New Survey Results: Majority of Executives Say Roles of CEO and Chairman Should Be Split

Separate polls of U.S. and European executives reveal that 86% in the U.S. believe that the roles of Chairman and CEO should be split; for European execs, the belief that roles ought to be separate jumps to 97%, according to the global executive search firm Christian & Timbers.

Christian & Timbers conducted the U.S. poll of 339 executives at Fortune 1000 and leading companies from November 13-19, 2002. The firm conducted a European poll of 227 executives from January 17-27, 2003. In each survey, the question asked was, “Should the role of Chairman and CEO be split or held by one person?”

Brad Dewey, managing partner of the firm’s London and Geneva offices, notes, "Splitting the role in Europe has been a norm for many years. So the European sentiment is strong to assure that one person does not have an unfettered control of the company. And, now, U.S. sentiment is starting to mirror that of Europe, obviously driven by the recent corporate misconduct. Having worked extensively in Europe and the U.S., I believe this is an issue that is getting a global perspective, which is important. Actually, very few corporations operate in one country, and there seems to be a growing trend towards a global standard for corporate governance. In fact, our CEO and Board Services Practices are beginning to experience many more searches for either the CEO or chairman, but not the dual role," he said.

And according to Dr. Leslie Gaines-Ross, chief knowledge and research officer of Burson-Marsteller and author of CEO Capital: a Guide to Building CEO Reputation and Company Success, "I agree that there is much to say for adopting the European model but there remain practical drawbacks. Burson-Marsteller’s research reveals that 54% of executives would turn down the CEO position in the prevailing anti-CEO climate. Finding executives for both chairman and chief executive positions would double corporate America’s need for candidates at a time when boards are hard pressed to find qualified candidates to fill current vacancies."

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