Chief Executive Officer turnover plunged to 48 exits in April, the lowest monthly total since 46 departures were recorded in November 2004, according to a report released Wednesday by global outplacement and business and executive coaching firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.
April’s total is 51% lower than the 97 CEO exits that were tracked in April 2019 and 49% lower than the 94 who left their posts in March. So far this year, 489 chief executives have left their posts, 4.7% lower than the 513 CEO changes tracked between January 2019 and April 2019.
“CEO turnover was at record highs last year, and January saw the most CEO exits in a single month ever recorded. The volatility in CEO movement reflects the volatility we are seeing in the job market overall,” said Andrew Challenger, Senior Vice President of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.
Last month’s total was led by the Technology sector, which saw nine chief executive replacements in April for a total of 67 for the year, leading all sectors in CEO turnover. That is 49% higher than the 45 CEO changes tracked through the same period last year.
