Majority of FTSE 100 CEOs from finance background
Five year high of 51% of FTSE 100 CEOs from finance background, compared to just 31% in pre-recession 2008
MOST FTSE 100 chief execs come from a financial background according to research from financial recruitment business Robert Half.
Post-recession the majority of chiefs in the biggest UK companies (51%) have a financial background now compared to just 31% in 2008 – a massive 67% increase.
Of the new CEO’s that have joined the index since 2008, 55% have a strong financial background including: Weir group’s Keith Cochrane, who was previously the engineering company’s finance director; building materials business CEO Myles Lee who was also its finance director and is an ICAS member; and chartered accountant Terry Twigger who was formerly group FD of engineering business Meggitt before taking the CEO role.
“It’s interesting to see the shift in Britain’s top listed companies, with commodity and business support services organisations displacing leisure companies; partly the result of an ongoing trend towards outsourcing business processes,” said Phil Sheridan, (pictured) managing director for Robert Half UK.
“Our research serves as a signpost for ambitious CFOs and other directors looking for their next step up the employment ladder. The importance of sound financial management in an increasingly complex international regulatory environment further underlines the necessity for leaders who understand the numbers behind the business.”
