About one in 10 CEOs at Fortune 500s and S&P 500 firms came directly from the finance chief seat last year, according to a new research report from executive search firm Crist Kolder Associates.
That’s the highest level of CFO-to-CEO promotions seen in a decade, according to Crist Kolder Associates’ 2025 Volatility report released on Wednesday, Jan. 28. For comparison, 7.1% of CEOs at such companies were promoted from CFO in 2024.
All observed CFO-to-CEO promotions last year were internal, according to the report, which studied corporate leadership at 664 companies in total. At the same time, the study shows that companies are increasingly looking within for their next CFO. See more findings.