The Top 10 Competencies Chief People Officers Must Possess
Over the past 25 years, I have worked with hundreds of Chief People Officers (CPOs) in a variety of industries and companies. I’ve also held the seat of CPO for one of America’s most iconic and fast-growing brands. Today, I help CEOs hire for these pivotal roles, roles that have the power to significantly alter the performance and competitive advantage of a business.
There has been a seismic shift in the way executives think about people, culture and workplace practices. They have come to understand that exceptional “People” leadership and systems are levers of operational and financial excellence. As a result, there is growing recognition that the background, skills, and competencies of the CPO position are vital components to the success of the business, and that an alarmingly high percentage of current HR/People leaders do not possess what it takes to lead their companies into the future.
Companies require -- and deserve -- a highly evolved set of skills and competencies from their HR leaders. Here are the top 10 traits that Chief People Officers must possess to lead their organizations.
1. Authenticity – Employees today expect their leaders to be authentic, open, and honest. A CPO’s ability to gain trust, build genuine relationships, and consistently act with integrity is crucial for the role and the entire HR function.
2. Business Acumen – To secure a seat at the strategic table, CPOs must be able to interpret financial information and its impact on the business, and demonstrate a credible understanding of operations, systems, processes, departments, and functions that drive profitable growth.
3. Change Management & Agility – In our rapidly changing business environment, CPOs must excel at leading organizational transformation. This includes scenario planning, building change-ready leaders at all levels, and helping organizations adapt quickly to disruption.
4. Comfort with Ambiguity – Businesses will continue to face a high level of economic, social and political volatility. As a result, CPOs will need to lead organizations through instability, possessing comfort with ambiguity and the ability to make rational decisions during unpredictable times
5. Communication & Influence – Strong communication capabilities remain fundamental, but CPOs must also have the ability to tell compelling stories with data, influence across the C-suite, and facilitate transparent dialogue throughout the organization.
6. Data Dexterity – Leveraging people analytics to identify trends, risks, and opportunities is crucial. CPOs must be comfortable with data visualization, HRIS systems, and translating complex workforce data into strategic decisions.
7. Emotional Intelligence – To be effective People leaders, CPOs must handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically. They will need to role model emotional intelligence through their own capacity to be aware of, control, and express their emotions judiciously.
8. Executive Decorum – CPOs must have an executive disposition that reassures others, internal and external to the organization, and commands respect. Additionally, they must be willing to serve as public champions of organizational decisions and values.
9. Organizational Design – CPOs must be organizational design experts, leading efforts to reinvent work and jobs to support AI transformation. This involves strategic workforce planning, aligning talent capabilities with emerging technologies, redesigning roles to integrate human-AI collaboration, and ensuring the organization remains agile in the face of rapid change.
10. Strategic Vision – CPOs must be adept at establishing a strategic vision of the future based on a robust analysis of environmental trends, internal resources, and the organization’s mission and values. They also need to communicate a compelling picture of their company’s future that helps others understand business objectives and their role in implementing them.
The Future of Work
These competencies highlight the fundamental shift in the CPO role from administrative expert to strategic business leader. Organizations thrive or falter based on the skill sets and aptitudes of their People/HR leaders. A Chief People Officer who embodies these 10 competencies can significantly influence a company's trajectory and performance. The future of work demands this level of expertise, and both companies and their workforce deserve it. If you'd like to learn more, please reach out .
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