The new Chief People Officers Outlook highlights business acumen as the most critical skill for people leaders in 2025.
Organizations are restructuring, redesigning jobs and integrating artificial intelligence into their workforces amid a rapidly changing environment.
Four executive-level people leaders share their perspectives on why business acumen is crucial across the people function.
세계경제포럼, 2025년 9월 1일 게시
Adele Jacquard
Mission Specialist, Work, Wages and Job Creation, World Economic Forum
Organizations are preparing for change as geopolitical and economic volatility, rapid technological advances, shifting demographics and evolving worker expectations continue to disrupt labour markets.
Insights from the inaugural Chief People Officers Outlook indicate where transformation is headed – companies are rethinking their organizational structures, cultures and job design while prioritizing workforce integration of artificial intelligence (AI).
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As transformation accelerates across industries, the role of the chief people officer is increasingly central to organizational success. The Outlook identifies business acumen as the number one skill every people leader needs in 2025, enabling them to connect workforce strategies directly to organizational growth, resilience and innovation.
Business acumen and strategic thinking are, in fact, ranked in the top three success factors by 100% of survey chief people officers, with nearly 90% ranking it as their top priority.
As one chief people officer noted: “You can’t separate people and business anymore.”
Many chief people officers consulted for this briefing also acknowledged a capability gap in digital and data skills across the people function. Closing this gap is seen as essential to increasing the people function’s strategic influence and impact across the business.
Here are four takes from people leaders across various sectors.
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Viviana Alberu, Chief People Officer, Majid Al Futtaim Holding
“Business and AI acumen together are transformative.”
The integration of AI into learning and development (L&D) is no longer an elective offering but a foundational component of any future-ready learning strategy. As AI transforms business operations, business acumen has become essential not only for L&D leaders but for all levels of the organization.
Prioritizing business acumen enhances individual performance and fosters a resilient, strategically aligned workforce. It ensures AI-driven initiatives are innovative and grounded in business realities.
In a rapidly evolving world, organizations must cultivate the ability to anticipate and shape change rather than merely respond. Developing business acumen by fostering an enterprise mindset encourages a holistic perspective while building an understanding of interdependencies across functions and in turn, positions businesses with a competitive edge.
For L&D leaders, this means evolving into strategic partners who not only adopt AI tools but also align them with core business metrics and outcomes.
Business and AI acumen together are transformative. Their integration supports the creation of enterprise-ready organizations capable of navigating what’s to come. Achieving this requires mutual learning: business professionals must understand AI and AI professionals must grasp business fundamentals.
This shared understanding fosters alignment, reduces resistance and enhances the impact of AI across the company. Ultimately, business acumen is now a foundational competency for sustainable growth, innovation and strategic L&D leadership.
Kelly Jones, Chief People Officer, Cisco
“Without strong business acumen, we risk becoming a support function on the sidelines.”
Great HR leaders aren’t just “people experts,” they are business leaders who happen to specialize in people.
AI is reshaping value chains, operating models, and competitive dynamics at record speed. To keep up, HR must speak the language of revenue, cost structures, customer expectations and workforce capabilities.
Without strong business acumen, we risk becoming a support function on the sidelines. With business acumen as a foundation, we can become indispensable business partners who shape AI investments, align talent strategies to market realities, and keep people at the heart of transformation.
One of the most effective ways I’ve found to build this fluency is to embed directly into the business. Whether it is shadowing a profit and loss leader, joining a product development session or sitting in on customer meetings, every minute I have spent with a customer has paid off tenfold.
When you see the business from the inside, your HR counsel becomes a true strategic driver, shaping outcomes, influencing direction and leading change that delivers real results.
Shaji Mathew, Chief Human Resources Officer, Infosys
“Bringing business acumen into HR enables us to be true partners to the business…”
In the age of AI, tapping into human creativity, curiosity and imagination is critical for both business and people leaders. As AI reshapes industries and redefines operating models, HR leaders must align workforce strategy with business priorities, anticipate market shifts and understand the impact of talent decisions on growth and profitability.
Bringing business acumen into HR enables us to be true partners to the business – shaping workforce strategies that engage and empower employees while strengthening client outcomes and shareholder value. It’s about ensuring every people decision directly contributes to sustainable business performance.
There are a number of ways for HR leaders to strengthen their business acumen, including building financial intelligence, a better understanding of the business model and increasing market and industry awareness. However, the most effective way would be for them to drive cross-functional business initiatives, working with leaders from different parts of the business.
Leading such initiatives will allow HR leaders to gain a comprehensive view of the business and understand the implications of key people decisions on the organization.
Myriam Beatove Moreale, Chief Human Resources Officer, Randstad
“To strengthen business acumen, HR leaders should actively seek out cross-functional experiences.”
In today’s fast-paced environment, the chief people officer’s role is no longer confined to traditional HR functions; it’s about strategic business leadership. Business acumen is now the most critical skill because it enables people leaders to directly link workforce strategies to the organization’s growth, resilience and innovation.
With AI reshaping roles and a constant need for transformation, the chief people officer must be a “dot connector” and a change leader, helping employees understand the company’s direction and driving decisions that have a high business impact. This requires a deep understanding of the business itself.
To strengthen business acumen, HR leaders should actively seek out cross-functional experiences. By taking on projects or roles outside of a traditional HR scope, such as leading a large-scale transformation or moving to another part of the organization, they can gain a broader view of the business.
These experiences build credibility and provide a systems-thinking approach, which is crucial for navigating complexity. This enables HR leaders to effectively advise on key business topics, proving that HR is a pivotal function for shaping business success.
