CEOs ranked workforce as their third most important business priority for 2024 to 2025, behind growth and technology, according to Gartner, Inc.

Fifty-seven percent of CEOs plan to increase investment in people and culture, down from 69% the prior year. Similarly, less than half of CEOs (46%) plan to increase investments in hiring versus 54% in 2022. 

“CEOs’ emphasis on growth strategy, and the role of technology – particularly AI – in supporting that growth, is causing workforce-related attention to wane,” said Alexander Kirss, Senior Principal in the Gartner HR practice. “Eighty-six percent of surveyed CEOs reported that they will use AI to help maintain or grow company revenue and 56% estimate that company productivity will increase by at least 11% from using GenAI over the next two years.”

CHROs play a significant role in helping their CEOs set, reinforce and evolve their talent priorities to align with planned investments. The CHRO is responsible for not only identifying the people imperatives and talent implications for each organizational priority, but also the key talent risks the organization faces which – if not managed well – will prevent the organization from successfully achieving its priorities. 

Gartner recommends CHROs partner with their CEOs on talent priorities across three key areas:

Refine the CEO’s Point of View on Current Talent Priorities

CEOs often have broad opinions or points of view on talent, but struggle to translate these into a precise, actionable set of talent priorities. As the person tasked with operationalizing these priorities and setting the organization’s talent strategy, CHROs can add immense value by helping their CEOs examine how they think about talent and the assumptions that are driving their point of view. By sharing the challenges, cost, time frame and impact that the CEOs beliefs could have on employees and the organization, CHROs can uncover areas of misalignment and help the CEO understand how and why they have come to their specific goals.

Prompt the CEO to Reinforce Talent Priorities

CEOs can become disengaged from talent priorities once the CHRO takes over execution. To avoid this – and reinforce the goals and importance of the talent strategy – CHROs should counsel their CEO counterparts to communicate across the organization by:

• Embedding opportunities to discuss talent priorities as an executive leadership team (ELT).
• Discussing talent priorities in regular organizational and operational updates, i.e., companywide town halls, internal communications and performance management practices.

Monitor Emerging Talent Trends to Help Priorities Evolve

CHROs who anticipate future talent priorities can help their organization gain a competitive advantage. CHROs should schedule dedicated time to review emerging talent trends and determine the specific impact they are likely to have on the organization’s talent priorities. CHROs must also assess their organization’s readiness to adapt to future talent priorities while proactively identifying and addressing potential barriers that could hinder them.

In addition to regularly revisiting talent priorities with the CEO, CHROs can also benefit from partnering with a broader network of C-suite peers, cross-functional leaders or CHRO networks outside of the organization to better understand emerging issues in their parts of the business or their industries.

“CEOs often have sweeping views on talent but struggle to distill those views into an actionable set of talent priorities,” said Kirss. “CHROs who successfully transform these visions into operational realities become indispensable architects of the company’s strategic talent blueprint and cement their role as a trusted CEO partner.”