What do the 2022 CEO Purpose Report findings mean for Chief People Officers?

Perhaps the most striking change between our 2021 and 2022 report is this: 29% of CEOs think CPOs have the responsibility to define the purpose of an organization, compared to 6% the year before.

It’s a big jump and feels reflective of the perception shift that we’ve seen in many organizations over the last 18 months. People functions have delivered both strategically and operationally, using their expertise to navigate an exceptionally difficult and complex landscape.

So what next? Our CEO Purpose Report highlighted that we are operating in the employee era. Which makes it the de facto era for Chief People Officers; the time to rethink and reshape the employee experience in a more creative, experiential way that will attract and retain the best talent.

It calls for bold thinking and action. It calls for a new breed of people leader who will embrace the very best of customer experience and apply those principles internally to drive more rewarding, more memorable ‘moments that matter’ for employees (the ‘goosebump moments’ as Melissa Cee, Chief Talent Officer at Littler, described in HR Executive).

What links those moments that matter? Purpose. It’s the lens through which to define, develop and deliver memorable experiences for your people. Ones that reflect and support what you stand for in the world.

A good example is AstraZeneca’s internal simplification drive aimed at reducing bureaucracy and complexity so that all 80,000 employees could ‘push the boundaries of science to deliver life-changing medicines.’

The spark: an organizational-wide challenge to save one-million hours in service of this internal simplification drive. In the end, two-million hours were saved. The time saved was utilized to deliver 26 more early phase trials and 4 more late phase trials, which ultimately impacted 4 million patient lives. This creative thinking, powered by purpose, drove a better employee experience and directly impacted business performance.

This is the opportunity for people leaders. To connect purpose, ambition, strategy, and culture. To treat your people like customers. To deliver experiences that reflect the spirit of your organisation. From creating inspiring on-boarding programs and launching new ways to learn, to the work that people do, every ‘moment that matters’ presents a chance to reinforce why you exist, aligning what you say with what you do.

The organizations that recognise change is happening, and are willing to experiment and try new things will gain the competitive edge and grow. There has never been a more exciting time to be a people leader, to put purpose at the core of your talent strategy, and define the next era of talent attraction, retention, and development.