Denise Cruz
“Lead with empathy and not with ego.”
Denise Cruz has been named to the Talent 100, Class of 2026, the annual award recognizing the 100 most exceptional leaders and practitioners in talent acquisition. Honorees are selected by the Talent 100 committee from thousands of nominations and candidates across the industry, chosen for the impact of their work, the depth of their craft, and their influence on the future of recruiting. This is Denise's story.
Denise Cruz didn't set out to build a career in talent acquisition; she was looking for something that would challenge her and allow her to connect people with careers, much like matching a product to a buyer in sales.
Her journey began at Washington Mutual, a bank that no longer exists but gave her the foundation she needed in HR. She was working in sales at the time and wanted something more fulfilling than closing deals. "I wanted something that would challenge me and also allow me to meet people and find them careers," she explains.
The work felt meaningful from the start. She moved up from coordination to sourcing, flexing what she calls her passion for HR along the way, and each step gave her a new way to connect talent with opportunity. Today, as HR Partner at Reddit, she is still working the same seam, matching people to the roles and the resources that fit them.
Learning From Great Leaders
Two people stand out in shaping Cruz's approach to talent and leadership. The first is Archie Ford, her current partner at Reddit, who brings a perspective that helps Cruz see her blind spots, especially around inclusivity. "He really allows me to see how we can bring light to underrepresented communities and impact them in a more meaningful way," she says.
One example came early in their partnership at Reddit, when the two set out to enhance the company's benefits programs. They focused on Caret, a fertility vendor, with the goal of making family forming benefits truly accessible. The obstacle was financial: underrepresented communities often struggled to front the $25,000 required before reimbursement. Ford pushed the provider to create a new solution, a format card that let employees tap into funds immediately. No upfront investment. No waiting for reimbursement. It was a small change with a big impact.
The second influence dates back to her Washington Mutual days. Albert Gonzalez, a partner from that era, is someone Cruz describes as bringing charm and happiness to everyone around him, and he helped her understand what truly matters in hiring: not just finding people with the right resume, but the right cultural fit. That lesson has stayed with her throughout her career.
AI as Enabler, Human as Safeguard
Cruz sees artificial intelligence as a powerful productivity tool, but one that requires human oversight. "AI is very much an enabler of productivity, but you really definitely need that human component to oversee quality controls," she says.
She points to a recent conference in San Diego where the conversation turned to AI's role in remote hiring. When you can't meet candidates in person, AI can help verify who is on the other side of the screen. It can also be weaponized. Attendees at the conference discussed cases where candidates used AI bots to impersonate themselves in interviews. Two interviews turned out to be with bots rather than real people, and the only tells were subtle movements and eerily similar answers. The person on screen looked real, but wasn't.
For Cruz, that is the argument for using the technology thoughtfully rather than fearfully. "Use AI to your advantage and have quality controls in place to ensure that you're not enabling bots into your system," she advises. The technology can accelerate processes, but humans still need to be the final checkpoint.
Building Inclusive Programs That Work
Cruz's work at Reddit reflects her commitment to removing barriers for underrepresented groups. The fertility benefits redesign is the clearest example, but it belongs to a broader philosophy: true inclusivity means more than offering benefits on paper, it means making them genuinely accessible.
That standard is demanding. It requires understanding the lived experiences of different communities. It requires partners like Ford who can surface what others might miss. And it requires a willingness to push vendors and systems to do better. For Cruz, enhancing programs isn't about checking a box; it's about creating meaningful impact.
Advice for Talent Leaders
Asked what advice she would give other talent leaders, Cruz's answer is direct: "Lead with empathy and not with ego."
As a leader, she believes the role is about removing roadblocks and enabling decision-making, empowering direct reports rather than centralizing control. Empathy allows leaders to see what their teams need. Ego gets in the way. It's a simple principle, but one that shapes everything from hiring philosophy to benefits design, and one Cruz has carried from her earliest days at Washington Mutual to her current work at Reddit.
The Through Line
From sales to sourcing to strategic HR leadership, Cruz's career has been defined by connection: between candidates and careers, between employees and the benefits they need, and between technology and the human judgment required to use it well.
She has built that career on the understanding that talent acquisition isn't just about filling roles. It's about creating systems that work for everyone, especially those who have historically been left out, and about leading with the kind of empathy that makes those systems not just functional, but fair.
The Talent 100 exists to celebrate the people shaping the future of how the world hires, and few embody that better than Denise. We are honored to welcome Denise Cruz to the Talent 100, Class of 2026, and grateful for the experience, perspective, and craft they bring to this community. Congratulations, Denise. Welcome to the Talent 100.
About the Talent 100
The Talent 100 is an annual list spotlighting the leaders who push HR and talent acquisition forward, organized by Noon AI. Honorees are selected through peer nominations and independent selection committees. Selection is entirely merit-based, with no fees or pay-to-play requirements.
