Time To Start Elevating Potential CHROs To CEO Roles

Talent in an organisation or human resources is a competitive advantage in a world where access to technology and capital is easier than before. Avisekh Agarwal, VP Global Talent Acquisition, OYO strongly believe that having high-performing talent on board can make the difference between winning and losing. Top talent has a disproportionate impact on anything from innovation to speed-to-market to adaptability. While most companies are trying to survive the current pandemic, “talent dense” companies will grow and thrive. It's therefore not surprising that in every CEO survey “hiring and retaining” quality talent continues to be the most important area where leaders want to spend a maximum of their time. 

“Human Resources happened to me, I never planned for it. Had I not been enticed by the pre-placement talk of the first organization I worked with Executive Access (a boutique retained search firm) at SRCC, I would have probably ended up in marketing or finance. I spent almost a decade on the sell side of talent helping companies find C level talent. It gave me an opportunity to understand and interact closely with industry leaders,” remembers Agarwal.

Joining OYO has been one of the defining moments of Agarwal’s career. A 6-year-old Indian company making strides the world over gave a sense of pride and seemed like an irresistible opportunity. Agarwal remembers, “OYO for me happened at a time when the company was looking at rapid global expansion and incubation of several new business lines. It was important for OYOs talent strategy to coincide with its business strategy.”

As a function, at OYO, HR had to focus on people, processes and technology to establish a strong employer brand that could attract the best talent in the world. It was important to figure “what is possible” versus “what is being done”. 

Amongst other things, the following were some of the critical steps we undertook in OYO’s journey: 

●       Built a function not transactional but advisory and closer to business 

●       Hired and built a superlative talent acquisition team. Folks who were specialists and great storytellers

●       Built machinery that could balance speed, quality and volumes 

●       Focused on building strong internal capabilities by measuring both traditional and forward-looking talent metrics 

●       Technology adoption for faster processes, more efficiency and better management of talent pools

Gladly, the COVID-19 pandemic has elevated the importance of HR professionals within organizations like never before. It has helped shine a spotlight on the value that HR delivers in keeping employees engaged, motivated, safe, and productive. The new ways of working will demand HR to be in the driver’s seat and define a new lens to recruitment, on-boarding, learning and development.

For instance, the hiring parameters now will not be just about “hard skills” but measuring resilience, the first principle thinking, ambiguity management and the ability to do more with less. HR decisions relying on face-to-face or interpersonal interaction will now move to hiring and training virtually, as the new normal.

‘We are going through one of the biggest workplace transformations of our lifetime. The pace of change has never been this fast. It’s pretty evident that in the radically changed world post-COVID, HR cannot be seen as a facilitating function. The best companies will be those where business understands people and HR understands business. The best way to do this would be to encourage HR talent to move into business roles and vice versa. 

“Despite most organisations striving to be ‘talent first’, right now most CEO roles are taken up by the CMO, CSO and CFO’s. Numerous studies support this, and I believe that it’s time to start elevating some CHROs to the CEO roles!”