CHRO vs. CEO: When it comes to healthcare costs, who’s in charge? 

Who in your organization is most focused on controlling healthcare and benefits costs for the business? Select up to three.

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The CEO or founder owns it.

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It’s on the CHRO’s plate.

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When we examined who’s responsible for healthcare costs—i.e., keeping a pulse on the numbers and delivering results—the C-suite and HR pointed fingers in opposite directions. (Think “Spiderman pointing” meme). Each of them believed those responsibilities fell under different roles.

Section 2 takeaways:

What’s it mean?

Let’s try to break down the tangled web organizations are weaving:

  • HR thinks the CHRO is responsible. 
  • The C-suite thinks the CEO is responsible.

So what’s the right answer? Without a clear understanding of ownership, companies risk the ball being dropped. Additionally, they’ll find it difficult to develop a comprehensive solution (if no one owns the problem, no one will prioritize fixing it).

The Solution

As the Beatles would say, HR and C-suite need to come together, right now to establish clear divisions of duty. Poor communication leads to poor decisions, or worse, no decisions at all. Don’t let your action be inaction, or leave your team members pointing fingers when you finally realize someone needs to tackle rising healthcare costs.

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