Melanie Steinbach
Chief People Officer and Chief Business Officer
MasterClass
Episode 156
Beyond HR: Why Your People Leader Needs to Be a Business Co-Pilot
Current chapter: Built by People podcast features insights from world's top HR leaders
Built By PeopleJune 8, 2025 · 13:32
Thesis
“HR leaders must deeply understand the business's financial model and proactively engage beyond traditional HR confines to truly unlock human potential and drive business value, moving from advisor to co-pilot.”
Show notes
"A pilot can only fly a plane if they understand exactly how it flies." Melanie Steinbach uses that analogy to describe what she expects of herself — and every HR leader — in terms of business fluency. At MasterClass, where she holds the unusually combined title of Chief People Officer and Chief Business Officer, that fluency isn't aspirational. It's operational.
The dual role is rare and illuminating: Melanie leads people strategy and business development simultaneously, which means she can't afford the luxury of talking about HR in isolation from revenue. Her core principle — "make the inside match the outside" — is simple and demanding: if your external brand promises that MasterClass unlocks human potential, then your internal employee experience needs to deliver that same promise to every person who works there. Culture and brand are not separate functions with a liaison between them. They're the same thing, viewed from different angles.
Her advice for HR leaders looking to expand their scope centers on curiosity as an operating discipline. Go learn how the sales team thinks. Understand how the product team prioritizes. Sit in on finance reviews. Not to own those functions, but to understand the constraints and opportunities that shape what HR actually needs to deliver. The CPOs who get invited into the most important conversations are the ones who stopped waiting to be invited and started showing up already fluent.
- The co-pilot model for HR leadership — what it means to understand the business well enough to fly it
- "Make the inside match the outside" — aligning employee experience with the brand's external promise
- Growth without promotion — how to communicate alternative development paths that retain ambitious employees
- Curiosity as a career and leadership strategy — the disciplined practice of learning other functions' languages
- The dual CPO/CBO role — what HR leaders can learn from an executive who bridges people strategy and business development
Previ is a private pricing network that is free for companies to launch and maintain. It saves employees $2,200/year on essential services like their cell phone and auto insurance bill. Visit here to learn more.
What you'll take away
- 1HR leaders must speak the language of the business and deeply understand its financial model to be effective co-pilots, not just confidants or advisors.
- 2Align internal HR practices and mission with the company's external mission to ensure consistency and enhance employee experience (e.g., 'make the inside match the outside').
- 3Growth and employee value can be fostered through various opportunities, not solely promotions; communicate this clearly and provide alternative paths for development.
- 4Cultivate deep curiosity about different functions and departments within the business to identify opportunities and develop solutions that add broader organizational value.
- 5In a transformative age driven by AI, HR leaders must dial up their curiosity and act as thought leaders in structuring work and adapting to new technologies.
What most organizations get wrong
- •Pushes back on the idea that promotion is the *only* way a company can prove it values employees, advocating for broader growth and development opportunities.
- •Challenges HR leaders to move beyond a confidant/advisor role to become a 'co-pilot' by deeply understanding the business's core financial mechanisms.
In Melanie's words
“the job of the chief people officer in any consumer business is to make the inside match the outside.”
This highlights the importance of aligning internal HR practices with the company's external brand and mission.
“you have to speak the language of the business, not just the language of HR.”
A foundational piece of advice for HR leaders aiming to broaden their impact and be seen as strategic business partners.
“The only way a pilot can fly a plane is if they understand exactly how a plane flies. And so if we as HR leaders aren't deeply understanding how our businesses make money and differentiate, we're not going to be able to add more value.”
This analogy emphasizes the critical need for HR professionals to grasp business fundamentals to truly contribute strategically.
“wherever there are employees is my lane because I am the people officer.”
Illustrates a proactive and expansive view of the HR role, extending beyond traditional boundaries.
“If you are not fascinated by the way humans think, act, feel, you are going to find the subject matter of this work pretty depressing.”
A candid and insightful take on the fundamental requirement for a successful career in HR.
“this really transformative age of AI is dial up your curiosity. Get curious on everything.”
A forward-looking call to action for HR leaders to embrace and lead through the changes brought by AI.
The problems this episode addresses
- •Employees feeling undervalued or lacking growth opportunities if promotions are the sole measure of progress, especially during periods of business cutbacks.
- •HR leaders struggling to be perceived as strategic business partners rather than just administrative or supportive roles.
- •Difficulty in clearly communicating performance management standards and promotion criteria, leading to employee confusion or dissatisfaction.
- •Businesses failing to align their internal culture and practices with their external mission, creating dissonance for employees and customers.
In this episode
Built by People podcast features insights from world's top HR leaders
Built by People
Tanner: Melanie is our guest for today's show
Dave DeAngelo in Costa Rica
Tanner Miller is the Chief People Officer of MasterClass
Unlock Your Potential on Built by People
MasterClass has hired a chief people officer who also runs its B2B business
The Chief People Officer's Dual Role
How does MasterClass's mission influence your approach to internal HR practices
How MasterClass's Mission Influences HR Practices
You implemented clear roles, scorecards, expectations and saw tangible results
What Makes a Masterclass Experience?
Tanner: How would you recommend HR leaders broaden their scope outside of HR
Beyond HR: The Business of Human Resources
Is there any last pieces of advice that you would give to the listeners about HR
HR Live: Built by People
Topics covered
Organizations and entities mentioned
Full transcript
Expand transcript (0 words)
Transcript is not available yet.