ARE AUSTRALIA’S FOREIGN CEOS THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG?
The Executive Search discipline is increasingly international. If you need proof, we just need to look at the ethnic make up of Australia’s top CEOs. Almost 50% of the top 50 are foreign-born. Of those, 13 are from either the United Kingdom or the United States which is hardly surprising, but the “long tail” includes leaders from South Africa, New Zealand, Vietnam, Colombia, India, France and Ireland. The one from Ireland is Alan Joyce, CEO of Qantas who is recognised as Australia’s best CEO in 2019.
In addition to country of birth, the average age of these CEOs is now in the mid 50s, demonstrating that the pattern has truly been passed to Generation X.
Back in 2017, the Australian financial review reported that just over one third of top CEOs in Australia were born overseas. So, what causes this trend and is it likely to continue.
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