Key Insights
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The top priorities for CHROs in 2025
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How CHROs are driving business transformation
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What's on the HR function agenda
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What the career path looks like for CHROs today
Why CHROs Are the New C-Suite Power Players
CHROs have never been more integral to business success, working closely with CEOs to shape strategy and drive organizational transformation.
How has the role managed to move into such a pivotal position?
CHROs sit at the intersection of business strategy, workforce planning, and talent development. And with business transformation becoming such a key driver of growth today, this gives them the unique ability to lead transformation more than many other business roles.
Korn Ferry’s 2025 CHRO Survey of 756 HR leaders across 50+ countries reveals how CHROs have become fundamental to business success.
"Today’s CHROs aren’t just shaping the talent agenda. They’re helping to shape the entire strategic direction of the organization. This means having a seat at the strategy table, where they’re influencing decisions that impact everything from corporate culture to the bottom line."
Laura Manson-Smith, Global Leader, Organization Strategy Consulting, Korn Ferry
How Have Strategic Priorities Changed Between 2023 and 2025?
Growth & market expansion 25% |
Skills for the future 11% |
AI & technology 10% |
Culture change 9% |
Goal efficiency & productivity 9% |
Risk & reputation management 25% |
Reported as change in percentage points from 2023 to 2025
Nearly a quarter of HR leaders identified acquiring talent with the right skills as a top challenge.
The rapid advance in AI and automation presents a particular challenge for many organizations. HR leaders need to develop strategies to quickly upskill and reskill their workforce in these crucial technologies.
Some regions are storming ahead with this, while others need to step up if they don’t want to get left behind. Korn Ferry’s Workforce 2025 survey reveals that employees in Brazil, India, and the Middle East are leading the way in AI training, significantly outpacing their counterparts in North America and Europe. This investment in AI learning and development (L&D) is positioning workers in these regions to excel in an increasingly tech-driven workplace.
“Reskilling and upskilling are not just initiatives. They’re strategic imperatives for organizations looking to remain competitive,” adds Jones.
AI tools can give an edge to HR teams, too, including CHROs. They can use AI to optimize recruitment, predict attrition, and identify skill gaps before they impact business outcomes.
But while 42% of CHROs are prioritizing investments in AI for HR, only 5% of HR teams feel fully prepared to implement it effectively. This highlights a critical opportunity for HR leaders to invest in training and systems that maximize AI’s potential.
CHROs Focus on Transformation
Our Korn Ferry CHRO survey shows that growth and cost efficiency are top strategic priorities for CHROs right now, against a backdrop of economic uncertainty, labor and skills shortages, and technology adoption.
This highlights the challenge HR leaders face trying to balance the need for immediate operational efficiency with long-term growth.
Thirty-seven percent of our respondents don’t think there’s enough planning for future workforce needs. And a further 35% feel they are too focused on the demands of short-term growth, leaving them no time to plan for long-term talent needs.
"Focusing too heavily on short-term demands creates a significant blind spot for organizations," says Roger Philby of Korn Ferry.
More than a third of CHROs spend the majority of their time leading transformation efforts, and according to another Korn Ferry CHRO survey on AI, 56% feel their company is not adaptable to change.
Korn Ferry’s proprietary research, the Transformation Index, shows that the ability to drive organizational effectiveness is strongly affected by its readiness for change. To create organizational impact, CHROs need to:
Align Culture with Strategy
Most employees aren’t fundamentally opposed to change. But when they’re presented with change that they don’t understand or that they’re not prepared for, they’re more likely to resist it.
That’s why change shouldn't be dictated from the top of the house. Instead, it needs to be embedded throughout the business culture and democratized.
To make this happen, CHROs need to create a compelling vision that makes transformation feel personal and necessary.
Upskill for AI & Innovation
CHROs are investing in reskilling programs that help employees work alongside AI, rather than fear it.
Korn Ferry’s Workforce 2025 data shows that AI-specific training and opportunities to experiment with AI predict positive attitudes toward it.
Create a Data-Driven HR Function
Gut feelings are out. Workforce analytics are in.
Some CHROs are using data to predict turnover, engagement, and even which leaders are most effective in driving change.
But only 18% of CHROs believe their organization consistently use data analytics to drive better people-related decisions. This limits their ability to make forward-looking decisions.
“HR leaders have the opportunity to champion data-driven transformation and position themselves as strategic advisors.”
Roger Philby, Korn Ferry
