Why HR Leaders Never Become CEO—but Should
In the corporate world, the path to becoming a CEO is often linear, with leaders rising through finance, operations, or sales. These areas are seen as the engines driving revenue and profitability, making them the “safe” bets for executive leadership. However, this approach leaves out a critical group of leaders: those in Human Resources (HR). Despite HR’s central role in managing talent, shaping culture, and driving employee engagement, CHROs are the least likely among senior leaders to become CEO. This is a significant oversight that prevents companies from tapping into one of their most valuable leadership assets.
The fact that few CEOs gain experience in the people part of the organization is concerning, particularly in today’s business environment where talent is often the differentiator between success and failure. In a world where culture and engagement directly impact a company’s bottom line, it’s time to quit cutting CEOs from the same cloth and hire differently. HR leaders—especially CHROs—bring a people-centric, emotionally intelligent, and strategic approach to leadership that is crucial for driving long-term business success.
The Bias Against HR Leaders: Why CHROs Are Overlooked for CEO Roles
The HR to CEO pipeline is underdeveloped, primarily due to longstanding biases in how leadership is defined. Traditionally, finance and operations have been seen as the functions most closely aligned with the company’s core business objectives. HR, by contrast, has been viewed as a support function, responsible for administrative tasks like payroll, benefits, and compliance. While these functions are important, they only scratch the surface of what HR leaders contribute.
Today’s HR leaders, particularly CHROs, are responsible for the most important asset of any company—its people. They oversee talent acquisition, retention, leadership development, and organizational culture, all of which are critical for long-term success. Yet, despite this strategic oversight, HR professionals are often not considered for the top job. This is a critical oversight, particularly when few CEOs gain experience in the people side of the business, leaving organizations vulnerable to talent mismanagement and cultural misalignment.
HR Leaders Possess the Core Skills Needed for the CEO Role
The skills that make HR leaders successful are the same skills needed in the CEO role, especially as businesses navigate increasing complexity. Here’s why HR leaders, and specifically CHROs, are ideal candidates for CEO positions:
Emotional Intelligence and People-Centric Leadership
Emotional intelligence (EQ) is a core leadership competency, especially in today’s business environment, where employees seek purpose, engagement, and inclusion. CEOs who excel in EQ create stronger teams, resolve conflicts more effectively, and foster a workplace culture where employees can thrive. HR leaders, particularly CHROs, excel at EQ because they spend their careers understanding and influencing human behavior. Their ability to build trust, foster collaboration, and motivate employees is essential for navigating both day-to-day operations and long-term strategic challenges.Strategic Talent Management and Leadership Development
In the current talent-driven market, the ability to attract, retain, and develop top talent is essential for business growth. HR leaders are experts in this area. They understand that talent is not just about filling roles—it’s about aligning people with the company’s mission, values, and strategic goals. CEOs with HR backgrounds would be uniquely positioned to prioritize leadership development, succession planning, and creating a talent pipeline that ensures the organization’s future success. While financial and operational metrics are important, the real driver of long-term performance is the ability to grow and nurture a strong, engaged workforce.Organizational Culture as a Strategic Asset
Culture is often described as an organization’s “secret sauce.” A strong, purpose-driven culture is not just a nice-to-have; it’s a key competitive advantage in attracting and retaining top talent, driving innovation, and ensuring customer satisfaction. CHROs are the architects of culture within organizations, ensuring that the company’s values are not just words on paper but are lived every day by employees. CEOs with a background in HR can leverage their deep understanding of culture to align employees around a shared purpose, creating a unified and resilient organization that can adapt to changing markets.Change Management and Adaptability
The ability to lead through change is one of the most important leadership skills in today’s disruptive business environment. Whether it’s managing digital transformation, responding to global crises, or navigating shifts in market dynamics, CEOs need to be adept at managing change. HR leaders have long been on the front lines of managing organizational change, whether through mergers, restructures, or cultural transformations. Their ability to lead with empathy, align people with change initiatives, and ensure that employees remain engaged during periods of uncertainty makes them uniquely suited to the CEO role.
Why Companies Must Rethink CEO Succession Planning
Despite the strategic value HR professionals bring, the traditional path to the CEO role remains dominated by finance and operations executives. However, as companies face increasingly complex challenges in talent management, culture, and employee engagement, HR leaders are emerging as the missing link in effective CEO succession planning. Quit cutting CEOs from the same cloth—leaders with finance and operations backgrounds are no longer enough. Companies need leaders who can inspire, adapt, and build a thriving organizational culture. HR leaders bring precisely these qualities.
Organizations that fail to recognize the value of HR professionals, particularly CHROs, in their leadership pipeline are missing out on leaders who are already adept at managing the most critical aspects of business success: people, culture, and change. By including HR leaders in CEO succession planning, companies can ensure they have a leader at the helm who understands that long-term success is built on more than just short-term profits—it’s built on people.
The Woods Kovalova Group Solution: Empowering HR Leaders for CEO Success
At Woods Kovalova Group, we recognize the untapped potential of HR leaders and CHROs as future CEOs. Our leadership development programs are designed to elevate HR professionals into strategic leadership roles, equipping them with the operational, financial, and business acumen necessary to lead at the highest level.
Through our subsidiary, WoodsKovalova Learning, we offer cutting-edge programs that focus on the specific skills HR leaders need to thrive in the CEO role. These include financial management, strategic decision-making, and driving business innovation. We understand that HR professionals already excel in managing talent, culture, and change, and we help them develop the additional skills they need to become transformational business leaders.
In today’s business world, where the success of an organization is defined by its people, it’s time for HR leaders to rise. Woods Kovalova Group is committed to helping companies develop a leadership pipeline that includes HR professionals, ensuring that the future of business leadership is people-centric, emotionally intelligent, and strategically focused.
Conclusion: The Time for HR Leaders to Become CEOs is Now
The business world is evolving, and the traditional path to CEO is no longer sufficient for the challenges of today. As talent, culture, and change management drive long-term success, HR leaders, especially CHROs, are uniquely positioned to step into the CEO role. They bring the emotional intelligence, strategic talent management, and culture-building expertise that modern organizations need.
It’s time for companies to rethink their leadership pipelines and recognize that the future of leadership lies in people-centric approaches. Woods Kovalova Group is here to help you unlock the full potential of your HR leaders and prepare them to lead your organization into the future.
Partner with us to build a leadership team that understands the power of people. The time for HR leaders to rise is now.