Companies picking new finance chiefs of late appear to be telegraphing the message that older and wiser candidates are the best options.
As The Wall Street Journal reports, big companies are increasingly turning to seasoned veterans for the top finance seat as they face challenges stemming from technological disruption, changing consumer tastes and an uncertain economic outlook, corporate recruiters say.
The latest example is Kraft Heinz Co., which on Monday appointed its former finance chief Paulo Basilio to the role of chief financial officer again. Basilio, 44 years old, replaces David Knopf, who was the youngest CFO at a Fortune 500 company when he took the job at age 29 in 2017.
The average age of CFOs has increased significantly this year, according to Crist | Kolder Associates. Finance chiefs at Fortune 500 and S&P 500 companies averaged 52.8 years old in 2019. That’s five years older than the average over the previous 10 years, according to the recruiting firm’s data. It’s also the first time the average has eclipsed 50 in at least 15 years.
“This is not the time for first-time CFOs,” says Cathy Logue, a managing director at executive recruiter Stanton Chase. “At a time when an industry and a company is under tremendous pressure, you want a CFO at the helm who has experience and who can help bring the business back on track.” Read the full story.
