Jennifer Curtis
Jennifer Curtis
VP Talent Acquisition, NAM - Schneider Electric
For Jennifer Curtis, a career in talent acquisition began far from the world of recruiting.
Her professional journey started as an engineer in the energy management industry, where she spent the first several years of her career working in global supply chain and negotiating electrical commodity contracts.
At the time, a move into human resources seemed anything but conventional.
“I started as an engineer and worked in global supply chain for the first five years of my career.”
While leading a development program within the business, Jennifer gained exposure to HR and was approached about joining the function. Although it represented a significant career shift, the opportunity aligned with her growing interest in leadership, organizational development, and people strategy.
As she completed her MBA and expanded her experience across multiple HR disciplines, Jennifer discovered that she was most energized by the Center of Excellence side of HR.
That realization eventually led her into talent acquisition, where she began leading employer branding and early career programs before recently stepping into her current role leading North America Talent Attraction for Schneider Electric.
Learning from Leaders Who Drive Change
Throughout her career, Jennifer has been fortunate to learn from leaders who helped shape how she approaches talent acquisition and organizational strategy.
One of the most influential has been Jean Pelletier, a global talent acquisition technology leader at Schneider Electric.
Jennifer credits Jean with helping her understand how technology, process, and people intersect to create effective talent organizations.
“People, process, and technology.”
While simple on the surface, Jennifer says those three pillars have become a guiding framework throughout her career.
Jean's ability to bridge complex technology concepts with practical business outcomes helped Jennifer better understand how talent acquisition can evolve while remaining focused on the people it serves.
Another major influence has been Melinda Valega, Jennifer's former leader and predecessor.
When Melinda retired, Jennifer stepped into the role she had spent years preparing for under her mentorship.
What stood out most was Melinda's focus on business alignment.
Rather than operating talent acquisition as a high-volume, transactional function, she challenged the organization to build deeper partnerships with the business.
Under her leadership, recruiters became consultants and advisors who understood the functions they supported, developed expertise within specific talent segments, and built stronger relationships with hiring leaders.
“She taught me how important it is to align talent acquisition to the business.”
That lesson continues to influence Jennifer's leadership philosophy today.
Embracing AI with Purpose
Like many talent leaders, Jennifer sees artificial intelligence as one of the most significant developments shaping the future of recruiting.
But rather than viewing AI as a replacement for recruiters, she sees it as an opportunity to eliminate repetitive work and elevate the strategic value of talent acquisition teams.
“There’s a lot of excitement.”
For Jennifer, the greatest opportunity lies in reducing the manual and administrative tasks that often consume recruiters' time.
By automating routine activities and streamlining workflows, recruiters can focus more on the aspects of the role that create the most value—consulting with hiring managers, building talent strategies, and delivering exceptional candidate experiences.
She also sees tremendous potential in leveraging AI capabilities already embedded within existing technology platforms.
Rather than constantly adding new tools, Jennifer believes organizations should focus on maximizing the value of their current technology investments while working closely with partners to shape future capabilities.
As organizations evaluate new vendors and solutions in the coming years, she expects AI capabilities to become a standard part of the conversation.
Advice for Talent Leaders in 2026
As the industry continues navigating rapid technological change, Jennifer encourages leaders to remain curious, adaptable, and open-minded.
“Continue to be open and improve your learning agility.”
She believes talent leaders must embrace experimentation and accept that there is no established playbook for the future.
Organizations will need to test new approaches, learn from failures, and continuously evolve as technology advances.
Jennifer often compares today's AI revolution to the early days of the internet.
At the time, many organizations were uncertain about how the technology would impact business and society. Looking back, those concerns seem almost unimaginable given how deeply the internet is woven into everyday life.
She believes artificial intelligence may follow a similar trajectory.
“We’re at the very beginning.”
For talent leaders, that means maintaining a growth mindset, helping teams adapt to change, and creating environments where learning and experimentation are encouraged.
By combining technical curiosity, business alignment, and a people-first approach to innovation, Jennifer Curtis represents the kind of talent leader helping organizations navigate the future of work while staying grounded in what matters most: people.
