Many HR professionals aspire to become chief human resources officers, but few have a clear way of assessing how close they are to that goal. Anjani B Kuumar, former global CHRO with organisations such as Sony, GE and Amazon MX Player, has launched the Future CHRO Readiness Index, a diagnostic tool designed to help HR professionals evaluate their preparedness for the top HR position.
The online assessment examines participants across a range of leadership dimensions and provides a readiness score, along with insights into areas that may require further development. According to Kuumar, the tool was developed after years of observing common patterns among HR professionals aspiring to senior leadership roles.
Drawing on more than three decades of experience in HR leadership, Kuumar says the biggest barriers to becoming a CHRO are often not related to HR expertise. Instead, gaps tend to emerge in areas such as business acumen, enterprise-wide thinking, strategic influence and leadership positioning.
The assessment differs from traditional HR competency frameworks by focusing on broader leadership capabilities that are increasingly expected of HR leaders operating at the executive level.
The Future CHRO Readiness Index is available online free of charge. The initiative forms part of Kuumar’s wider work in leadership development and mentoring HR professionals seeking to move from functional expertise to enterprise leadership roles.
