How influence, impact and strategy outweigh job titles.
Senior HR roles are described by a growing range of titles: Head of HR, HR Director, Chief People Officer, CHRO, and every variation in between. In some organisations, these titles coexist; in others, they signal a deliberate emphasis on how the HR or People function is positioned within the business.
This question formed the basis of a recent breakfast I hosted with a group of Chief People Officers, where we explored a simple provocation: does the title of the most senior HR role really matter?
What followed was an interesting debate. The group recognised that while titles have their place, it is influence, impact and strategic contribution that truly define leadership. In fact, the provocation gave an opportunity to discuss how we can be more influential, impactful and strategic in the role.
Of course, titles can help shape expectations and open doors, but they do not create authority, confidence, or credibility on their own. The assumption is often straightforward: a more senior title creates more impact. But the reality is more complex.
What titles signal
Titles do matter because they act as signals. They shape expectations about where authority sits and who is expected to contribute at a strategic level. In hierarchical organisations, a senior title can accelerate access to decision-making forums and help reset outdated perceptions of the HR function.
When titles fall short
However, titles are not a source of influence in themselves. They reflect it, amplify it, or sometimes expose its absence. I sometimes see a tendency in People teams to fixate on titles at the expense of behaviour and action, which as a result looks like navel gazing to those outside the function.
A senior HR title cannot create confidence, judgement, or credibility where these are not already being exercised. When behaviour doesn’t match a title, the influence implied by it quickly erodes. Authority might be assumed, but it’s not being fully used.
Where influence is really built
Real influence is built through behaviour and relationships. It comes from how HR leaders act in moments of complexity, how they influence those in power rather than navigating around them, and how willing they are to exercise professional judgement without waiting for permission from the CEO or Board.
Influence is often demonstrated long before it is formally recognised. The title follows the behaviour, not the other way around.
The invisible work behind senior HR roles
There is also an often-unseen dimension to senior HR roles that titles fail to capture. HR leaders regularly act as emotional and relational anchors within the organisation, stabilising difficult conversations, holding tension, and enabling productive dialogue when stakes are high. This work is cognitively demanding, emotionally taxing, and often invisible. It rarely features in job descriptions and almost never in job titles. I also often hear HR leaders complain about this. My view – it’s the job. Set boundaries by all means, but reset your expectations – it’s tough.
Ultimately, the question beneath the title debate is one of intention on the part of HR leaders. What role do they choose to play within the system? Do they step fully into their influence regardless of what they’re called, or do they wait for their title to legitimise what the organisation already needs from them?
These questions become most pressing when HR leaders begin navigating the step into the c-suite. Not simply as a promotion, but as a change in how influence, judgement, and presence are exercised at an enterprise level.
Free webinar
I will explore this transition in more depth on my webinar, Navigating the steps to the c-suite, on 5 March at 10.30am. The focus will be on what really changes when leaders step into c-suite leadership, including the mindset, behaviours, and ways of thinking required to operate effectively beyond function and title.
Titles can open doors and shape expectations. But it is intention, behaviour, and presence that determine whether those doors lead anywhere meaningful.
At HEX, we support leaders to strengthen their impact, confidence, and presence at the top of the organisation.
Our free guide, The Transformational CHRO Mindset, explores the four shifts that support HR leaders in moving beyond role and title into true enterprise leadership. If this resonates and you’d like to discuss it further, please get in touch.
