Core Data Overview

  • According to the 2025 Summer Volatility Report released last Friday by executive search firm Crist Kolder Associates, the proportion of large public companies that promoted and appointed chief financial officers (CFOs) from within surged to nearly 71.8% in the first half of 2025, compared with 52.9% in the same period in 2024. This rate is significantly higher than the historical average of 62%. The report tracks C-suite hiring trends.
  • Crist Kolder told CFO Dive that of the 71 CFO positions at Fortune 500 and S&P 500 companies that changed hands in the first half of this year, 51 were filled by internal promotions and 20 by external hires. Notable companies that recently filled CFO vacancies with insiders include Jack in the Box, a restaurant chain headquartered in San Diego, California; Lockheed Martin, a defense contractor based in Bethesda, Maryland; and Automatic Data Processing, a payroll processing service provider headquartered in Roseland, New Jersey.
  • Josh Crist, co-managing partner at Crist Kolder, said the shift toward seasoned executives familiar with the company may partly be a response to overall economic uncertainty. In an email, Crist stated, "In an uncertain market environment, choosing a steady hand who can bring institutional knowledge to the team seems like the safer option. We have received many inquiries about 'talent pipeline development,' which indicates that companies are consciously planning for future succession."

In-Depth Analysis

This trend marks a partial reversal compared with last year. In 2024, the rate of external CFO hires reached a ten-year high. At that time, Crist told CFO Dive that the pandemic may have hindered some talent development plans, as strong chief accounting officers or financial controllers typically need to move across different business units to gain the operational experience required for promotion to CFO.

Beyond signs of improved CFO succession planning, Crist said companies are also showing more effort in developing internal talent for CEO positions. According to the mid-year report, of the 52 CEO transitions in the first half of this year, only 15.1% were external hires, down from 21% in 2024 and below the historical average of 22%.

Additionally, the latest report shows that although the number of diverse and female CFOs has increased over the past decade, the diversity of financial executives in public company C-suites has seen a very slight downward trend.

Report data shows that as of mid-2025, the proportion of female CFOs remained nearly flat at 17.5%, slightly down from 17.6% in 2024, but still well above 12.2% a decade ago. Similarly, the share of racially and ethnically diverse CFOs edged down to 14.5% in the first half of this year from 14.9% last year, but remains far above the 5.9% recorded in 2015.

Crist said it is unclear whether the slight decline in CFO diversity at public companies indicates that businesses are responding to the Trump administration's opposition to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. However, he did not rule out the possibility of such a connection.

Crist stated, "Although the diversity data has declined, the drop is very minimal. I need to observe the full-year performance before making a judgment on the impact of tightened DEI policies. However, the possibility exists."