How many chief officers does your company really need?

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A proliferation of chiefs is watering down the job title

Hail to the chief—or maybe not. As a recent Quartz story notes, the corporate world is suffering from an outbreak of chiefiness. Chief executive officer and chief financial officer are one thing, but chief strategy officer, chief people officer—or chief fun officer? “As chiefs proliferate, the title has become less a position of authority, and more a reflection of a company’s current culture,” Oliver Staley writes. For example, last year U.S.-based pizza chain Papa John’s International Inc. promoted a senior VP to chief ingredient officer. With a title like that, he’d better deliver.