Why companies keep looking for executives who have seen it before
It has been reported that OpenAI has spent nine months searching for a new chief communications officer. Attracting job applicants is definitely not the issue, given the company is one of the most recognizable brands and the current number of senior communications professionals looking for new work.
OpenAI’s lengthy search timeline points to a larger challenge emerging across the C-suite. Over recent years, the type of issues confronting companies have become more complicated, and organizations increasingly seek out senior leaders who have already navigated a wide range of difficult situations.
New research tells us that we can see this phenomenon in CEO hiring with the average U.S. CEO now being 61, up nearly 10 years since 2000. Additionally, the average age at which CEOs are appointed has increased from under 48 to 55. According to Russell Reynolds Associates data, 34% of CEOs appointed by S&P 500 companies during the first half of 2026 had previously led a public company, compared with 22% a year earlier.
At first glance, it appears that companies are searching for older leaders. However, they are actually searching for ones with specific experience.
Researchers studying the rise in CEO age found that today's CEOs arrive in the job after accumulating more experience across positions, companies and industries. Their conclusion is that as business environments have become more uncertain and complex, organizations have adopted by placing greater value on executives with broad, generalist experience.
But this trend may have implications well beyond the CEO position.
Looking at the modern chief communications officer, this role often requires simultaneously navigating reputation, employees and internal trust, public policy, mergers and acquisitions, geopolitical issues, investor relations, media, social platforms, and an increasingly fragmented stakeholder environment. The most valuable CCO is not just someone who knows communications, but someone who can walk into the CEO's office when something unexpected happens and immediately have an action plan based on prior experience.
However, the more organizations insist on leaders with expansive, battle-tested experience, the smaller the pool of candidates becomes. Additionally, if companies repeatedly turn to executives who have already occupied senior seats, they risk making it harder for the next generation to accumulate the very experience they will eventually demand for those same roles.
Companies spend a lot of time with succession planning for CEOs, but there should be nearly equal attention devoted to senior-level mentoring and succession planning for CCO’s or other senior executives following an announcement of a departure.
Organizations need to give emerging leaders exposure to consequential decisions, unfamiliar challenges and different parts of the enterprise long before a vacancy occurs.
Experience takes time to accumulate. Companies that want to appoint seasoned leaders tomorrow need to start the pipeline process for creating them today.
This CEO commentary was written by Robert Krueger, executive director at The Communications Board ®.
