A businessâs most valuable asset is its people. In addition to attracting and hiring the right talent, businesses need to make sure theyâre retaining talent, succession planning, bridging skill gaps, and developing leaders. And thereâs only one leadership role that can have such an all-encompassing view of the organizationâs people needs: a chief people officer (CPO).
A chief people officer is the head of the HR department at an organization. Below, weâll explain what the CPO is responsible for, why companies need one, and the skills chief people officers need to have to successfully lead a businessâs people strategy.
The role of chief people officer (CPO) has rapidly grown in prominence over the last decade. As organizations increasingly recognize that their people represent their most valuable asset they are elevating the human resources function to be core to business strategy. This has led to the creation of the CPO role tasked with overseeing all aspects of human capital and the employee experience.
But what exactly does a CPO do day-to-day, and why should someone aspire to this strategic leadership position? Here are the top reasons to pursue a career as a chief people officer:
Shape Company Culture
The CPO has tremendous influence over an organization’s culture, which is critical for attracting and retaining top talent while also driving high performance As CPO, you get to architect programs, policies, and initiatives that define the company’s cultural identity and engagement
Whether it’s leading diversity and inclusion efforts, implementing learning and development opportunities, revamping performance management processes, or modernizing workspace design, the CPO impacts all elements of culture. You can foster the type of inclusive, high-trust environment that brings out the best in people.
Lead Strategically
As a member of the C-suite, the CPO has a strategic seat at the executive leadership table. You get to participate in broader business decisions rather than just execute tactically in a siloed domain.
With your finger on the pulse of the workforce, you can provide valuable insights on how potential moves may impact employees and culture. Rather than just aligning HR to business strategy, you get to actively shape strategy with people priorities in mind.
Create Competitive Advantage
Top talent has more employment options than ever before. To attract and retain the best people, organizations need standout employee experiences and compelling employer brands. This is where the CPO comes in.
By crafting differentiated pay and benefits packages, leadership development programs, diversity initiatives, and innovative perks, you can make your company an employer of choice versus competitors. Investing in human capital excellence through progressive CPO leadership breeds competitive advantage.
Make a Bigger Impact
As CPO, your sphere of influence is exponentially larger than individual contributor HR roles. Your vision and programs have the potential to positively impact thousands of employees across the enterprise.
Enabling professional growth, nurturing inclusion, improving well-being, and building winning cultures at scale allows you to truly make your mark. The CPO role allows high-impact HR leaders to spread their wings and see their employee engagement strategies come to life.
Accelerate Your Career
Landing a CPO role represents an ambitious step upward on the HR career ladder. It provides opportunities for greater compensation, responsibility, visibility, and career development that surpass director or VP levels.
The experience gained in the CPO chair can open doors to other elite roles like Chief Administrative Officer or Chief Operating Officer. It also deepens your strategic leadership capabilities for general management.
Implement Innovation
The CPO role allows HR trailblazers to drive innovation in their organizations. You get to pilot new technologies like AI recruiting tools, employee engagement apps, personalized learning platforms, and people analytics dashboards.
By experimenting with cutting-edge solutions, you can usher your company into the digital-first, data-driven future of people management before competitors. The CPO is empowered to make bold bets on disruptive tech and processes.
Develop Professionally
The breadth of responsibility inherent in the CPO role provides impactful professional development opportunities. Overseeing complex HR functions like talent acquisition, learning, total rewards, and analytics makes you a well-rounded leader.
Exposure to C-level peers and board-level strategic issues also accelerates development. And being at the forefront of the latest HR innovations keeps your skills sharp. The role never stops challenging you.
Make People Central
For HR professionals driven by a passion for people, the CPO role allows you to keep human concerns at the heart of business priorities. You get to view all aspects of the organization through the lens of nurturing and uplifting employees.
Rather than treating talent as a cost center, you make it a driver of value creation and competitive differentiation. The emphasis is on human potential, well-being, inclusion, and engagement.
Gain Visibility
In the CPO role, you serve as the public face of HR for the company, interfacing with the board, investors, media, and other external stakeholders. This provides a high degree of visibility within the organization and even externally.
You will have opportunities to share your vision at town halls, company events, and industry conferences. This visibility and personal brand building can generate exciting options down the road.
Be Compensated Well
Given the strategic nature and complex scope of the CPO role, compensation packages are robust. In addition to generous base salaries exceeding $200-300K, short-term incentives and long-term equity allow for total compensation ranging from $500K to over $1M at large enterprises.
While pay varies considerably based on company size and industry, in general the CPO role represents a lucrative peak within the HR function for seasoned professionals.
Challenges of the Role
Despite the many upsides, pursuing a CPO role is not without its challenges. Here are some of the common drawbacks and tradeoffs to be aware of:
- Being the face of unpopular policies or changes
- Inheriting dysfunctional teams or cultures
- Intense scrutiny from executives and investors
- Pressure to quantify all people decisions
- Higher career risk if initiatives underperform
- Sacrificing domain expertise for generalist role
- Minimal direct interaction with individual employees
- Complex global responsibilities at large companies
- High degree of accountability but potentially limited authority
However, for many HR leaders these potential downsides are outweighed by the positive impacts possible as chief people officer.
