community of member organizations to uncover world-class examples of next practices in action. This innovative group was chosen based on their ability to implement innovative workforce strategies that deliver significant ROI, advance their field, and support employees in meaningful ways.
Winners will be announced live at i4cp’s Next Practices Now Conference on April 1, 2026, in Scottsdale, AZ. Case studies featuring the finalist initiatives are available exclusively to i4cp members. Join i4cp in-person or virtually as we celebrate these industry trailblazers.
