The Human Edge: HR as a Competitive Advantage in the U.S.

HR as a Competitive Advantage in the U.S.: How Leading Companies Are Turning People Strategy Into Business Performance

FACC Columns

This edition of the magazine focuses on one central theme: people. Through the voices of FACC Texas members across industries, it explores what it means today to attract, develop, and retain talent, and why, in a market as competitive and complex as the United States, human resources has become one of the most powerful levers for business growth.

Key figures

• 69% of U.S. employers struggle to find the talent they need
• 39% of HR organizations have adopted AI
• 31% employee engagement in the U.S.
• 70% of employers now use skills-based hiring

A Labor Market That Is Turning

The United States is no longer the easy recruiting market that many French companies imagined when they first crossed the Atlantic. Two contradictory tensions are colliding in 2026: a persistent talent shortage and a historically low level of employee engagement. According to ManpowerGroup, 69% of U.S. employers are struggling to find the talent they need, while Gallup reports that employee engagement has fallen to 31%, one of its lowest levels in over a decade. For HR leaders, this is a paradox: companies cannot find the people they need, and the people they have are increasingly disengaged. Navigating this tension is the defining challenge of 2026, one that places recognition, development, and employee experience at the core of any serious people strategy, as companies like Inspirus – a Pluxee Company are demonstrating every day.

AI Is Reshaping Work, Not Just HR Processes

The question is no longer whether to adopt artificial intelligence, but how to redesign work around it. Yet the gap between ambition and reality remains striking: only 1% of organizations believe they are using AI well enough to generate real business impact, and 54% of HR teams have still taken no concrete steps. The regulatory landscape adds complexity: with no federal law governing AI in hiring, a patchwork of state regulations is emerging across New York City, California, Illinois, and Colorado. For French companies expanding into the U.S., this fragmentation is often discovered too late.

The Diploma Is Fading, Skills Are Rising

Seventy percent of U.S. employers now use skills-based hiring, yet research from Harvard Business School reveals that fewer than one in 700 hires at companies that have removed degree requirements is actually a non-degreed candidate. The rules of the game are changing, but their application has yet to follow. Bridging that gap requires stronger partnerships between employers and universities, precisely the work that Rice University's Center for Career Development is doing, connecting students with companies across the FACC Texas network.

Immigration: A New Strategic Variable

For French companies staffing their U.S. operations with international talent, immigration has become one of the most volatile variables in their HR strategy. A $100,000 fee on new H-1B petitions was struck down by a federal judge in June 2026, only for the same judge to stay his own ruling days later, reinstating the fee pending appeal. As of this writing, it remains in effect. Meanwhile, a new salary-weighted H-1B lottery and proposed increases to minimum salary thresholds are reshaping the landscape. Immigration can no longer be an afterthought, it must be integrated into workforce planning from day one, as Foster LLP advises its clients every day.

A Federal Rollback, a State-Level Surge

At the federal level, 2026 has brought significant deregulation: the overtime threshold was restored to $35,568, the FTC's non-compete ban was formally removed from federal regulations in February 2026, and the EEOC has proposed eliminating mandatory EEO-1 reporting. On DEI, public disclosures among Fortune 500 companies have fallen by 65% following executive orders in 2025 and 2026. Yet at the state level, 18 states now require salary transparency, and AI hiring regulations are multiplying. Companies like Viridien are showing that sustaining an inclusive culture remains a genuine competitive advantage in attracting specialized talent, regardless of the political climate.

Texas: Where the Talent Tension Is Most Acute

For FACC Texas members, these national dynamics are amplified by the state's own momentum. Texas employment is projected to grow 1.1% in 2026, driven by construction, AI data centers, and energy. The Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex has been ranked by CBRE as the most attractive data center market in North America, while Texas statewide is attracting billions in hyperscale investment from El Paso to San Antonio. The talent profiles most sought after by French companies here, engineers, data scientists, technical operators, bilingual professionals, are precisely the ones in shortest supply.

Source : Gartner, "Top Priorities for CHROs 2026" — gartner.com/en/human-resources/trends/top-priorities-for-hr-leaders