HRO Today’s CHRO Compensation: The Minority Report reveals that despite Caucasian HR leaders earning more in just salary, leaders from minority groups earn slightly more overall.
By Maggie Mancini
Research by Alexis Whyte
As the function and impact of HR expands, representational diversity and compensation for chief human resource officers (CHROs) are expanding with it. While most senior HR executives are Caucasian (86%), the representation gap is smaller compared to 2024. Overall, compensation is comparable between Caucasians and racial and ethnic minority groups, though minority groups earn slightly more, a difference of 1.8%. In just salary, Caucasians continue to earn more, a 4.3% difference.
Just less than three-fourths (73%) of senior HR leaders feel racial and ethnic minority groups in leadership positions are compensated on par with other executives within their company. Still, HR leaders from larger organizations are slightly more likely to agree that racial and ethnic minority groups in leadership roles are compensation with other executives in their organization (73% versus 71%).
HRO Today recently published its fifth annual CHRO Compensation Report, uncovering insights into how HR executives view compensation, especially considering increasing responsibilities and impact on company performance. The 2025 CHRO Compensation: The Minority Report expands upon findings from that publication, focusing on compensation for racial and ethnic minority groups.
There are five key findings from this study.
-
In the Fortune 1000, compensation was comparable between racial groups. While Caucasians made more in salary, racial and ethnic minority groups earn slightly more on average, a difference of 4.3%, though the gap decreased from 12.3% in 2024.
-
Most senior HR leaders are Caucasian, though the gap is slightly smaller compared to 2024. Among those sampled, 86% were identified as Caucasian while 14% belong to racial and ethnic minority groups. Last year, 88% of those sampled were Caucasian.
-
Representational diversity stagnated within HR leadership and fell within HR departments. Almost two-thirds (65%) of senior HR leaders agree their HR leadership team has representational diversity, the same level as in 2024. Diversity within leadership can bring nuance and inclusiveness to decision-making, change, and overall workplace satisfaction. Approximately 70% agree their HR department has representational diversity, down three percentage points from 2024.
-
Representational diversity within the workforce rose for the second consecutive year. Over three-fourths (77%) of senior HR leaders agree their company workforce has representational diversity, up two percentage points from 2024.
-
Less than three-quarters (73%) agree that racial and ethnic minority groups in executive roles are compensated on par with other executives. This is down slightly from 2024. Seemingly, an increasing number of executives agree that compensation between racial and ethnic minority groups and Caucasians is not comparable. Three-quarters (75%) agree that compensation between racial and ethnic groups in HR is comparable to that of Caucasians.
Senior HR leaders from larger organizations have a higher level of agreement than those from smaller organizations that there is representational diversity within their HR leadership team and HR department and that racial or ethnic minority groups and Caucasians are comparably compensated in executive roles and within HR departments.
