CEO Turnover Study 2013: A profile of hotel industry leadership – A 10 year review

A recent study surveying 2,500 of the world's largest public companies, covering all industry sectors, reported 14.4% CEO turnover (the 5-year average stands at 13.9%) – in comparison, our 2013 study of the hotel sector revealed turnover of 10.0% and a 5-year average of 10.8%.

Notably, changes in leadership within the hospitality industry have predominantly been planned as opposed to being forced or as a result of death or illness. Over the last 10 years just shy of 60% of CEO movement was the result of considered forward-thinking planning by the board. Yet, we have seen a slight increase in the numbers of forced CEO exits – it appears, especially in Europe, public companies' shareholders have been quick to demand change in the face of diversity. It will be interesting to see whether this is just a reflection of the relatively uncertain economic environment of the past three to four years or it there is a change of mentality.

The following paragraphs look at the past 10 years and the changes that the hospitality industry has seen at CEO-level – where do they come from, what sets them apart and what are their qualifications….? Step-by-step, the following pages will paint a picture of our industry CEOs and profile the individuals who are leading the hotel sector around the world.

CEO turnover among the world's 50 largest hotel firms in 2013 was 10% down from a 2012 figure of 16%. Leaders who took office in 2013 were Sébastien Bazin (Accor), Lee Chee Koon (Ascott), Wolfgang Neumann (Carlson Rezidor), Frank Fiskers (Scandic), and Peter Gowers (Travelodge). New CEO arrivals always tend to prompt speculation from employees, shareholders, analysts, media, and industry colleagues as to the likely performance of the hire and of the hiring organization. Such transition events also give us a chance to take stock, look at the CEO role in the hotel world from a holistic standpoint and explore the profile of these industry titans.

In a bid to answer such questions as – how long will the CEO last? Is there a new breed of CEO? Are the required qualifications of CEO candidates changing? Are shareholders having more say in who gets hired and how long they stay? – we looked at CEO turnover in the hotel industry over the last 10 years and examined the profiles of those leaders at the 50 largest companies from each year as published by HOTELS Magazine.

Click here to download the complete study.

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Thomas Mielke
Managing Director
+44 (0)74 11210650
AETHOS Consulting Group