Microsoft’s leadership exodus deepens as diversity chief departs — is the company’s “AI-powered transformation” to blame?

Lindsay-Rae McIntyre, Microsoft's Chief Diversity Officer, is set to leave the company on March 31, 2026. She's leaving the company to take on a new role as a chief people officer elsewhere, starting next month.

McIntyre will be replaced by Leslie Lawson Sims under a new title, Microsoft VP of People & Culture, and will be responsible for "accelerating the people team and shaping culture across the enterprise" (via Business Insider).

Amy Coleman, who became Microsoft's Chief People Officer in March 2025, indicated that: "We're in a time when technology, the way we work, and our org structures are all evolving. The pace of change is exceeding what our current operating model and decision rhythms were built for. We're no longer being asked to scale for stability; we need to scale for adaptability and help set a new pace."

According to an internal memo reviewed by Business Insider, Coleman’s announcement not only restructured the company’s HR team but also introduced promotions, compensation adjustments, and policy changes affecting roughly 220,000 employees.

Coleman is also responsible for Microsoft's 3-day return-to-office (RTO) plan for employees working within 50 miles of a Microsoft office late last month. While the reasoning behind this move was that employees tend to work best when collaborating in person, it's making traffic in Seattle unbearable during rush hours.

Interestingly, the major changes in Microsoft's HR department come as the company strives to keep up with the AI hype, especially in terms of funding and development of products.

Coleman indicated that Microsoft is going through an "AI transformation." However, it's unclear how the company's AI efforts are related to its HR department. Windows Central has reached out to Microsoft for a comment on this new development. I'll update with new information as it becomes available.

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