CEO's Waltz Set to Accelerate in 2021
After the crisis related to the crisis, movements at the top of large listed companies resumed in the first quarter, according to SquareWell. 03 May 2021
Bruno de Roulhac of L’Agefi covers SquareWell’s latest study looking at leadership changes at the largest companies globally.
In 2019-2020, nearly a quarter of the largest listed companies changed leadership. This movement accelerated in 2020 with 68 new CEOs appointed, compared to 52 in 2019. Most of these changes took place in the first half of the year, and are therefore likely unrelated to COVID-19. In the second half of the year, new arrivals fell 42% from the first six months of the year, a sign of the reluctance of boards to change leadership in the midst of the crisis.
Louis Barbier commented to L’Agefi that “Boards don’t want to add uncertainty to uncertainty”. On the other hand, they are preparing the successions for the end of the crisis. Louis Barbier added that he anticipates a lot of changes in 2021, with an acceleration already in the first quarter. In France, successions are rather well prepared at companies like L’Oréal and Safran.
The full article can be accessed here (in French, subscription required).
