The co-CEO pattern is gaining momentum. Netflix, Salesforce and M&S are among the many high-profile companies which have trialled the 2 Chief Executives method, with various success. Now, Spotify joins the ranks, with CEO Daniel Ek set to get replaced by joint CEOs Gustav Söderström and Alex Norström in January. Oracle is making an analogous transfer as Clay Magouyrk and Mike Sicilia step in for Safra Catz, who herself shared the function with Mark Hurd a decade in the past.
Is sharing the CEO load higher than going solo? A examine by AAPL of 87 co-CEO firms between 1996 and 2020 discovered these companies generated common returns of 9.5 p.c, with practically 60 p.c outperforming their friends. However with such a small pattern dimension, the shared management method remains to be in its relative infancy. So why are we seeing an increase in co-CEOs now, and what does this appear like for the way forward for enterprise?
Why now?
Financial, technological and geopolitical megatrends are impacting enterprise targets and development, forcing firms to undertake quicker cycles of change. Because of this, the calls for positioned on leaders have soared. Given the uncertainty and elevated tempo of immediately’s enterprise atmosphere, it’s turning into tougher to search out all the abilities and data required to fulfil a useful CEO place wrapped up in a single particular person. Believing that one particular person can “maintain” the total spectrum of strategic, operational, cultural and exterior tasks is turning into unrealistic, and dangerous, too.
With mounting strain, an enormous quantity of labor and endless to-do lists, many people on the prime have gotten disillusioned with company life and in search of different careers which are much less irritating. DDI’s International Management Forecast 2025 sheds gentle on the impression of this CEO overwhelm, revealing that 71 p.c of leaders report elevated stress, and 40 p.c are contemplating leaving their function as a consequence of stress and burnout. It’s maybe no marvel then that in PwC’s 2025 International CEO Survey, when CEOs had been requested how lengthy they count on to stay of their present function, most answered 5 years or much less. As CEOs have shorter and shorter tenures, companies face heightened disruption and continuous top-level restructuring.
Corporations need leaders who can mobilize giant, distributed workforces; join throughout features and industries; and pair big-picture considering with deep area expertise. In principle, a co-CEO mannequin—which formalizes distributed management—is one approach to obtain this. However what does this appear like in apply?
When the co-CEO mannequin works, and when it doesn’t
For such “management duos” to achieve success, compatibility is non-negotiable. Firstly, co-CEOs should have the ability to get alongside, share widespread values, talk consistently, resolve conflicts successfully, and current a unified exterior entrance—even when disagreements happen behind closed doorways. With out that unity, firms danger muddled decision-making, delayed approvals and inner factions enjoying the 2 leaders towards one another.
In relation to technique and scalability, the co-CEO mannequin is best when every chief brings complementary ability units to the desk. Take Netflix for example. Ted Sarandos’ experience lies in market-facing model and content material, whereas his co-CEO Greg Peters’ experience is in expertise and operations. Combining their technological and business abilities enabled the corporate to scale previous 300 million members.
However the mannequin can falter beneath strain. SAP deserted its co-CEO construction in 2020 after simply six months, citing the necessity for “unambiguous management” in the course of the pandemic, a reminder that even sturdy partnerships can pressure beneath disaster situations.
The way forward for shared management
There isn’t a denying {that a} wonderful stability have to be struck for the co-CEO method to succeed. But it opens the door for companies to experiment with what management on the prime seems like for them—not simply within the CEO’s workplace however throughout the entire C-suite.
Globally, there’s a rising variety of unbiased C-suite executives who’re starting to work with organizations on a “fractional” foundation. Quite than being employed full-time, these skilled leaders work with organizations on a contract foundation, aiding the incumbent full-time C-level worker by offering joined-up and coordinated help to fill their capability and skillset gaps with specialist C-suite experience as wanted.
This method to the C-suite can strengthen succession planning and guarantee continuity of management. With a mixed co-CEO and fractional management method, a agency might change one CEO at a time based mostly on evolving strategic and cultural wants, relatively than having a wholesale change in management. This ensures that firms aren’t left scrabbling to fill an empty CEO spot when confronted with probably disruptive change.
The pattern of fractional management is not restricted to a selected sector. It’s significantly notable in sectors experiencing speedy change, like expertise, software program as a service (SaaS) and healthcare, the place firms are shortly adapting to A.I.-driven disruptions. In these fields, the potential to recruit specialised abilities on the C-suite stage and not using a long-term obligation gives a big aggressive edge.
In the end, the co-CEO mannequin has the potential to drastically enhance govt well-being and, due to this fact, organizational efficiency. As strain mounts on solo CEOs, organizations predict superhumans that simply don’t exist. Supplied the partnership is constructed on belief, alignment and clear decision-making, sharing the load between two Chief Executives implies that these on the prime have additional capability, much less stress and shared accountability to drive their enterprise ahead.
Sara Daw is Group CEO of The CFO Centre and The Liberti Group, and the writer of Technique and Management as Service – How the Entry Economic system Meets the C-Suite, which explores the fractional management pattern.
