The Rise of the Chief People Officer: Redefining Leadership and Culture in 2025

In this month’s The INside Leadership View I’m taking a look at that crucial business leader responsible for company culture and human resources, the Chief People Officer.? ?

Huge shifts in employee needs and values, plus a roller-coaster of talent hiring, retention and restructuring for many in recent years (in response to seismic pandemic, political and economic shocks) have had an impact.? The CPO role has evolved from HR custodian to strategic architect of the future workforce and, as such, has become more crucial than ever in ensuring an organisation can reach goals and navigate hurdles through the efforts of its talented employees.

In this article we’ll take a look at the role of the CPO today, and the top priorities of these leaders as they reflect on 2024 and plan for 2025.?

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CPO and CHRO – Is there a difference?

The answer to this is - it depends.? For some, the titles are interchangeable.? For others, there’s a clear distinction.

The CHRO title has been around for decades and is sometimes seen as a more traditional role with an emphasis on core human resources activities such as management of recruitment and onboarding, oversight of policies and HR systems, and custodian of employee benefits and remuneration. ?

The newer Chief People Officer title often indicates a modern, slightly broader remit that makes a direct link between talent and business innovation and growth.? Employee engagement, culture and experience is more likely to dominate priorities.? As such, the CPO often plays a key role in driving cultural transformation, including DEI initiatives.

Either way, as the strategic importance of talent and culture grows, the CPO and CHRO roles are becoming more vital and more likely than ever to have a seat on the top table.

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All hail the people leader!

In an attention-grabbing headline in May this year, Fortune published ‘How HR chiefs went from ‘lepers’ to C-Suite power players.’? According to Paige McGlauflin:

“HR was once considered a sleepy backwater of the C-suite, a lesser-than role akin to a paper-pushing?hall monitor.?But a combination of the?pandemic, a period of?social upheaval, and a?tight labour market?has coalesced to turn it into a new kind of?powerhouse?position, with CHROs wielding never-before-seen clout and importance in the C-suite.”??

With this in mind, could the CPO rise further and become a natural successor to the CEO?? Graeme Paxton, MD of The IN Group’s talent consultancy Caraffi questions this in an article earlier this year.? He cited that a lack of commercial experience compared to other C-Suite leaders, and also a lack of opportunity to broaden their experience by moving from function to function, restricts the CPO or CHRO when taking that final step.?

However, there’s no doubt that the leader responsible for hiring, retention and happiness of talent plays a crucial role.? Graeme offers the following advice to CPOs:

“A CPO needs to be good at articulating the role their responsibilities play in commercial growth…. To give themselves a chance of getting the top job, a CPO must show they can be strategic about the whole business. They need to outline their tangible impact on growth.”

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The hot priorities of the CPO

First, let’s set the scene…

In our conversations with the C-Suite, we’re finding that boards are setting their sights on growth in 2025 after several turbulent years.? For everyone, including CPOs and HR leaders, continuous transformation has become de rigueur as businesses continue to adapt to market forces and the new skills required in response to innovations such as AI.

In addition, business leaders expect improved productivity from leveraging GenAI, and employees need to learn how to work with AI tools, which takes time, and many leaders have no idea how to begin to achieve gains.

Finally, post-COVID, employees care much more about employee value proposition and purpose alignment than they did pre-pandemic.

David Proctor, who is Director of Talent Advisory at The IN Group, summarises his thoughts as follows:

“For many of the People and HR leaders I’ve spoken to recently, there’s still a focus on cost optimisation while also trying to ensure employees have the skills for tomorrow.? Particularly, technology upskilling is high on the agenda in response to the productivity gains that GenAI promises.”?

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What do the experts say?

Gartner’s Top 5 Priorities for HR Leaders in 2025 report lists priorities as:

1. Leader and manager development - to ensure leaders are equipped to develop others, particularly during times of rapid innovation and constant transformation.
2. Organisational culture - 97% of CHROs want to change some aspect of their culture to aid employee attraction and retention and meet business goals.
3. Strategic workforce planning – looking beyond the year ahead and doing more than headcount planning is crucial for long-term growth.
4. Change management - c. ? of HR and People leaders say managers aren’t equipped to lead change and employees are suffering from change fatigue.
5. HR technology - is not fit for future needs and ROI is not measurable.

Note:? 1,500 HR leaders across 60 countries were surveyed.?

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Just a couple of weeks ago futurist and Forbes contributor Bernard Marr wrote in his article 8 Workplace Trends That Will Define 2025 that technological breakthroughs and evolving societal dynamics are impacting the landscape of work.

In 2025 Bernard sees an increased focus on:

1. Reskilling and upskilling - organisations offering robust learning opportunities will attract top talent, positioning themselves as growth incubators.
2. The four-day workweek – promising enhanced employee well-being, improved work-life balance, and reduced carbon footprints.
3. The gig economy - organisations must adapt, focusing on creating appealing project-based opportunities to attract and retain top talent in this fluid landscape.
4. Human-machine synergy - as AI handles routine tasks, humans can focus on innovation and interpersonal aspects that drive true progress.
5. The rise of human-centric leadership - leaders who adapt to this model will be crucial in balancing technological advancements with human needs in the AI age.
6. Immersive online working - this trend is set to redefine remote work, blending in-person interaction benefits with digital flexibility.
7. AI's growing role in human resources - successful HR departments will leverage AI to enhance, not replace, human judgment and empathy.
8. Hybrid is the new normal - forward-thinking employers in 2025 are creating opportunities for their workforce to improve their work-life balance while also maintaining strong connections to colleagues and company culture.

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Does this ring true with CPOs?

In the above, both Gartner and Forbes place people development, reskilling and upskilling right at the top of the list.? This certainly rings true for Charlotte Roberts, CPO of The IN Group , who states:

"Chief People Officers play an important role in helping an organisation to deliver its business strategy, and to nurture leaders who can do this, too.? We can do this by promoting and mobilising collaboration opportunities, insight sharing and providing stretch opportunities for our people."

The impact of GenAI is a big focus for Emily Bowller, Vice President of People at Superbet , currently.? She describes seeing it through 3 lenses:

1. How are we going to train people on GenAI in the business?
2. How do we hire the expertise to make this a reality?
3. How are we going to use it effectively and measure ROI?

Emily also agrees that culture and wellbeing are key focus areas:

“With an increasing emphasis on holistic employee wellness, HR is prioritising mental health initiatives, stress management programs, and creating supportive work environments. The balance between work and personal life, especially in a hybrid work world, is crucial.”

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Conclusion

In an era marked by constant change the role of the CPO has risen in importance and expanded to not only manage the traditional functions of HR, but to drive growth through a human-centred approach that emphasises culture, continuous learning ad technology integration and augmentation.? High on the CPO’s agenda is reskilling efforts to enable organisations to meet tomorrow’s objectives, and the CPO’s influence within the C-Suite is likely to continue to expand as these leaders create inclusive and innovative workplaces.

Until next time, stay up to date by following InX, the InX Connect newsletter and The IN Group, and don’t hesitate to contact me, David Procter or one of our team if you need to hire executive talent, deliver transformation, or want to hear more about our talent advisory services.? We’d love to help.

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