8 Tips For Building Strong Relationships With C-Suite Executives As A CHRO

Insights from top executives and HR leaders

 

To help CHROs build stronger relationships with C-suite executives, we've gathered eight insightful tips from top executives and HR professionals. From building trust with C-Suite executives to understanding business for stronger relationships, these experts share their most successful relationship-building efforts. Dive in to learn from their experiences and apply their wisdom in your role as a CHRO.
 

 

As an HR professional, your relationship with the CEO and other C-level executives can make or break your success in the role. Often, HR must get buy-in from another senior leader in order to deliver on initiatives that will benefit the organization's employees. 

Building trust is the key. You can present all the data and metrics you want, but if there is no trust between you and the person who ultimately makes the decision, it will be like pulling teeth to get the go-ahead every time for everything—big or small.

Trust can be built in several ways:
 

However, it's essential to acknowledge that balancing company needs with employee interests can present challenges, leading to limited rapport in some cases. Focusing on trust and results remains crucial.
 

Nicole Craveiro, CEO and Fractional CHRO, CraveHRO

Building successful relationships with C-suite executives involves acting as a trusted advisor, coach, and internal consultant. This is achieved by prioritizing gaining insight and understanding through:
 

1. Connect with each organizational leader to first understand the organizational and department-level priorities and challenges, as well as their own leadership style and professional development needs. It's important to ask if they are open to coaching and feedback and determine how they prefer to receive it to ensure that trust is being built.
2. Gain insight from the leadership on each of their team members' strengths and opportunities. What are their people-leadership pain points?
3. If the organization's size is manageable, it's recommended to meet one-on-one with each of the team members to gain a more balanced view of the organization, department, and leadership. This process helps to widen understanding and ensure that team members are heard, valued, and celebrated.

 

Amanda Moxham, CHRO, UVA Alumni Association

One of the most important things you can do is understand that the C-Suite is your primary team. Your HR team is secondary. The importance of nurturing your peer relationships cannot be overstressed. 

They need to understand how your HR strategy has a direct link to their priorities in order for you to operate effectively and with minimal friction. The role of the CHRO is to help the company achieve profits through people—and that is only possible when the HR strategy is deeply aligned with the strategies of the CHRO's peers.
 

Lorna Hagen, Managing Partner, Culture Playbook Partners

One of my top tips for building solid relationships with C-suite executives as a CHRO is to show the value of HR by aligning HR initiatives with the organization's strategic objectives. 

By understanding the business goals and challenges, I can provide insights and recommendations directly impacting the bottom line. For example, when our company underwent a major organizational restructuring, I collaborated closely with the CEO and other executives to develop a comprehensive talent-management strategy. 

I earned their trust by showcasing how HR initiatives could support the company's growth, ensure the right talent was in place, and strengthen our partnership. This collaborative effort resulted in successful talent acquisition, development, and retention strategies that were pivotal in the company's successful transition.
 

Shannon Garcia-Lewis, Owner and Principal, Strategic Business Partners, LLC.

One of the most impactful strategies for building strong relationships with C-suite executives is to understand their business objectives deeply and align HR services to meet their specific needs. Rather than rigidly adhering to predefined procedures and policies, it's essential to be agile and innovative in finding solutions to challenges. 

For example, our business once encountered significant difficulties in meeting its staffing needs for designers because of high attrition within the constraints of existing grade and salary norms. To overcome this, we devised a scheme to create a dedicated cadre of designers. 

This involved hiring fresh engineering graduates with limited experience from the market, who would then undergo a structured training program funded by the company. The program aimed to accelerate their knowledge base and enable them to meet the required standards for placement in a higher grade and salary.

The team diligently executed this to ensure its success and thus met the business needs.
 

Sudhir Kulkarni, Senior Advisor, Naman Integrated Management Services Pvt. Ltd.

Building relationships with C-suite executives requires time and individual attention, as each executive has specific wants and needs. By truly listening and taking the time to sit down, a followership can be built, which is beneficial when delivering tough messages or managing change. 

This approach has proven effective in new roles and as the MD/founder of a business. It's emphasized to the team that these are the critical elements of building long-lasting relationships. 

Some people who previously worked in-house are now working as consultants. This transition is believed to be because of the time invested in building a relationship, which initially was based on work but grew more personal, allowing for shared vulnerability. It's important to remember that it can be lonely at the top of an organization.
 

Jo Taylor, Managing Director, Let's Talk Talent

As the Chief Talent Strategist, one of my top tips is to show the value of HR through data-driven insights. For example, when working with C-suite executives on talent acquisition efforts, I analyze key metrics, such as time-to-fill, cost-per-hire, and quality of hire. 

These metrics provide valuable data on the efficiency and effectiveness of our recruitment strategies. By presenting this data in detailed reports, presentations, or dashboards, I can showcase the ROI of our talent acquisition efforts and highlight the direct impact on the company's overall productivity and profitability.

I make a concerted effort to integrate HR data with key business, operational, sales, and financial metrics and performance indicators. This approach paints a comprehensive picture of how HR initiatives align with the organization's strategic vision as a strategic partner in driving organizational success.
 

Florence Idowu, Chief Talent Strategist, Bavarde Consulting & Management

After working on the business side for the first eight years of my career, I transitioned into HR. Many of the HR professionals "training" me scoffed at my background. However, over time, it became a strategic advantage. 

Building strong relationships with your C-Suite Executives often requires a deep understanding of the business. This includes knowing what product or service they manage, and how they either generate revenue or mitigate risk for the company. Understanding these semantics will provide more insight into the effects of the market or industry on their departments. 

For instance, while supporting the Mortgage Division of a bank, I could leverage my experience as both an HR professional and a mortgage executive. When the CEO had to decide how to meet profit goals for the last two quarters of the year, I devised a plan involving right-sizing the operations team and identifying an acquisition within our region.
 

Trent Cotton, Senior Director of Talent, Hatchworks

Brett Farmiloe is the Founder & CEO of Featured.