Leadership Market
C-Suite Hiring Trends
Appointment volumes, time-to-appointment, and the growing weight of transformation experience in first-time CEO briefs.
All insights
Transformation is now the dominant framing of chief executive briefs, ahead of growth. That shift changes the accessible population: the executives who qualify are frequently divisional leaders inside larger groups rather than sitting chief executives.
Time-to-appointment has lengthened where boards insist on a sitting CEO, and shortened where they are willing to consider a first-time appointment with a strong operating record.
We set out the volume data by sector, the profiles that were appointed, and the briefs that had to be reopened.
What the report finds
- First-time CEO appointments are increasing as boards trade title for operating evidence.
- Transformation experience outranks sector familiarity in most current briefs.
- Searches restricted to sitting chief executives take materially longer to close.
- Internal candidates are more frequently assessed alongside the external market.
Coverage
Chief executive and executive committee appointmentsGlobalRolling twelve-month view