Getting into the CHRO’s head

More business leaders are moving their focus from inside the organisation to consumers, as they realise the power customers continue to hold over businesses.

According to IBM’s latest C-Suite Study, 60% of more than 4,000 global C-suite leaders said they plan on collaborating with customers in development of business strategies, with outperforming companies 545% more likely to already having done so.

However, the responsibility of providing a strong and valuable customer experience does not just fall on the shoulders of CEOs; 38% of CHROs surveyed said they want a stronger focus in the next three to five years on enhancing the customer experience, an increase from 28% today.

The report also found CHROs from outperforming companies were more likely to leverage on data analytics; 64% of outperforming companies already use data analytics when it comes to talent management, and 49% use it for performance evaluation, compared to 36% and 31% in underperforming companies, respectively.

“The HR function has a role to play in encouraging a less autocratic, more collaborative approach to leadership, introducing new performance management processes and bringing the organisation along,” a South African CHRO from a financial services firm said in the report.

Overall, the report also found CEOs are 27% more open to make their companies more transparent to stakeholders and customers in the last 12 months, from 44% in 2012 to 56% this year.

More than half (57%) of CEOs also said “customers now wield enormous influence in many enterprises”, and that the influence extends into providing input to the “strategic heartland of the business”.