The Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) is responsible for managing a company’s workforce and labor relations strategies. According to Gartner, a leading technology research and consulting firm, CHROs will need to navigate key challenges and priorities in the coming years. Externally, these include a limited yet costly talent pool, global supply constraints, and economic pressures. Internally, the focus will be on improving the employee experience, strengthening change management, and enhancing the effectiveness of leaders and managers.
Strategies for Shattering the Glass Ceiling
Begin your HR career by earning a bachelor’s degree in social science or business administration. Follow this with an internship in a dynamic or high-paced HR department, where you can gain hands-on experience across various HR functions. Ideally, choose an environment where the team is slightly understaffed, allowing you to take on diverse responsibilities and deepen your expertise.
Next, secure an entry-level HR role that aligns with your education and experience, and focus on advancing through the ranks—from junior positions to senior leadership roles.
To enhance your career prospects, consider acquiring specialized certifications or short courses such as Executive and Management Coaching, Human Resource Management, Professional Communication and Office Management, Strategic Human Resource Management, or Training and Development Management. Additionally, pursuing an MBA with an HR concentration can significantly boost your qualifications, positioning you for top-tier roles like Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) in a thriving corporate environment.
Your Daily Responsibilities
As a CHRO, you hold a significant administrative role within the company. Your responsibilities include developing training programs, recruiting and interviewing potential employees, ensuring compliance with government regulations, and fostering a cohesive workplace through team-building initiatives. Additionally, you will oversee junior HR staff while mentoring senior team managers. By being an accessible and supportive leader, you empower your team to grow professionally, enhancing their skills, expertise, and overall effectiveness in their roles.
Why Seeking Guidance as You Advance is Essential
Managing an HR department is a crucial factor in any company’s success. Effectively overseeing the systems and infrastructure that support employees and facilitate seamless interactions directly impacts a company’s financial performance. As you progress to the role of CHRO, you will have a deep understanding of the value of your workforce and the necessity of developing, motivating, and retaining key employees to achieve strategic business objectives. However, beyond the foundation built through education and experience, you may encounter new challenges in your role as a strategic partner to the CEO.
At this stage, gaining fresh insights and expanding your knowledge can help maintain high levels of employee well-being and productivity. Short courses and executive coaching are particularly beneficial in this regard. A global workplace survey by the Adecco Group found that 74% of employees desire greater empathy and support from management, while 54% of directors feel they may struggle to meet these expectations without additional guidance. Seeking support through:
- the theoretical knowledge provided by professional courses, or
- the practical skills gained from executive coaching sessions
can be invaluable in strengthening your leadership approach and ensuring long-term organizational success.
How a CHRO Can Benefit from Coaching
If you entered the HR field believing you had all the answers about people and how to maximize their potential, think again. There’s always more to learn—about yourself and your approach to leadership. Consider your role like that of an athlete on the field—where do top players turn for guidance and strategy? A coach, of course!
Now that we’ve moved past the immediate challenges of the pandemic—where your focus was likely on keeping things afloat—it’s the perfect time to realign with your career goals. If you’re aiming for a higher-level HR role (CHRO, here you come!) but facing mindset challenges, coaching can be a game-changer.
Here’s how an executive or life coach can support your journey:
- Ensuring a seamless transition between roles or companies
- Reigniting your passion for HR
- Helping you break free from career stagnation
- Providing tools to better motivate your team
- Enhancing your ability to navigate difficult people and situations with empathy
- Identifying early signs of burnout and strategies for prevention—for both yourself and your team
- Encouraging deep self-reflection and renewed self-awareness
Investing in coaching can be the key to unlocking your full potential as a CHRO.
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HR Trends 2025
Today’s HR leaders agree on one thing: employees have exceptionally high expectations. Addressing this challenge, Erik van Vulphen, founder of AIHR, and Dieter Veldsman, the company’s HR and organisational development (OD) leader, have released a comprehensive HR Trends report.
They firmly believe that HR managers are overworked and in need of both a break and the right resources to perform their roles effectively. However, as they emphasize in an interview with CHRO.co.za, “This isn’t just HR’s problem—it’s a business-wide issue that must be prioritised. If companies fail to equip HR with the necessary tools to operate efficiently and make strategic decisions, they risk greater internal strain in an evolving workplace. HR holds the key to transformation, but businesses must take responsibility for enabling that change.” Let’s hope CEOs, CFOs, and COOs are paying attention.
Key trends highlighted in their report include:
- Prioritising employee well-being and resilience to prevent burnout—not just across the organisation but within HR itself.
- Providing continuous learning opportunities to close skill gaps, stay competitive, and boost employee retention.
- Implementing forward-thinking policies that make remote and hybrid work truly effective.
- Elevating the CHRO’s role within the C-suite to ensure HR has a strategic voice.
- Cultivating a purpose-driven culture where employees and leaders find personal meaning in their work, beyond just business success.
These insights underscore the urgent need for businesses to empower HR, ensuring organisations remain agile and prepared for the future.
Enhance Your Skills at Premier International Conferences
With the rapid transformation of the workplace since the pandemic, forward-thinking CHROs are actively seeking conferences that offer opportunities to expand their networks and stay ahead of industry trends.
One such event is the CHRO Summit: The Path Forward, a virtual conference taking place on April 26. This online gathering is designed to provide CHROs across all business sectors with insights into critical questions such as:
- What does the future of work look like?
- How will employees connect and collaborate?
- How should leaders effectively manage their teams?
- What does true inclusion mean in today’s workplace?
- How can companies attract, engage, and retain talent that seeks meaningful work?
- How can organizations genuinely listen to employees and address their needs?
- How should businesses apply the insights they’ve gained?
Ten books for your nightstand
- Armstrong, S. & Mitchell, B. (2019). The Essential HR Handbook – A Quick And Handy Resource For Any Manager Or HR Professional (US: Welser)
- Bock, L. (2015). Work Rules! Insights From Inside Google That Will Transform How You Live And Lead (US: Twelve)
• Ozenc, K. & Hagan, M. (2019). Rituals for Work: 50 Ways To Create Engagement, Shared Purpose, And A Culture That Can Adapt To Change (US: Wiley)
• Perez, P. (2019). The Drama-Free Workplace: How You Can Prevent Unconscious Bias, Sexual Harassment, Ethics Lapses, and Inspire a Healthy Culture (US: Wiley) - Keswin, E. (2018). Bring Your Human To Work: 10 Surefire Ways To Design A Workplace That Is Good For People, Great For Business, And Just Might Change The World
(US: McGraw Hill)
• Brown, S. (2017). HR On Purpose: Developing Deliberate People Passion (US: Society For Human Resource Management)
• Adams, L. (2017). HR Disrupted – It’s Time For Something Different (UK: Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• Scott, K. (2017). Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity (US: St Martin’s Press)
• Carnegie, D. (2023). How To Win friends and Influence People (US: Zinc Read)
and
• Goleman, D. (2015) On Emotional Intelligence (US: Harvard Business Review Press)
