Organizations today face fast‑moving, interconnected risks—from cyber threats and AI disruption to geopolitical shifts and supply‑chain volatility. In this environment, the risk function has become one of the most dynamic training grounds for future enterprise leaders.

A recent McKinsey & Company thought paper, “How Chief Risk Officers Can Build the Next Generation of Leaders,”  argues that risk teams sit at the center of strategy, operations, technology, and crisis response—making them ideal environments for developing broad, enterprise‑ready leaders.

This synopsis distills the key insights and shows how CROs can intentionally turn the risk function into a leadership development engine for their organization.

Why the Risk Function Is Becoming a Leadership Factory

Modern risk leaders must operate with speed, clarity, and confidence as they navigate ambiguity and shape enterprise‑wide decisions. McKinsey highlights five traits that define today’s most effective risk leaders:

Five Critical Traits for Modern Risk Leaders

Trait	Why It Matters
1. Business acumen & operational prowess	CROs must balance strategic business objectives with risk intelligence to guide executives and boards in making informed, high‑impact decisions.
2. Fluency in emerging technologies	With AI advancing rapidly and cyber threats evolving daily, leaders must understand how technology intersects with strategy and risk.
3. Strong executive presence	Technical knowledge is not enough—CROs must communicate complex issues clearly, influence senior leaders, and shape high‑stakes discussions.
4. Orthogonal thinking	Modern risk leaders must see patterns others miss, connect issues across domains, and anticipate scenarios before signals fully emerge.
5. Decisiveness amid ambiguity	With “never‑seen‑before” risks on the rise, leaders must act with agility and boldness in uncertain, fast‑changing environments.

Together, these traits make risk roles ideal for cultivating leaders with enterprise‑wide perspective, strategic adaptability, and a high tolerance for complexity.

How CROs Are Building Leadership Pipelines Through the Risk Function

McKinsey identifies four actions CROs are taking to transform their risk teams into leadership development engines.

1. Define What Great Leadership Looks Like Today

CROs partner with senior executives to articulate the traits, mindsets, and behaviors that define high‑impact leaders in a volatile world. This includes not only how leaders perform, but also how they develop leadership in others—a critical attribute for scaling talent across the organization.

2. Expand Where Leadership Talent Comes From

Forward‑thinking CROs no longer rely solely on traditional risk backgrounds. Instead, they proactively identify future leaders from areas such as:

• Data and technology
• R&D
• Accounting and finance
• Supply chain
• Operations

This approach broadens the leadership pipeline and infuses risk functions with diverse perspectives and skill sets.

3. Provide Stretch Experiences That Build Enterprise Perspective

Risk roles expose rising leaders to crises, strategy conversations, and cross‑functional decisions—experiences that accelerate leadership growth. McKinsey notes several ways CROs are creating these opportunities:

• Rotational assignments that expand enterprise perspective
• Involvement in complex initiatives or crises to build judgment under pressure
• “Side‑of‑desk” opportunities that give emerging leaders exposure to risk without interrupting core business function responsibilities

These experiences help develop leaders who can “connect the dots” across the organization and respond with confidence when conditions shift.

4. Embed Leadership Development into the Culture

CROs are integrating leadership growth into everyday operations by:

• Communicating the value of risk experience as a career accelerator
• Building mentorship and apprenticeship models
• Encouraging learning both within and beyond the risk function

This creates a reinforcing cycle where emerging leaders move into new roles across the business—bringing a risk‑aware mindset with them.

Why This Matters for the Entire Enterprise

A thoughtful leadership development plan within the risk function creates a win‑win for individuals and the organization:

• Leaders gain exposure to complex challenges and diverse decision environments.
• The organization benefits from leaders with strong risk judgment, enterprise awareness, and strategic adaptability.
• Risk‑informed talent spreads across the enterprise, elevating the organization’s overall maturity in decision‑making and risk oversight.

Risk roles don’t just prepare people to respond to crises—they prepare them to lead.

Call to Action

As organizations face unprecedented uncertainty, CROs have a powerful opportunity to shape the next generation of leaders. By leveraging the risk function as a leadership factory, they can build a strong pipeline of talent capable of steering the enterprise through complexity, disruption, and rapid change.

Original Article Sources:

Farah Dilber and Ida Kristensen, “How chief risk officers can build the next generation of leaders,” McKinsey & Company, December 10, 2025.

Abstract Prepared by:  Wesley Mitchum, Jenkins Graduate Student, Poole College of Management, NC State University