You’re starting the year in a new CHRO role. What’s next? Microsoft Canada’s president Kevin Peesker gave us an idea of what you can aim for.
Peesker told HRD that a successful CHRO is someone committed to constantly learn, work with the leadership team to elevate employees to the top of the business strategy, and is intentional in setting the agenda of the organization’s people strategy.
Getting there will require continued effort but how do you make sure you start off strong?
In this article, several HR leaders share their thoughts on this subject.
To actually make an impact in the C-suite, one senior HR professional shared, you need a strong outcome-oriented organisational strategy. She believes that HR executives have “far less time” than that to make their mark. Based on her own experience, “CHRO have around three weeks to make an impact.” These are:
- Identifying quick wins
- Figuring out where the organisation is currently “feeling stress”
- Identifying where you can make yourself most useful
- Determining long-term business goals to develop a long-term action plan
She said that grasping the organisational structure is important to achieving these outcomes, as is determining the capability of the team you’ve joined. But beyond that, it’s crucial to plan your HR objectives from the outset. “You need to have a strategy for your first three months and what you want to be known for” said one regional HR leader.
Dr. Susan Chen, Go-Jek Group Senior Vice President and Head of Organizational Development & Transformation said, HR must first “understand business insight”. “If we, as HR, have true engagement with the business – knowing where the business is going – we would think in a futuristic way,” She believes, HR’s most important role is to guide the leadership team to achieve the organization’s goals.
Dr Jaclyn Lee, CHRO at Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) said, even if you’re going into the job aiming to transform the organisation, everything goes back to the business and what it needs. When it comes to being a future-ready leader, Lee advises that leaders should first have a “proper think” about the organization’s needs and understand its business problems before looking for relevant data to help solve them.
One regional HR leader said, “To make a positive impression, focus on understanding and delivering on the high priorities.” “You can then start to build credibility internally and externally, by developing your personal and professional reputation.”
The first few months is also the best time to manage expectations, shared an industry leader. Be clear about the required functions of the CHRO and the HR team, and how you’re supposed to work with the CEO, for instance. Once you’ve made your mark, you need to maintain your credentials by consistently matching and exceeding expectations and start planning for the next 100 days and beyond.
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