U.S. Tech CEO Departures Rise to Record High

(Bloomberg) -- Billionaire Googlers Larry Page and Sergey Brin aren't the only technology chiefs heading for the exits.

A record 181 technology industry chief executive officers left their posts this year through October, surpassing the prior full-year peak of 163 departures in 2006, according to a report Thursday from staffing firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. The latest tally, which includes both involuntary and voluntary exits, is up 46% from the same 10-month period last year and 19% higher than the 152 CEO departures in 2018.

The churn isn't confined to the corner office. Technology led the way for announced job cuts at U.S.-based employers in November with 7,292, the most among 30 industries tracked by the Chicago-based firm, and also ranked first in the prior month with 15,898.

“The tech sector is undergoing major changes due to an evolving landscape,” Challenger Vice President Andrew Challenger said in a statement. “New technologies are changing the way people work and often make workplaces more efficient. In addition to potential staffing changes, there may be differences within the leadership and board ranks regarding exactly which path a company will take.”

From January through November, technology companies announced plans to cut 63,447 jobs, the third-most among industry groups and almost five times the number in the same period last year. Challenger's November report on CEO turnover will be released Dec. 11.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jeff Kearns in Washington at jkearns3@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Scott Lanman at slanman@bloomberg.net, Vince Golle, Jeff Kearns

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