NPR Hires ‘Chief People Officer ‘

NPR has appointed Jeff Perkins, managing partner at Huntbridge, Inc., as its Vice President and Chief People Officer. It’s not a new position for NPR, but it is a new job title. HR’s Kathleen Jackson is departing.

What’a a Chief People Officer? As explained by an NPR spokesman, it’s a job title used at more progressive organizations. “For NPR, the title signifies that its people and our HR strategies are essential to our mission and business goals,” said NPR Spokesman Emerson Brown.

In this senior management role, Perkins (who had better be a serious people person considering the following job description) will lead the development of NPR’s human resources, talent management strategy, and will be central in cultivating an effective corporate culture. Perkins joins NPR on July 6, 2010, reporting to SVP of Strategic Operations and Finance Debra Delman, and working closely with NPR’s senior leadership group.

Perkins comes to NPR from Huntbridge, Inc., a human resource and consulting firm he founded and before that, held positions at various media companies including Fox Interactive Media.

“I look forward to working with this very talented team of people in a city I have long called home,” Perkins said in a statement.

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