UPS CHRO shares the most important predictors of AI success
Date: February 5, 2026
When Darrell Ford stepped into the CHRO role at UPS in 2021, HR's transformation plan was late and $30 million off. The mandate was simple: fix the plan and modernize HR's agenda. That meant a disciplined reset, board-level accountability for talent strategy, and a new leadership model to guide assessment and advancement. The plan moved from a three-year window to five, with an annual reset. The bar keeps moving-by design.
Build the foundation first: clean data and capable HR
UPS is already a tech-heavy, data-heavy business. That culture helps. But Ford is blunt about the first predictor of AI success: clean data. "If you don't have clean data, AI doesn't work." UPS HR has prioritized data hygiene and expects to finish the heavy lift by the end of this quarter.
The second predictor: HR capability. Expectations have been raised. HR teams need skills in data, product thinking, and change execution to meet this moment. Without that, you get tools without impact.
For context on why data quality makes or breaks AI, see this perspective from HBR: If Your Data Is Bad, Your Machine-Learning Tools Are Useless.
Decide with a clear trade-off: service, cost, value
Ford's team makes technology decisions through a simple lens: improve employee experience, improve manager experience, and improve the bottom line. All three matter. That focus avoids tools that look good in demos but don't move outcomes.
Organize for humans + AI
Another predictor: how you design the work. HR and business leaders must define the handoff between people and AI-who does what, and why. UPS invested early in Digital Fluency for leaders and is now updating that training as tools mature. As Ford puts it, "We're well beyond concepts; we're into application."
- Document processes and decide where AI assists, recommends, or automates.
- Set guardrails, controls, and review steps tied to risk and impact.
- Train leaders to ask better questions and judge AI outputs, not just use a tool.
Pair CHRO + Tech early and often
Ford spends significant time with UPS' chief digital and technology officer. That relationship is about capability-building and preparing the company for change. Technology is part of the answer, but employees sit at the center. Without that, you get short-term wins and long-term drag.
Principles that make it stick
- Bias for action: ship something small, learn, expand.
- Truth teller: give the executive team the facts on data quality, talent gaps, and change readiness.
- Forward focus: improve what you inherit. Raise the standard every year.
- Business acumen: people strategy has to drive business outcomes, not sit beside them.
Ford's advice to peers: solve for what's unique in your business model and lean into those opportunities. That's where the "magic" is.
What to do next (a practical checklist)
- Data first: define system-of-records, standardize fields, fix IDs, de-duplicate, and set ownership for ongoing data hygiene.
- HR upskilling: build skills in data literacy, prompt writing, product ownership, legal/ethical use, and change execution. For structured paths by role, explore AI courses by job.
- Pick 3 high-value use cases: e.g., internal mobility matching, frontline scheduling, benefits Q&A. Attach a clear metric and a 90-day target.
- Joint operating rhythm: CHRO + CTO define architecture, access, security, and funding cadence together.
- Leadership training refresh: update your digital fluency content with live use cases and scorecards for adoption and impact.
- Quarterly review: retire what doesn't work, double-down on what does, and keep shipping.
AI success isn't mystery. Clean data, capable teams, clear trade-offs, and tight CHRO-tech partnership. Do that consistently, and HR doesn't just keep up-it steers the business.
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