Research: The Changing Role of the HR Leader

Over the last decade we have seen a significant evolution of the purpose and role of HR. HR’s traditional role embraced performance improvement, talent management, learning, change initiatives and providing effective HR services. This has evolved to incorporate an increasingly employee-centric social agenda which embraces, among other topics, new working models and practices, inclusivity, employee wellbeing and sustainability. Of course, these aspects have always been there, but they have assumed greater importance in recent years. As the business context has become more complex, so too has the role of the HR leader. The need for HR to develop and implement an agenda that significantly contributes to business outcomes and creates value for the organisation while taking account of the economic and social environment is greater than ever.

In this report we explore how the HR leader’s role is changing and identify the skills and areas of contribution required to deliver effectively in a rapidly shifting business environment. Our aims are to:

• Support CHROs as they plan their own succession and consider development of the function.
• Help emerging HR leaders plan their own careers.

This research is authored by CRF’s Gillian Pillans.