Posted on 6/4/2009

In an April 20th 2009 article in the Financial Times, Scheherazade Daneshkhu commented on the trend of organizations choosing their CEO from among the ranks of their existing board.

A link to the article, as well as Bridge Partners LLC’s, comments are below:

CEO Attrition Gives Directors a Chance to Step Up.

Commentary by Bridge Partners LLC:

"CEO attrition gives directors chance to step up"...and it should also provide an opportunity for increased C-suite diversity.

Bridge Partners LLC has long-advocated for increased diversity on a company’s board of directors (see http://www.directorshipinsights.com). We are not the only ones – there is a very strong business case for increased boardroom diversity that carries support from customers, employees and investor/community groups.

If the premise of this article is correct and the succession plans (or lack thereof) will place an organization’s board directors as serious contenders for the CEO role, the progressive companies that have heeded this call by embracing diversity and adapting to change at the board-level, will now reap the rewards in terms of having a broader, more diverse pool of potential internal candidates from which to draw.