'Chief Workforce Officer' Seen As Emerging Title

With intellectual property becoming more critical to business success, Doug Merritt, president and CEO of workforce services company Icarian Inc., Sunnyvale, Calif., suggests that companies will soon start creating a position of chief workforce officer (CWO) as a complement to the vice president of human resources. He envisions the scope of duties for the chief workforce officer to include, among other things, determining "what talent the organization has and determining where in an organization tasks can be done." In his mind, a CWO also would have primary responsibility for "making sure managers always have the talent they need" and assist managers in assessing what skills are needed within their area of responsibility.