CPO Pathways Report 2023

With an ongoing war in Europe, a cost-of-living crisis, climate emergencies and an existing hangover from the pandemic, senior business leaders are carrying more responsibilites than ever, and none more so than the Chief People Officer (CPO). Following on from a similar release in 2022, this report by Eton Bridge Partners analyses career progression trends for CPOs in the UK and across Europe in 2023.

Key takeaways include:

• Chief People Officer appointments are much more likely to be female than male, with 75% of all Chief People Officer appointments being female.
• The most common route to achieving a Chief People Officer role appears to be through a generalist career pathway. Although, specialist experiences in the realms of Talent, Culture and Employee Relations are often the key hiring criteria.
• The majority of appointments, whether in private equity, publicly-listed or privately-owned organisations, tend to be sourced from the same ownership model.