CEOs left their companies in droves this year, setting a new record
Almost 2,000 CEOs have left their positions, voluntarily or otherwise, over the last 11 months
As of November, 1,991 CEOs have announced their departures, marking the highest total on record since executive outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas began tracking CEO changes in 2002. The previous record was made just a year ago when 1,914 CEOs left their companies.
That includes 167 CEOs exits last month, including Subway CEO John Chidsey and Dollar Tree CEO Rick Dreiling, although Chidsey won’t officially leave until the end of 2024. In both cases, the companies said departing CEOs would be replaced by interim leaders. Thirteen percent of all CEO replacements named in 2024 have been on an interim basis, up from 7% in 2023, according to Challenger.
“The current landscape has a lot of uncertainty baked in, and companies are responding by putting temporary leaders in place. This can act as a trial run to see how the leader navigates current challenges,” the firm’s senior vice president, Andrew Challenger, said in a statement, noting that it’s “much less disruptive” to replace an interim head if necessary.
So far this year, the most common reason given for a CEO’s departure has been that they “stepped down,” while almost 500 companies offered no reason. The third and fourth most common explanations were that CEOs were either retiring or seeking a new opportunity. Only 10 departures were publicly linked to allegations of sexual misconduct or professional misconduct.
The non-profit and government sectors recorded the most departures this year, with 438 exits, followed by the healthcare and technology sectors, according to Challenger. The entertainment sector reported 139 CEO exits, while the financial sector saw 140 CEO transitions.
Here’s a handful of high-profile CEOs who exited their companies this year.
Starbucks (SBUX-1.36%) ousted CEO Laxman Narasimhan in favor of then-Chipotle (CMG+0.43%) CEO Brian Niccol, while the CEO of its North America division retired. Boeing’s (BA+1.25%) Dave Calhoun resigned in March amid the company’s numerous crises, Hertz’s (HTZ+4.59%) Stephen Sherr resigned in March after leading the company through its bankruptcy, while Amazon Web Services CEO Adam Selipsky stepped down in June.
Paramount’s (PARA+0.39%) Bob Bakish resigned in April to be replaced by a new “office of the CEO,” Nestle (NSRGY+0.49%) CEO Mark Schneider stepped down in August after an eight-year tenure, and Nike (NKE-0.41%) replaced CEO John Donahoe with company veteran Elliot Hill in October. The CEOs of Northvolt, Discover Financial, and Under Armour also left this year.
At least one CEO was “replaced” with an artificial intelligence chatbot in 2024, according to Challenger. That’s still a rare approach but one that some experts have started advocating for. Chinese online gaming firm NetDragon Websoft was the first to take such a step in 2022, followed by Polish rum firm Dictador and legal tech startup Logikcull.
Although official numbers won’t be published until January, several more CEOs quit or were forced out in December.
Intel (INTC+1.73%) CEO Pat Gelsinger was ousted early this month, as was Stellantis (STLA+0.58%) CEO Carlos Tavares after they lost the confidence of their respective boards. Dave & Buster’s (PLAY+5.15%) CEO Chris Morris resigned on Dec. 10 to lead European Wax Center as its chief executive beginning next month.
Campbell’s (CPB-0.57%) CEO Mark Clouse is leaving the soup and snacks company to join the NFL’s Washington Commanders. The CEO of UnitedHealthcare (UNH+2.63%), a subsidiary of the larger UnitedHealth Group, was killed in New York City earlier this month.