Blog: Claudia Imhoff

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My Face is No Shining Star...

I learned a limerick when I was a kid that went something like this:

My face is no shining star.
It is certainly not up to par.
But, my face, I don't mind it,
For I am behind it,
It's the people in front whom I jar.

It seems that the big personality, glamour CEOs are being shown the door. The sentiment of many Board rooms regarding their top executives has shifted from the golden boy or girl to brass tacks, no-nonsense individuals. Given the number of management changes happening these days and the low-keyed personalities of the new replacements, it appears that the era of the "Celebrity" CEO is over.

Ah -- those were heady days when every morning you would read a headline about Carly Fiorina, Jack Welch, Michael Eisner and other famous CEOs. However, the rise in management turnovers over the past 6 months has been rather dramatic and has significantly shifted away from these high profile CEOs to those with proven operating experience and understated personalities. So says the New York Times and CIO Magazine.

In November, 2,209 management changes took place across corporate boards, C-level executives and VPs. This was an increase from the 2,059 changes in October and a significant increase -- almost double -- from six months ago (1,059 top management changes in May). These changes included hirings, firings, resignations, retirements, promotions and lateral moves. Of the 2,209 changes, 259 were CEOs and 17 were CIOs.

The NY Times in its article states that just 10 % of the CEOs of the S&P 500 companies hold an Ivy League degree. That is less than half as many just 15 years ago. It also seems that large companies are willing to hire a younger insider or an executive from a smaller company who has a proven track record (notably Mark Hurd from NCR replacing Carly Fiorina, Roger Iger replacing Michael Eisner, and Dieter Zetsche replacing Jurgen Schrempp at DaimlerChrysler).

Perhaps it should not be such a surprise. This shift really started with all the corporate scandals of 2002 when the star-studded CEOs couldn't buffalo the green eye-shade accountants of the SEC. Boards are choosing leaders with proven abilities to lead -- what a concept. Experience over a marquee name... It is the rare company these days that has executives who are both practical and charismatic leaders. Microsoft, Dell, and Apple come to mind.

Yours in BI success,

Claudia

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