Global CHRO Turnover Index

01

CHRO turnover continues to decline

CHRO turnover remains low as organizations seek to prioritize stability amidst unprecedented socio-political challenges, new legislation across sectors, and workforce transformation concerns. Overall, incoming CHRO changes are still notably down 34% year-to-date since 2023, and 23% since 2022.  

By retaining the top line HR functional leadership, organizations can leverage their CHRO’s expertise to maintain continuity while also developing and evolving their HR functions. 

02

CHRO remits expand

In response to evolving market and organizational demands, the CHRO role is expanding beyond traditional HR functions. Incoming CHROs are increasingly taking on broader responsibilities, including communications, corporate affairs, sustainability, governance, premises, and organizational transformation – signaling that organizations are seeing the value of people leaders’ perspectives on a broader range of topics.

While only 12% of incoming CHROs globally had expanded remits in 2022, this rose to 15% in 2023 and reached 17.3% in 2024 YTD. And in certain markets, this proportion is significantly higher. For example, in the UK’s FTSE 100, 51% of CHRO roles now include elements beyond the ‘typical’ HR remit. This may illustrate progression and innovation within UK-headquartered companies; alternatively, it could show that current leaders are bedding down—distilling their teams into smaller, tighter-knit groups as their organizations grow more efficient. What is clear: these shifts mark a new direction for the HR function and an updated understanding of what it means to be a CHRO of the future.

03

External hires remain in demand

As seen in the Q2 CHRO turnover data, organizations continue to prefer external placements, with 65% of incoming CHROs in Q3 2024 coming from outside the company. As the market becomes more complex, companies are prioritizing experienced, external leaders with diverse skillsets (from both an organizational and industry perspective) who can implement best practices and influence the organization. This is particularly important as organizations face heightened pressures from technological disruption and workforce transformation.

04

Varied appetites for cross-sector experience

Cross-industry hiring highlights the varying priorities of different industries in developing their strategy and workforce footprints. In our analysis, we found that consumer companies consistently sought external perspectives, with 56% of external hires in 2024 (and an average of 53% over four years) coming from beyond the industry, signaling the industry’s prioritization of fresh perspectives to drive innovation and product ingenuity. On the other hand, financial services prioritizes industry familiarity – likely due to its regulatory frameworks and technical specificity– with only 25% of external candidates coming from outside of the industry and an average of 37% over the last four years.

While numbers of incoming CHROs fluctuate year to year in response to market forces and demands, the trends reveal that sectors like consumer, healthcare, and technology remain relatively open to external talent to foster fresh thinking and a competitive edge. While industries with heightened regulatory complexity, such as financial services and industrials, favor internal industry hires. These trends suggest that every industry has its own distinct approach to balancing innovation with operational needs.