Becoming a Successful CPO
Based on the typical responsibilities and competencies of high-performing CPOs, what are some keys to excelling in this role?
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Project executive presence – You are now an influential C-suite peer and must confidently hold your own.
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Obsess over data – Leverage analytics to diagnose issues, guide strategies and measure success.
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Master storytelling – Inspire and persuade stakeholders through compelling narratives.
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Build relationships – Nurture connections and trust across the leadership team and company.
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Promote inclusion – Ensure diversity and belonging are ingrained throughout the organization.
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Question norms – Continuously re-examine programs and policies; don’t accept the status quo.
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See around corners – Anticipate trends, risks and future opportunities.
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Connect on a human level – Never lose touch with the employee experience and what motivates people.
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Align to strategy – Ensure people programs directly support business goals and desired culture.
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Champion technology – Aggressively integrate innovations to enable data-driven, personalized employee experiences.
Making the Leap to CPO
For senior HR professionals aspiring to land their first CPO appointment, here are some tips:
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Take on interim CPO assignments to gain experience and increase visibility.
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Develop a point of view on industry trends and best practices to establish thought leadership.
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Build external personal brand through speaking engagements, articles and social media.
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Expand domain expertise beyond HR into areas like operations, finance and IT.
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Seek board of director roles to bolster strategic credentials.
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Gather buy-in from key stakeholders on long-term people vision and strategy.
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Highlight results achieved and programs created; quantify everything possible.
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Express clear aspirations for CPO role to recruiters and network contacts.
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Join CPO peer groups and relationships with sitting CPOs.
With deliberate career planning, robust experience, executive poise and unwavering commitment to human capital strategy, HR leaders can earn the coveted CPO title.
The chief people officer role represents an incredibly influential position within modern organizations. As the HR function grows increasingly strategic, the CPO has the opportunity to enact programs that shape culture, drive performance, provide competitive advantage and elevate the entire employee lifecycle. For HR professionals passionate about having broad impact, there are few roles that offer more upside than becoming a transformative chief people officer.
Who do chief people officers report to?
The chief people officer typically reports to the companyâs chief executive officer (CEO), as the CPO needs to understand how the company is performing and where the business is headed in order to set the organizationâs human capital strategy. Additionally, having the head of the companyâs ear can ensure that employee experience remains top-of-mind for the organization.Â
But in order for the CPO-CEO relationship to benefit both parties, they need to prioritize communication and trust. Only then can the CEO and CPO work as a team to ensure they attract, develop, and retain the talent the business needs to grow and succeed.Â
What does a chief people officer do?Â
A chief people officer, also called a chief human resources officer or vice president of people, is the head of HR at a company. A member of the executive leadership team, the CPO is responsible for setting and overseeing the execution of the businessâs overall people strategy.Â
From onboarding new hires to offboarding departing employees, the CPO oversees every aspect of the employee experience. Itâs their job to ensure the organization can attract, develop, and retain the right talent. The CPO must also work with the executive team and senior management to ensure that HRâs priorities fit together seamlessly to meet business needs and departmental goals. Business focuses that typically fall under the CPOâs purview include:
âThere isnât one specific set of responsibilities that the chief people officer takes care of. However, generally speaking, their main duties are to maximize the employeesâ potential and shape the companyâs values,â explained Ewelina Melon, chief people and culture officer at Tidio, a company that builds live online chat tools. âThey are responsible for finding the perfect balance between improving a company culture that benefits employees and developing a successful and profitable business. I believe that CPOs are the bridge between the employee and the employer â the companyâs ear to listen to employeesâ voices.â
While the chief people officerâs job description might seem a bit vague, itâs because every organization is different. Each company is unique and will have different human capital needs ââand business objectives, so the CPOâs day-to-day role will vary based on what the HR department must prioritize for a given business to succeed. Plus, these needs will always be in flux, so the CPO must be flexible and well-versed in change management to help see their company through any challenges that may arise.
The future of the chief people officer function
What is a Chief People Officer?
A chief people officer, or CPO, is a human resources leader whose job often focuses on maintaining and improving employee culture and company values. They might respond to employee complaints, interview new hires or review employee satisfaction data.
Why should you become a Chief People Officer?
If you’re thinking about a career as a chief people officer, there are many benefits to consider. Here are some reasons to become a chief people officer: One of the key responsibilities of a chief people officer is promoting a healthy workplace. The role of CPO can give you a lot of power over your company’s culture.
What skills does a Chief People Officer need?
With a view of the employee experience across the entire company, CPOs can make strategic changes to drive business success. Chief people officers should have HR expertise and business acumen in addition to a strong communication and problem-solving skill set. What does a chief people officer do?
What are the responsibilities of a Chief People Officer (CPO)?
Chief people officers need to be great at designing performance evaluation systems, setting clear performance expectations, and providing regular feedback to employees. The responsibilities of a CPO also include nurturing a positive and inclusive organizational culture that promotes collaboration, innovation, and employee well-being.
