Скачать или смотреть How to Become a Successful Chief People Officer: Insider Insights, with Kanika Mehra

In this episode of HR Coffee Time, I’m joined by Kanika Mehra, Chief People Officer at Frontiers – a leading science research publisher dedicated to making quality research openly accessible.

Having built her HR career in fast-paced, global organisations, including Amazon, Kanika stepped into her first CPO position at Frontiers in 2022, bringing a calm, values-led, and commercially savvy approach to building a People strategy from the ground up.

☕ Whether you’re aiming to become a Chief People Officer or preparing for a more senior HR role, this conversation is packed with honest insights to help you grow your confidence, navigate complexity, and lead with impact.

HR Coffee Time | Episode 147

🎧 We cover:
• How Kanika got her first CPO role (and why she nearly said no)
• The LinkedIn tips that helped her get approached
• The mindset shift from Head of HR or HR Director to CPO
• How to lead when you don’t have all the answers
• The power of data, storytelling and commercial acumen
• Her “two-way door” approach to decision-making
• Why she wants her team to say no to her
• How she maintains her wellbeing in a high-pressure role
• Practical advice for aspiring and first-time CPOs

⏱ Chapters:
00:00 – Introduction
02:12 – Meet Kanika Mehra
02:25 – How she got her first CPO role
03:23 – The role LinkedIn played – and how to improve your profile
07:00 – Differences between being a Head of People or HR Director vs a CPO
09:27 – Making big decisions
14:02 – Learning to lead without having all the answers
17:50 – Developing confidence and decisiveness
22:51 – Why business acumen is essential – and how to build it
27:45 – Becoming confident with data and storytelling
33:12 – Her biggest challenge as a CPO
34:03 – Balancing employee experience with business priorities
37:59 – Maintaining mental wellbeing in a high-pressure role
40:08 – The importance of values alignment
42:38 – Advice for anyone who’d like to be a CPO
45:41 – Advice for first-time CPOs
49:57 – Courses and books that have helped Kanika succeed
52:36 – Wrap-up and other HR Coffee Time podcast episode recommendations

🔗 Useful Links
• Connect with me on LinkedIn:   / faywallis  
• My website: https://brightskycareercoaching.co.uk/
• Connect with Kanika Mehra on LinkedIn:   / kanikasuri  

🌟 Resources to support your career:

🎓 Inspiring HR Leadership – My accredited leadership development programme for aspiring and existing HR leaders:
https://brightskycareercoaching.co.uk...

📘 The Essential HR Planner – Plan your goals, stay focused, and make a bigger impact at work:
https://essentialhrplanner.co.uk/

💌 Free Weekly Newsletter – Career tips, leadership ideas & podcast updates:
https://brightskycareercoaching.kit.c...

📚 Book Recommendations from the Episode
(Book links are Amazon affiliate links – if you make a purchase, I may receive a small commission)
• My Life in Full – Indra Nooyi: https://amzn.to/4eiyRDd
• Data-Driven HR – Bernard Marr: https://amzn.to/409FQIJ
• Working Backwards – Colin Bryar and Bill Carr: https://amzn.to/462ysme
• Excellence in People Analytics – Jonathan Ferrar and David Green: https://amzn.to/442dhxZ

🎙️ Other HR Coffee Time episodes mentioned or related:
• Episode 22: How to handle conflict at work
• Episode 31: 3 little-known LinkedIn features which will help you get your next job
• Episode 35: Helping teams thrive with personal user manuals
• Episode 47: Discovering your values to help your HR career
• Episode 106: 7 types of posts to share on LinkedIn that will help your HR career

💬 What part of Kanika’s advice resonated most with you? Let me know in the comments – I’d love to hear your thoughts.

🔔 If you found this helpful, please like the video, subscribe to the channel, and share the episode with a friend or colleague in HR. Thank you for supporting the show!