Here is a composite. The CEO of a founder-led company doing about $200 million has been working toward a hard decision. The reorg is stalled, two leaders have left, and the CHRO has lost the room. So the CEO reaches for what they always do with a difficult people decision, and picks up the phone to call the CHRO. Then stops. There is nobody else in the building who knows how to do this, because the person who knows how is the problem.
Every other executive search in this company starts in HR. HR writes the job description, benchmarks the pay, chooses the search firm, books the interviews, orders the background check, issues the offer and sets up onboarding. When the seat is the CHRO, each of those steps runs through the person who can't know.
This is happening more. Russell Reynolds' Global CHRO Turnover Index, reported by HRD Canada in September, counted 95 CHRO appointments worldwide in the first half of 2026, against an eight-year first-half average of 93 and 79 a year earlier. Those figures come from large listed companies, and they bring a second point for your search: the pool of experienced CHROs is limited.
Share of H1 2026 CHRO appointments who were first-time CHROs, up from 55.7% a year earlier. External hires made up 51.6%.
Russell Reynolds Associates, Global CHRO Turnover Index, via HRD Canada, September 1, 2026. Large listed companies.So many searches will end with someone who has never held the job. That raises the stakes on the brief, and the person who would normally write that brief isn't available.
Six jobs HR normally does
Writing the brief. Normally HR. Here, the CEO and one trusted director, with the search partner holding the pen. Decide what the seat is for. A company in the middle of a reorg needs a different CHRO from one building a pipeline for the next 24 months.
Benchmarking the pay. Normally HR or a compensation consultant retained by HR. Here, the search firm supplies market data, and the board's compensation committee or the sponsor supplies the incumbent's package. Don't request a report through the usual channel. A compensation vendor's account manager will probably email the CHRO.
Booking the process. Normally an HR coordinator. Here, the search firm runs the calendar, off-site, with neutral names. The CEO's assistant is usually the first person to work this out, so decide early whether they're inside the circle.
Checking the candidate. Normally HR orders it through its screening vendor, and that vendor's portal is often administered by HR. Use a separate account set up with counsel. When an outside screening firm is used, the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act requires a clear written disclosure and the candidate's authorization, and states can add to that. Those duties don't go away because HR is out of the loop. Sequence it late, as we described in The Reference You Can't Call.
Issuing the offer. Normally HR's template and HR's signature. Here, employment counsel drafts it and the CEO signs. Keep it out of the HR system and any shared drive until the announcement, along with the separation terms for the incumbent.
Onboarding the successor. Normally HR. Here, the new CHRO arrives to run a department that has just lost its leader and may feel loyal to them. Have the CEO or a fractional leader set up the first 90 days. The 90-Day Window covers why that period decides so much.
Every step of an executive search runs through HR, until the seat is HR.
The system nobody thinks about
A CHRO's reach goes beyond the search. HR usually administers the HRIS, and may have access to org changes, pay change approvals and sometimes employee relations files. A new position record, a pay band change or a pending separation agreement may be visible to them or their team. So don't create the role in the system until the announcement. If IT administers email and calendars on behalf of HR, keep the search off company systems. Use the search firm's secure workspace and personal calendars.
Then ask the question that matters most, and ask it before anything else: is there a legal reason to pause? If the CHRO has recently raised a complaint, is running or involved in an investigation, or is a witness to something involving senior leadership, a decision to replace them can look like retaliation, however sound your reasons. Talk to employment counsel first. This is one more reason to keep the circle small, and to document the business reasons honestly and in advance.
Who keeps the function running
The other risk is the day the CHRO leaves. Payroll keeps running, but active employee relations matters, benefits renewal, open reorg decisions and pending hires all need an owner. Line up a senior HR leader who can step up, or a fractional CHRO who can hold the function under Bridge-to-Hire while the retained search finishes. A bridge also gives you an honest read on what the department needs, which goes straight into the brief.
This is why the seat suits a retained, exclusive search. The firm is doing the work of a missing department: calendar, market data, candidate care, process. A contingency model isn't paid to do any of that.
When this matters less
If the CHRO is retiring or has resigned, they can help run the search, and usually should. If your company has no CHRO and is deciding whether to hire one, that's a different question: many companies under a few hundred people can run on a strong HR manager plus a fractional leader. And if the real problem is that the CEO doesn't back the people agenda, a new CHRO will hit the same wall as the last one.
When it does need to stay quiet, the process rule is short. Before you make the first call, write down who does each of HR's six jobs, and ask counsel whether there is any reason to pause.