Here Is Why Versatile CEOs Are In Such High Demand 

April 2, 2025 – The leadership dynamics of private equity-backed firms and public companies have long been viewed as starkly different. Private equity leaders thrive on fast value creation, a highly involved ownership model, and a clear exit strategy – often within a five-year window. Public company chief executives, on the other hand, navigate board politics, captain shareholder expectations, and scrutinize quarterly earnings over much longer tenures.

But in a newly released report from Spencer Stuart, The CEO’s Perspective: What Public Companies and Private Equity Can Learn from Each Other, these two worlds are converging.

The CEO Talent Shortage

With nearly 23,000 private equity portfolio companies in the U.S., and an estimated 71 percent of them installing new CEOs upon acquisition, the crossover of leadership talent between the private and public sectors is more relevant than ever.

As the talent pool for top executives shrinks and demands for adaptable leadership grow, companies are increasingly looking beyond traditional experience benchmarks to find the right leaders.

Spencer Stuart’s research underscores a fundamental truth: private equity is about speed, while public companies emphasize endurance.

PE-owned businesses are laser-focused on rapid value creation and operational efficiency, with owners often deeply embedded in strategy and execution. Meanwhile, public company CEOs must balance short-term financial expectations with long-term corporate vision, making investor relations and governance a central part of their role.

“The transition from public company CEO to private equity-backed leader can be a shock,” said Evan Berta, an associate at Hunt Scanlon Ventures. “The urgency is amplified, the accountability is direct, and there is little room for missteps,” he said. “But for the right leader, PE is the place where decisions can be made swiftly and with clear alignment.”

Related: The Skills That Help CEOs Make the Right Choices

Public companies, by contrast, can learn from PE’s relentless focus on value creation. While they face pressures from quarterly earnings reports and activist investors, their governance structures often slow down decision-making—a sharp contrast to the hands-on, results-driven nature of PE ownership.

What It Takes to Lead in Both Worlds

Given these differences, how can companies evaluate CEOs who transition between private and public environments?

The Great CEO Exodus… Continues

Rank-and-file workers and many top executives have looked at the current job market and decided to stay. But one group isn’t sticking around—and it happens to be the people holding the highest job, according to a new report from Korn Ferry. According to a recent estimate, some 222 CEOs left their roles in January, the highest number for the month in at least 23 years. This comes after a record 2,221 top bosses—at U.S. public, private, or government organizations—left their posts in 2024, a figure which itself topped the prior record of 1,914 set a year earlier. Some of these leaders are leaving of their own accord; others are being pushed out. “But either way, it’s truly a generational transition of leadership,” said Tierney Remick, Korn Ferry vice chairman and co-leader of its board and CEO services practice.

And the CEO exodus is likely to continue in 2025, experts say, despite the disruption it causes, according to the Korn Ferry report. “Each of the past five years has had a unique, if not unprecedented, challenge for CEOs—in order, the pandemic, the pandemic recovery, the Great Resignation, inflation, a credit crunch, and now a major change in U.S. government policies,” the study said. “That’s on top of the multitude of other so-called breaking points CEOs are facing, among them a combination of a slow-growth environment, empowered employees, and uncertainty around AI.”

According to Spencer Stuart, the most successful cross-sector leaders exhibit operational agility – they have the ability to navigate both high-speed execution in PE and long-term strategic planning in public companies. Investor acumen is also crucial; understanding how to engage with PE sponsors or public shareholders effectively can make or break a leader.

Related: Unveiling the CEO’s Ultimate Role: Why Ensuring the Right Leader is Key to Organizational Success

Resilience under scrutiny is another key attribute. Whether answering to a public board or a PE firm, leaders must manage expectations and execute decisively.

Eroding Boundaries

“Great leaders can succeed in both environments if they recognize what drives success in each model,” noted Mr. Berta. “It is not about replicating a playbook – it is, rather, more about adapting to a different pace and structure.”

As more companies cross-pollinate leadership talent between PE and public firms, the traditional distinctions between the two models are eroding. PE firms are increasingly tapping former public company executives for their industry expertise, while public firms are adopting PE-style efficiency measures to stay competitive.

“We’re entering an era where the best CEOs are defined not by where they came from, but by how well they can adapt,” said Mr. Berta. “The companies that recognize this shift will be the ones that thrive in a changing market.”

Reprinted from with permission from ExitUp!

Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Co-CEO, Evan Berta, associate – Hunt Scanlon Ventures