2025: the year HR started coding

2025: The Year HR Started Coding

Birds aren't supposed to swim.

HR people aren't supposed to build.

I did both anyway.

This was my year of daring to actually learn and define the journey that works.

The tools I actually learned to use:

• SAP Joule (knowledge management that actually works)
• Copilot Studio (in-house custom agents for HR workflows)
• Claude Code (my personal favorite - writes better Python than I ever will, allows to actually ideate and make nicely looking html decks)
• Azure ML & Google ML (because vendor lock-in is for cowards)
• Replit (prototypes in minutes, not weeks)
• n8n (automation without begging IT)
• PowerApps (turns out low-code isn't a dirty word)
• Python deep-dive 🐍 (finally got comfortable with IDEs and actually running solutions even for smaller tasks)

The skills mapping tool? Built it. Performance Management Q&A bot? Ready. The Job evaluator bot that used to take 3 days? 20 minutes. Your well-designed interactive decks for any purpose? Done.

The uncomfortable truth: None of this required budgets or permission from above. Just curiosity and willingness to fail repeatedly. (And I did. A lot.)

The barrier was imaginary all along. 💭

Every tool you learned make the next one easier. Knowledge compounds when you actually apply it. By December, I was solving problems I wouldn't have understood in January.

❓ But why do and learn all of this? Because you can't teach what you don't know. You can't change culture from the sidelines

Dare yourself to build

when you only know how to plan.

Write code

when you're paid for spreadsheets.

Fail publicly

when you're hired to be the expert.

Learn freely

when mastery is assumed.

They'll say: Stay in your lane.

Birds don't swim. HR doesn't code.

Dare anyway.

Swim, bird. 🦅🌊

(inspired by Swim Bird from Blue Prince)