Who's getting paid the most inside corporate America
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Corporate executives in charge of human resources, legal operations and technology are increasingly among the highest-paid employees inside public companies, according to an analysis out Tuesday from The Conference Board.
The big picture: Researchers looked at the five highest-paid job functions inside publicly traded companies — named executive officers in public filings — a useful way of understanding what roles companies most value.
- These days there's more emphasis inside companies on risks associated with technology, talent and regulation, the group said in its report. These are no longer simply viewed as support functions.
Zoom out: Public companies are required to disclose their highest-paid officers — that almost always means the chief executive and usually the chief financial and chief operating officers.
- Outside of those roles, the mix in the C-suite can change.
Zoom in: Chief technology officers, chief legal officers and chief human resources officers appeared more frequently as named officers last year.
- The number of CTOs named in public filings increased 61% in 2025 from 2021 among Russell 3000 firms. Chief human resources officers increased 55%.
- Median pay for these jobs is up, too. CHROs at Russell 3000 companies earned a median $2.1 million in 2025, up from $1.7 million in 2022.
Flashback: Some roles get trendy, then disappear. Three companies named chief diversity officers on their lists of highest-paid officers in 2023.
- Now, none do.
