Chief Digital Officers don’t stay long in the role – here’s why
Blog: The Digital Enterprise
CEO tenure is on the rise, and now stands at about five years for FTSE 100 CEOs & nine years for Fortune 500 CEOs. Equivalent statistics for CDOs are elusive, but anecdotally CDOs have a much shorter life in role. Expect to see CDO turnover remain high for some time. Here’s why:
- Plenty of job opportunities. At least 500 new CDO roles are created every year, according to Dave Mathison of CDO Club. Firms are hunting from the ranks of existing CDOs to fill those roles.
- Rising pay. A headhunter told me recently that CDO pay is increasingly pegged against CFO pay, a substantial re-rating. CDOs have an opportunity to boost their pay by moving.
- Changing scope. The CDO role is changing radically. Having historically been focused on digital as a distribution channel, CDOs are now being asked to digitise the entire business system, including supply chain, service operations and support functions such as HR and finance. For many CDOs it’s a step too far,leading firms to look for candidates with broader experience.
With these factors at play we can expect the CDO role to be a revolving door.
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