Bernie Borges speaks with Jess Smith, a former Chief People Officer and founder of Reframing HR, to explore one of the most overlooked challenges of the AI era: the identity crisis that follows a layoff. Jess shares her personal experience being laid off from Meta, how she rebuilt herself from the ground up, including becoming a certified Zumba instructor and launching a mobile fitness business, and what it taught her about leadership, humanity, and reinvention.
She introduces her ANCHOR Framework, a practical tool for leaders guiding teams through mass transformation, and offers a candid look at why protecting your identity from your job title may be the most important leadership skill of the decade.
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Who This Is For
This episode is for founders, CEOs, and senior executives leading Growth-stage companies navigating the disruption of AI-driven transformation. If you’re managing teams through restructuring, supporting people through layoffs, or quietly wrestling with your own sense of identity and purpose at the top, Jess’s framework and story will give you both the language and the tools to lead through it with humanity intact.In This Episode, You’ll Learn:
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About Jess Smith
Jessica Smith is a Chief People Officer with 15 years of experience leading global HR teams across Amazon, AWS, and Meta. She has guided organizations through large-scale transformation across the US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Europe, and Asia Pacific. In 2026, she completed MIT’s program in Leadership for the AI Age, deepening her expertise in how AI is reshaping organizations from the people side. She holds a BS in Finance from Hampton University and an MBA from IESE Business School in Barcelona, and is bilingual in English and Spanish. Today, Jess is the founder of Reframing HR, a platform built to help senior HR leaders shape — not just survive — the future of work.
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Main Takeaway
The most resilient leaders in the AI era are the ones who built an identity before the disruption hit. Jess Smith’s ANCHOR Framework offers a practical, human-centered path for executives to guide their teams — and themselves — through layoffs and transformation without losing what matters most.
Connect with Jess Smith
Website: https://www.reframinghr.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesssmithm/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leadershiplessons_from_life
📅 Book a Complimentary 30-Minute Strategy Session with Bernie
Life Fulfilled Podcast host Bernie Borges, offers a complimentary strategy session. Schedule yours here: https://calendly.com/midlife-fulfilled-podcast/employee-20-minute-strategy-call
Connect with Bernie Borges
Website: https://fulfilledatworkacademy.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bernieborges/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bernieborges/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bernieborges
Speaking: https://fulfilledatworkacademy.com/speaking/
Music attribution:
Old Bossa
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