Jeffrey S. Sanders, Vice Chairman and Managing Partner of the North American CEO Practice for Heidrick & Struggles, an AESC member executive search and leadership consulting firm, recently analyzed the careers of all current Fortune 500 CEOs in an article at Forbes.com.
Aspiring CEOs need to create a path for themselves to become a potential CEO candidate. What does this path look like?
30% of Fortune 500 CEOs began their careers in finance
20% began their careers in sales and marketing
Even though finance is an important building block, only about 5% were promoted directly from CFO
More than half were promoted from the role of COO or President
Most companies value financial acumen, but above all, they value a strong operator
The article reports that executives rarely arrived at CEO from a finance role, with a few exceptions. Instead, more than three quarters came from an operating role.
Consulting at 4% ranked the least common early career experience among CEOs
More than three-fourths of today's top leaders were appointed internally
Less than a third of CEOs were "lifers" (those who had spent nearly their entire career at the company)
Average time to CEO appointment when rising through the ranks = 16 years
Average age at CEO appointment = 50
Technology offers the fastest path to CEO
Industrial companies offer the slowest path to CEO
About 45% of CEOs served as non-executive directors on public company boards before being named CEO
For years, executive job seekers leveraged a strong hiring market to jump between roles, secure promotions, and negotiate higher salaries. But new data suggests this
As executives look ahead to 2025, global business and economic shifts are setting the tone for leadership decision-making. From declining Super Bowl ticket prices to