The C-Suite: Itching to Leave?

Some are looking for a payout. Others want to start their own businesses. And more than a few are looking to develop new skills or find a better work-life balance. But these aren’t employees—these are executives at the very top of the leadership ladder.

While limited opportunities and fears of being replaced by AI have employees staying put in their roles, a majority of executives, it turns out, are itching to leave. And there’s a decent chance many will. According to a new survey of global C-suite leaders, nearly six in ten executives expect to be in a new role within the next three years—and 14% of those are hoping to leave within the next 12 months. Canada, the US, and UK are at the high end of the range, with upwards of 64% of executives looking toward the exits; Germany occupies the lower end, at 44%. Not surprisingly, respondents cited compensation as the top reason for wanting to leave. “Many executives are still looking for their pot of gold at the end of the rainbow,” says James Stark, a senior client partner in the Financial Officers and Industrial practices at Korn Ferry.

That’s especially true for leaders of private equity-backed firms across industries, particularly those in the manufacturing and industrial sector, says Justin Ripley, a senior client partner in the Global Industrial practice at Korn Ferry. As Ripley explains it, a slowdown in firm sales and IPOs has been one factor, along with stagnant compensation and stock options or grants that are underwater or require longer holding periods. “It’s all prompting executives to look to jump ship,” he says. According to the study, 55% of top manufacturing executives plan to leave in the next three years. In Q1 of 2025, global private-equity exits fell to their lowest point since 2023.

Compensation isn’t the only reason many in the C-suite are looking to leave. One in five executives say they want to start their own businesses, and one-third want a better work-life balance. The latter reason aligns with other studies showing executives in high-stress industries, like healthcare, are feeling as burned-out and disengaged as their workforces. “There’s constant pressure,” says Greg Button, president of global healthcare services at Korn Ferry. He says an aging population, a shortage of doctors and nurses, issues with insurers, and slow adoption of new technology means “healthcare has to rely on executives who truly have a mission orientation.”

Manufacturing and healthcare both rank in the middle of the pack for anticipated executive turnover. The media industry leads the way, with 78% of executives looking to leave in the next three years, followed by retail and consumer goods (64%). To explain these elevated figures, Chris Von Der Ahe, a senior client partner in the Consumer Markets practice at Korn Ferry, cites the level of transformation going on in those industries and the extreme variance in performance between firms that are thriving and those that are going out of business. “It’s a dynamic environment, and people are looking to get out of underperforming companies to go where the prospects are better,” he says.

Experts say the study is another reminder that firms and boards must think about succession beyond the C-suite. That includes assessing and reevaluating compensation, bonuses, and incentives to retain executives who may be eyeing the exits; it also means creating learning and development programs to build an internal pipeline of leaders for key functional groups. Von Der Ahe also suggests firms proactively consider contingency plans, such as appointing interim executives for key roles where there isn’t a future-ready leader internally. “The key is to not get caught flat-footed by a surprise departure,” he says.

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