As M1 wraps up its first year, the numbers tell a powerful story.
Already, the M1 CHRO community, a Modern Executive Solutions company, has reached 400 members from 27 countries, averaging 75,000 employees per company. Since last November, nearly 200 M1 members have joined one of the community's in-person meetings for more than 500 hours of discussion, content, and networking across 36 different in-person meetings and multiple virtual gatherings. The newly launched M1 community for talent leaders has already topped 150 members.
From the ski lifts of Andorra to robotics warehouses in Boston; from insight-packed office sessions in London, Paris, and Johannesburg to New York, Seattle, and Singapore; across mental health offsites, longevity retreats, and birthday celebrations in destinations like the U.K.'s Cotswolds, Santa Barbara, Calif., and Barcelona, Spain; M1 members have gathered to share best practices, deepen relationships, and forge a new breed of executive network built on both exclusive peer-only gatherings and first-of-its-kind technology tools.
"After bringing CHROs together around the world for more than a decade, I knew the potential for this community was enormous," says Larry Emond, a senior partner with Modern Executive Solutions who leads community engagement and is a co-founder of M1. "But it has all exceeded even my loftiest expectations—the velocity of our growth, how tight-knit the community has become, and how much value CHROs say our in-person gatherings consistently deliver."
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ArcelorMittal Head of Human Resources Stephanie Werner-Dietz, a member of M1, says she has found the community’s networking to be very beneficial; the meetings’ content and discussions inspiring, helpful, and relevant; and that “I always take back learnings and new thoughts. The atmosphere always welcomes everyone to contribute.” She’s appreciated having access to companies like Unmind and Valence which have supported M1 meetings as sponsors and helped her “establish a view on what is available on the market.”
Charise Le, the CHRO of Schneider Electric and an M1 member, calls the M1 CHRO Community "a powerful catalyst in navigating the fast-changing landscape we operate in.” She says “I particularly value the peer exchange, which brings fresh perspectives on shared challenges and emerging trends—from talent strategy and digital transformation to organizational agility and executive leadership. The digital platform consistently delivers insightful and forward-looking content. It’s a space that fosters strategic thinking, connection, and continuous learning—something I truly appreciate as a CHRO.”
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Meeting hosts over the past year have included Starbucks' Sara Kelly, Nordstrom's Lisa Price, Cummins’ Marvin Boakye, Merck KGaA's Khadija Ben Hammada, and Adecco Group's Daniela Seabrook, just to name a few. In addition to generous sponsorship from Valence and Unmind, supporting organizations such as Guild and Beamery have helped create the space for invaluable conversations about AI coaching, mental health, workforce skills, and more.
By far, the dominant conversation of the year centered on artificial intelligence—and all the ways it's reshaping headcount, leadership roles, the tasks of employees, and the nature of work itself. CHROs, who are increasingly taking on expansive portfolios as enterprise leaders and driving transformations with other CxOs as AI revolutionizes work, spoke frequently about how their roles are evolving, how they're transforming their organizational strategy and design, and even what their titles will be as they manage both human and digital workforces. Other critical conversations focused on how the Trump administration's policies have been reshaping HR strategy, how CHROs are communicating with their teams and workforces, and the essential work of developing leaders for tomorrow.
In September, M1 officially rolled out a trial of M1 Intelligence, an HR-specific, enterprise-grade AI launched with Atlas Copilot to bring members a new layer of insight, context, and AI-powered support enhanced by the community's exclusive content.
Most recently, M1 was thrilled to launch its second official community for talent executives, which includes heads of talent, talent acquisition, talent management, exec TA, and learning. Already, the community has grown to more than 150 members and M1 plans to expand into additional CxO communities. Also in the works: New ways to convene and learn about the disruptive powers of AI on HR, which M1 is excited to share more about soon.
With momentum accelerating and innovation driving every decision, M1 is poised to redefine what executive networks can achieve as it enters its second year. “M1 is ushering in entirely new ways to access the wisdom of true global peers in real time, with AI assisted intelligence and member connection,” said Rick Smith, M1's general manager and co-founder who previously founded the global executive communities World 50 and ONYX. “I’m more excited than ever about the innovative platform we’re building.”
