Logan Roy likely didn’t consult his CHRO before choosing his successor (don’t worry, no spoilers here), but maybe he should have.

While consulting with HR may not be the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about succession planning, Dan Kaplan, senior partner at Korn Ferry’s CHRO practice, told HR Brew that CHROs are integral to the process, especially when it comes to choosing a new CEO. No one, he said, is better equipped to identify the internal or external talent with the leadership and cultural qualities needed to take a business into the future.

Crystal ball. Succession planning is one of the CHRO’s biggest responsibilities and an undertaking that can take years, Kaplan said. As the stewards of an organization’s culture, CHROs can anticipate both the business and cultural needs and transformations that may come with a new CEO.

They’re also prepared for various what-ifs and understand what the company currently needs from a leader and what it will need. “You’re almost not looking at the individual; you’re looking at, what is the job going to be in five years?” he said. This may require looking outside the organization. “The best heads of HR, parallel with their efforts to develop the internal candidates, are also looking at the external market,” Kaplan said, adding that a good HR leader should be able to look at internal and external talent, and pinpoint who the emerging leaders are, “who maybe won’t be the next CEO, but might be the one after that.”

Personality hires. CEOs, Logan Roy or otherwise, may go wrong if they try to find successors in their mirror images. If he’d asked Kaplan, he would have recommended looking beyond apparent personality traits to who can be groomed for the top job. Keep reading here.—KP

Do you work in HR or have information about your HR department we should know? Email [email protected] or DM @Kris10Parisi on Twitter. For completely confidential conversations, ask Kristen for her number on Signal.

The world’s largest four-day workweek experiment reached a milestone last month: the halfway point in its six-month trial. And participants are singing its praises. Some 86% of the 70 participating UK companies said they are “extremely likely” or “likely” to continue with a 32-hour week after the trial’s conclusion, according to a survey conducted by 4 Day Week Global, the organization running the pilot program.

Although cutting the week by 20% might seem simple enough, headaches and snags are to be expected, Jo Deal, CHRO at software developer GoTo, explained to HR Brew. Certain industries, especially those centered around customer service and client-based work, might have a more difficult time adapting.

“I think customers expect five-days-a-week support, sometimes seven days a week, 24/7,” she said. As the four-day week becomes more viable for employers, HR will have to wade through the hype and consider scheduling, fairness, and business needs, advised Deal.

What’s up with the UK trial? The nonprofit 4 Day Week Global launched its UK pilot program in June, in partnership with the think tank Autonomy and researchers from Cambridge University, Boston College, and Oxford University. It involves over 3,300 workers across 70 companies who’ve been working four days a week with no pay reductions.

Working less hasn’t cratered productivity, the survey suggested, as 46% of respondents said that productivity has stayed the same, 34% said it’s “improved slightly,” and 15% reported a significant increase.

Looking beyond the gloss. Pivoting to a four-day week isn’t a seamless endeavor, stressed Deal, where employees hold hands under halcyon skies Monday through Thursday. For one, deciding what day of the week to discard might be a tough call, since every employee’s needs are different.

As employees juggle a range of demands, from childcare to eldercare and beyond, a four-day mandate could prove complicated. Keep reading here.—SB

Do you work in HR or have information about your HR department we should know? Email [email protected] or DM @SammBlum on Twitter. For completely confidential conversations, ask Sam for his number on Signal.

On Wednesdays, we schedule our weekly 1:1 with HR Brew’s readers. Want to be featured in an upcoming edition? Click here to introduce yourself.

This week’s Coworking spotlights HR Brew’s new senior reporter, Adam DeRose, who joined Morning Brew earlier this month after spending five years producing videos at The Hill. Feel free to say hello as he gets settled.

What are you most interested in exploring as you begin reporting on the HR industry? I’m excited to explore the intersection of human resources and the changing workplace. Company culture and culture culture have been colliding these last few years as we collectively deal with the pandemic and social movements. It’ll be fun to cover how (some) businesses handle and adapt to those shifts.

What’s the most interesting interaction you’ve had with an HR person? You might be surprised how many interactions I have had with HR people related to the capital R in my last name. Seeing “Derose” on official documents gives me the shivers.

What emerging HR trend or technology are you excited about? Keep reading here.

Want to be featured in an upcoming edition of Coworking? Click here to introduce yourself.

Today’s top HR reads.

Stat: 47% of small-business owners said their greatest challenge is recruiting and retaining qualified workers. (the Wall Street Journal)

Quote: “We don’t think that employers should be surveilling and taking note of the activity of keystrokes and mouse clicks and those types of things, because, in so many ways, we feel like that’s measuring heat rather than outcome.”—Jared Spataro, corporate VP and leader of Microsoft’s Modern Work team, on the company’s approach to employee surveillance (Bloomberg)

Read: Factory work is on the rise in the US, propelled by companies seeing value in less complex supply chains and changes in consumer habits after Covid-19. (the New York Times)

Change for good: Managing the shift to a hybrid workplace comes with challenges—and opportunities for growth. Get perspective and inspo at our next virtual HR Brew event, Navigating the 21st-Century Workplace, sponsored by Microsoft. Register here.

Strike a balance: How do you craft an employee benefits package that not only attracts young talent, but also offers suitable benefits for your more seasoned team members? Galleri covers it here.*

^{*This is sponsored advertising content.}