Some big-name companies and their CEOs are parting ways this year

Some big-name companies and their CEOs have parted ways this year.

This has been seen in companies operating in industries ranging from aerospace and fitness to apparel and technology, among others.

Boeing, Nike, Peloton, WeightWatchers, Nike and Intel are among the companies with CEO exit in 2024

David Calhoun

Dave Calhoun, Chief Executive Officer of Boeing Co., at the Berlin Aviation Summit in Berlin, Germany, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. Calhoun warned that a turn toward isolation in US policy could hinder free trade and harm the economy as well as the nation. p (Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)

Calhoun revealed in March that he had planned to stop serving as CEO of Boeingjust over four years after taking the top spot.

“I have been considering for some time, in discussion with our board of directors, the right time for a CEO transition at Boeing,” he said in a message to employees at the time. “I want to share with you that I have decided that this will be my last year as CEO of our great company, and I have notified the board of this decision.”

He said Boeing “will remain focused on completing the work we have done together to return our company to stability after the extraordinary challenges of the past five years, with safety and quality at the forefront of everything we do.” let’s do it” during the transition.

The company has been working to recover from headwinds stemming from a pair of 737 MAX 8 crashes several years ago and, more recently, a Boeing 737 MAX plane’s door stopper panel detached mid-flight in January.

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Kelly Ortberg had been leading the aerospace company since late summer. His first day as CEO was August 8.

“My mission here is quite simple, to turn this great ship in the right direction and restore Boeing to the leadership position that we all know and want,” Ortberg told analysts and investors during the company’s quarterly earnings call. in October, mentioning four specific areas of focus.

The company reported 291 deliveries of commercial aircraft and 76 defense, space and security aircraft in the first three quarters of the year.

Barry McCarthy

A Peloton corporate logo hangs on the front of its store in Santa Monica on April 10, 2023, in Los Angeles, California. (Gary Hershorn/Getty Images/Getty Images)

Barry McCarthy ceased to be Peloton’s CEO in May prompted the fitness company to choose Karen Boone and Chris Bruzzo as interim Co-CEOs while it searches for a permanent successor.

After a surge in business during the pandemic, Peloton struggled to stay relevant as people returned to traditional gym workouts as social distancing restrictions eased. To combat declining sales, it implemented various efforts to cut costs and expand its customer base.

Ford executive Peter Stern will take over as CEO in early January, Peloton said in October. Bruzzo stepped down from his role as interim CEO in early November, with Boone continuing to run the company in the meantime.

Peloton is known for its bikes, treadmills and rowers.

Sima Sistani

A sign for Weight Watchers is displayed at the office in Lower Manhattan, New York on October 19, 2015. (REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/Reuters)

Sistani left WW International at the end of September, marking the end of his 2.5-year tenure as CEO.

At the same time, WeightWatchers named Tara Comonte its interim CEO. The company said she took the job “at a time when the Company is focused on improving its operational and financial performance while continuing to build on its product innovation and member solutions.”

The CEO of WEIGHTWATCHERS, SIMA SISTANI, in a sudden exit, embraces the drug for weight loss.

The company has been around since 1963. It has long offered weight loss and weight management programs and, more recently, has delved into access to weight loss medications.

About 3.7 million people had subscriptions to the various WeightWatchers offers at the end of the third quarter.

John Donahoe

A customer is reflected in a shop window decorated with the Nike logo at the Belaya Dacha retail village outside Moscow, Russia, on April 23, 2016. (REUTERS/Grigory Dukor/Reuters)

Nike underwent a CEO change in mid-October, with Donahoe stepping down on October 13. The company said at the time that it “remains as an advisor to the company to ensure a smooth transition until January 31, 2025.”

Donahoe said in a statement that “it became clear now was the time to make a change in leadership, and Elliott (Hill) is the right person,” adding that he “looks forward to seeing the future successes of Nike and Elliott.” His tenure as CEO spanned over 4.5 years.

Hill come out of retirement to take the first job at Nike.

During the company’s earnings call earlier this month, the new CEO said that Nike “lost our obsession with sports” and “must lead with sports and put the athlete at the center of every decision” forward.

He also said the athletic footwear and apparel company will “return to leveraging deep insights from athletes to accelerate innovation, design, product creation and storytelling” and “build an integrated marketplace,” including other things.

Pat Gelsinger

Patrick Gelsinger, CEO of Intel Corp., speaks during a Bloomberg Studio 1.0 interview at the company’s headquarters in Santa Clara, California, the United States, Thursday, Feb. 3, 2022. Intel plans to spend $20 billion on a center of chipmaking. (Photo: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)

Gelsinger, who became Intel’s CEO in February 2021, retired in early December.

“As leader, Pat helped launch and revitalize process manufacturing by investing in leading edge semiconductor manufacturing,” said independent chairman Frank Yeary. “While we have made significant progress in regaining manufacturing competitiveness and building the capabilities to be a world-class foundry, we know that we have much more work to do in the company and are committed to restoring the trust of the investors”.

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David Zinsner and Michelle Johnston Holthaus have been interim co-CEOs since his departure. Intel will do We will continue to “simplify and strengthen our product portfolio and advance our manufacturing and foundry capabilities while optimizing our operating and capital expenditures” under them, Yeary said.

How many CEOs have left companies this year?

A Challenger, Gray & Christmas report published earlier this month found that 1,991 chief executives disclosed plans to part with companies in the 11-month period from January to November.

Last month, there were 167, according to the report.

“Stepped down” was cited as the driving force behind CEOs leaving more than any other reason so far this year. “No reason given,” retirement, “new opportunity” and resignation were among other common reasons, the report said.

The use of interim CEOs has increased, with Challenger, Gray & Christmas finding 13% of 2024 replacements taking on such roles. In 2023, it was 7%.

Daniella Genovese contributed to this report.