CPO / CHRO Hiring
Is this our Chief People Officer? An evaluation scorecard for hiring managers
8 categories that actually matter for a CPO. A few yes/no questions in each to bring a little more clarity to your hiring process. Before You Start: Every company is different, and the right hire depends on your stage, size, strategy, and the specific challenges you're facing. Use the scorecard as a helpful starting point for structured thinking, and if you need a little more guidance, reach out to Hunt Club. How to use the scorecard Drawing on thousands of executive placements and our experience with high-growth companies, we've organized the scorecard into eight key categories. Evaluate whether the candidate meets each criterion, then review the final score at the bottom. To receive a score, you must complete all fields. Scorecards are meant to supplement your hiring process near/at the end of an interview loop, once you have a solid understanding of the candidate and can confidently answer questions below.
01
HR Strategy & Business Alignment
0 / 5
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Have they built a people strategy directly tied to specific business outcomes like revenue growth or retention targets?
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Have they changed a hiring or org plan in direct response to a shift in business strategy?
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Do they consistently monitor and improve operational KPIs to ensure predictable performance?
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Have they made tough trade-offs between resources, priorities, or processes to drive operational results?
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Do they measure the success of HR initiatives using business metrics like retention cost or productivity, rather than HR only metrics like satisfaction scores?
02
Talent Acquisition & Workforce Planning
0 / 5
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Have they built a hiring plan that matched actual growth targets?
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Have they reduced time to fill for critical roles through a process change they personally drove?
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Have they successfully scaled a recruiting function through a period of rapid headcount growth?
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Have they built a workforce plan tied directly to unit economics, such as revenue per employee or headcount efficiency ratios?
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Have they built succession depth specifically to de-risk a leadership transition, or specifically during a hold period or ahead of an exit?
03
Organizational Design & Change Management
0 / 4
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Do they have experience tracking employee sentiment or productivity before and after a major change to confirm it worked?
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Can they point to a specific reporting structure change they made and the result it produced?
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Have they managed a layoff or reduction in force while preserving trust with the remaining team?
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Have they led a company through a merger, acquisition, or major restructuring?
04
Compensation, Benefits & Total Rewards
0 / 5
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Have they designed or overhauled an equity compensation program?
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Do they benchmark comp against market data on a regular cadence?
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Do they review comp bands on a regular cadence to stay aligned with market movement?
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Have they built a variable pay or bonus structure that measurably drove results?
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Have they designed a benefits package specifically tailored to what their workforce actually values?
05
Culture & Employee Experience
0 / 4
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Have they run regular engagement surveys and acted on the results with visible changes?
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Do they consistently develop leaders within their teams who can take on increasing responsibility?
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Have they built a program to boost retention that showed a measurable result?
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Do they have a documented framework for what the company culture stands for, beyond a values slide?
06
HR Compliance & Risk Management
0 / 4
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Have they managed a significant legal or compliance issue (harassment claim, wage dispute, audit) to resolution?
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Do they run regular compliance training and audits proactively, rather than reactively after an incident?
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Have they built a DEI program with measurable goals?
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Have they built a reliable reporting process that employees actually trust and use?
07
Board & Executive Communication
0 / 4
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Have they personally presented people metrics and org health directly to the board?
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Can they translate people data into business risk that resonates with a nontechnical audience?
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Are they seen as a strategic partner by the rest of the executive team?
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Have they presented workforce cost and headcount efficiency metrics in the format PE or VC investors expect?
08
AI & Technology Forward Thinking
0 / 6
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Have they implemented an AI or automation tool that measurably improved an HR process?
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Have they built a reskilling or upskilling program in response to new technology adoption?
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Do they personally use AI tools in their own workflow?
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Have they built guidelines or a policy for responsible AI use within the company?
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Do they instinctively question whether a process still needs AI in the loop?
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Are they genuinely curious about new technology even in HR/People-driven roles?
Work through each section honestly. This framework is designed to surface doubt — not suppress it. A strong hire should feel clear.
0/37
CRITERIA MET
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