Some big-name companies and their CEOs are different this year

Some big-name companies and their CEOs are different this year.

That 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 CEOs leaving in 2024.

David Calhoun

Calhoun announced in March that he plans to step down as CEO of Boeing, just four years into the role.

“I have been thinking for some time, in discussion with our board of directors, that the time is right for a CEO change at Boeing,” he said in a letter 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 informed the board of that decision.”

He said Boeing “will remain fully focused on completing the work we have done together to bring our company back to stability after the incredible challenges of the last five years, with safety and quality at the forefront of everything we do” during the transition.

The company has been working to recover from storms stemming from two 737 MAX 8 crashes in the past few years and, most recently, a Boeing 737 MAX plane’s plug panel that blocked mid-flight in January.

BOEING ATTENDS KELLY ORTBERG AS NEW CEO

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

“My goal here is straightforward, turn this great ship around and return Boeing to the leadership position we all know and want,” Ortberg told analysts and investors during the company’s quarterly earnings call in October, citing four specific areas. focus.

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

Barry McCarthy

The Peloton company logo hangs in front of their store in Santa Monica on April 10, 2023, in Los Angeles, California. (Gary Hershorn/Getty Images/Getty Images)

Barry McCarthy stepped down as Peloton’s CEO in May, prompting the fitness company to hire Karen Boone and Chris Bruzzo as interim CEOs while it looks for a full-time successor.

After business boomed during the pandemic, Peloton struggled to stay operational as people returned to traditional exercise routines when social distancing restrictions eased. To combat declining sales, it implemented various initiatives to cut costs and expand its customer base.

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

Peloton is known for its exercise bikes, treadmills and rowing machines.

Stop Stop

A Weight Watchers sign is shown at an office in lower Manhattan, New York on October 19, 2015. (REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/Reuters)

Sistani left WW International in late September, marking the end of 2.5 years as CEO.

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

WEIGHTWATCHERS CEO SIMA SISTANI LEAVES EARLY, RECEIVED WEIGHT LOSS DRUGS

This company has been around since 1963. It has long offered weight loss and weight loss programs and, more recently, has focused on access to weight loss medications.

Another 3.7 million people had signed up for various WeightWatchers offerings by the end of the third quarter.

John Donahoe

A customer looks at a shop window decorated with the Nike logo at the Belaya Dacha shopping center outside Moscow, Russia, on April 23, 2016. (REUTERS/Grigory Dukor/Reuters)

Nike made a CEO change in mid-October, with Donahoe resigning on October 13. The company said at the time that he “will remain an advisor to the company to ensure a smooth transition until January 31, 2025.”

Donahoe said in a statement that “it’s clear now is the time to make a change in leadership, and Elliott [Hill] he is a good person,” adding that “he looks[ed] I look forward to seeing the future success of Nike and Elliott.” His tenure as CEO spanned over 4.5 years.

Hill came out of retirement and took a top job at Nike.

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

He also said that the sports footwear and apparel company will “return to gaining deep knowledge of athletes to accelerate innovation, design, product development and storytelling” and “rebuild the integrated market,” among 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, US, Thursday, Feb. 3, 2022. Intel plans to spend 20 billion dollars in the area of ​​chipmaking. (Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

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

“As a leader, Pat helped launch and innovate the manufacturing process by investing in high-quality semiconductor manufacturing,” said independent chairman Frank Yeary. “While we have made significant progress in restoring manufacturing competitiveness and building capabilities to become a world-class facility, we know there is more work to do in the company and we are determined to restore investor confidence.”

INTEL CEO PAT GELSINGER RETIRES AS CHIPMAKER EXPLODES

David Zinsner and Michelle Johnston Holthaus could be the interim CEO since he left. Intel will continue to “simplify and strengthen our product portfolio and improve our manufacturing capabilities and base while improving our operating and capital costs” under it, Yeary said.

How many CEOs left companies this year?

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

Last month there were 167, according to the report.

“Downsizing” has been cited as a driver of CEOs leaving more than any other reason so far this year. “No reason given,” retirement, “new opportunity” and resignation were among the most common reasons, the report said.

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

Daniella Genovese contributed to this report.