Monique Hermon
Serco
“HR is on the front line. If we're not aligned on what the talent needs are, we miss the mark.”
Monique Hermon has been named to the Talent 100, Class of 2026, the annual award recognizing up to 100 leaders in each category of talent acquisition. Honorees are nominated by peers or found by committees that look for excellent work wherever it happens, then chosen for the depth of their craft and their impact on hiring. This is Monique's story.
Monique Hermon didn't set out to work in talent acquisition. In fact, when the opportunity first presented itself, her answer was a firm no. Her career had always lived in the HR business partner space, deeply embedded in the business, advising leaders, supporting teams, and navigating change from the front lines. So when her organization began restructuring to improve efficiency and alignment, and her Chief People Officer saw an opportunity in the shift, Hermon was not looking for a new remit.
“I think Talent Acquisition can move into Business HR,” her CPO said. Hermon initially brushed it off. Then the question came again, this time as she and her CPO were working through their HR operating model, and she paused long enough to consider it seriously.
What she found, as she reflected on the friction points she had experienced for years, was an argument she could not talk herself out of. The handoffs between HRBPs and recruiters. The gaps in ownership. The lack of shared context. Talent acquisition wasn't separate from the business or the HR function. It was inseparable from it.
“I fell into it not by choice,” she says. “What began reluctantly ultimately became the best outcome.”
Bridging the Gap Between HR and Recruiting
Since stepping into TA leadership, Hermon's focus has been singular: alignment. For her, recruiting doesn't live in a silo. It sits at the intersection of business strategy, workforce planning, and employee experience. And because she came to the work from the HRBP side, she brings a perspective grounded in partnership rather than transaction.
“HR is on the front line,” she explains. “If we're not aligned on what the talent needs are, we miss the mark.”
That philosophy has guided her work over the past year as she has led efforts to close the gaps between recruiters, HR partners, and the business, ensuring everyone is operating with shared goals, shared language, and shared accountability.
Leading Through an AI-Driven Shift
Over the past year, Hermon has watched the recruiting landscape change rapidly, particularly with the acceleration of AI. While fear has dominated many conversations, she has never viewed the technology as a threat. “I don't look at it as replacement,” she says. “I look at it as support.”
Her organization recently implemented AI across its recruiting infrastructure, including updates to its ATS, chatbot integrations, and internal tools like Microsoft Copilot. The impact has been immediate, not just operationally, but culturally. “The excitement from the team has been incredible,” she says. “People are realizing what they're capable of.”
The harder work, in her view, sits elsewhere. The challenge isn't convincing recruiters. It's bringing business leaders along for the journey, helping them see technology not as disruption, but as leverage.
Advice for Talent Leaders Heading Into 2026
As TA continues to evolve, Hermon's advice is straightforward: lean in. “You can't break AI,” she says. “Play with it. Learn it. Share what you discover.”
She is equally clear that AI isn't a one-size-fits-all solution. Certain markets, geographies, and talent pools still require traditional, relationship-driven approaches, and the key is balance, using technology to extend reach rather than replace human connection. “Use AI as leverage,” she explains. “Ask yourself what markets you can't reach today, and how it might help you get there.”
She also encourages leaders to find communities where others are experimenting, succeeding, and learning openly. “Be vulnerable enough to say you don't know,” she says. “That's how you grow.”
Leading at Scale, With Intention
Today, Hermon leads a team of approximately 40, including about a dozen HR business partners and managers, alongside a large recruiting organization. Her leadership style is rooted in trust, curiosity, and accountability, shaped equally by the best and worst examples she has experienced.
For Hermon, talent acquisition isn't just about filling roles. It's about partnership, alignment, and ensuring the business never forgets that people are at the center of everything it's trying to build. And sometimes, the best career moves are the ones you didn't plan, but chose to embrace anyway.
The Talent 100 exists to celebrate the people shaping the future of how the world hires, and few embody that better than Monique. We are honored to welcome Monique Hermon to the Talent 100, Class of 2026, and grateful for the experience, perspective, and craft they bring to this community. Congratulations, Monique. 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.
