Navigating the Increasing C-Suite Flight Risk Challenge

HR leaders across a variety of industries find themselves faced with retaining talent at the very top of their organizations as C-suite defections hit an all-time high

More than half (56%) of CxOs, defined as “C-suite leaders reporting to the CEO, excluding chief human resource officers (CHROs),” are likely or extremely likely to leave their current role within the next two years, according to a recent Gartner, Inc. survey. The eye-opening survey of 200 CxOs revealed that 27% reported they are likely or extremely likely to leave in the next six months. The survey also found that executives are reporting a significant increase in workload compared to two years ago:

• 67% agreed they are asked to do more in their role.
• 58% agreed their organization relies more heavily on their function/business unit.
• 44% agreed they are more stressed by their work responsibilities.

“Heightened executive turnover is a challenge for organizations as a less-tenured executive team typically means lower enterprise growth, which is the most important metric organizations rely on to track enterprise performance,” said Alexander Kirss, senior principal in the Gartner HR practice. “Compounding the issue, more tenured executives are more likely to leave within the next two years than executives who are newer in their roles.”

Companies where executives have an average tenure of five years or more outperformed on revenue, customer experience and other key metrics, compared to companies with executive teams that have less than five years average tenure, according to the survey.

“CHROs have a key role in mitigating CxO attrition. However, they face headwinds,” continued Kirss. “Fewer than one in four CxOs say their CHRO is effective at strengthening the C-suite’s ability to function as a cohesive team. On top of that, just 23% of CxOs report their CHRO is effective at managing tension between C-suite members.”

Clearly, CHROs are faced with a unique, new set of growing and complex challenges.

(insta_photos - stock.adobe.com)

HR Leadership’s Evolving Role in the Face of C-Suite Uncertainty

Despite these challenges, Gartner recommends a series of CHRO-led solutions that can address the key causes of CxO turnover, including:

Take on the Role of Career Coach

CHROs can step in as executive career coaches for CxOs and collaborate with CEOs on workforce development and succession plans for the C-suite. With a better understanding of the value of leadership skills and ownership over learning and development, CHROs are best positioned to connect CxOs to both internal and external development resources and to do so in a way that is tailored to CxOs’ unique needs.

Build Trust and Strengthen CEO Relationships

CHROs can help CxOs build trust with the CEO by ensuring executives understand the CEO’s priorities and regularly engage in candid communication with the CEO, including opportunities to showcase their expertise. Building trust with their CEO is essential for CHROs due to the sensitive nature of the topics they must address. Actively sharing with peer CxOs what has worked well – or less well – in building CEO trust can help CHROs accelerate trust across the C-suite.

Support Mental Health and Work-Life Balance

CHROs should serve as executive mental health champions, help peers identify sources of work stress and provide coaching on ways to improve work-life balance. CHROs must model ideal wellbeing practices for their executive colleagues and employees at large. Many CxOs find it hard to share with their peers when they are struggling with mental health or other well-being concerns. By transparently communicating their efforts toward maintaining well-being, however, CHROs will help remove the stigma and apathy surrounding such conversations.

The Trust Factor

One side effect of so many C-suiters being either hyper-focused on economic-uncertainty-inspired strategy adjustments or exploring their own possible career changes has been trickle-down uncertainty among staffers. To remedy this and maintain good company morale, HR leaders must take four strategic actions to strengthen employee trust and stave off negative talent outcomes and decreased productivity in today’s rapidly changing business landscape, according to Gartner.

“Trust is crucial for an organization’s success. Employees who trust senior leaders at their organization are significantly more engaged compared to employees who do not,” said Ned Feuer, senior director in the Gartner HR practice. “A lack of trust most often stems from senior leaders withholding information, scapegoating or retracting decisions.”

HR professionals can help their organization’s leaders avoid these behaviors and build employee trust in four actionable ways:

1. Conduct employee trust assessments and address the findings.
2. Encourage decision-making transparency.
3. Facilitate open dialogue between employees and senior leaders.
4. Invest in skills development programs for senior leaders.

Assess Employee Trust and Address Issues

According to Gartner, HR leaders should regularly take measures to understand current levels of trust and identify areas for improvement. These assessments can be integrated into existing employee feedback mechanisms, such as annual engagement surveys or focus groups.

Once data is collected, HR leaders can transparently communicate findings to all employees, as well as explain what steps the organization is taking to address trust deficits. Gartner research shows employees are more likely to trust senior leaders if they perceive those leaders as valuing their feedback.

Encourage Transparency From Leaders

HR leaders should encourage senior leaders to offer transparency and rationale behind their actions and explain the expected implications of their actions. Such transparency addresses potential distrust from employees who believe leadership is withholding information and helps employees understand and accept decisions even if they don’t agree with them.

“Communications from senior leadership carry great influence, and employees pay attention to them,” said Maggie Mastrogiovanni, principal in the Gartner HR practice. “Our research found employees are 4.3 times more likely to trust leaders who explain decisions; boosting trust via transparency is especially important during volatile periods.”

Facilitate Open Dialogue

HR leaders are best positioned to facilitate open dialogue between employees and senior leaders, which allows both groups to identify shared values. Employees can ask questions and address concerns, and leaders can demonstrate their commitment to accountability. Gartner research shows employees are 6.5 times more likely to trust leaders who genuinely care about their concerns.

Invest in Building Senior Leaders’ Skills

Leaders need to enhance their knowledge of trust-breaking behaviors in order to adopt empathy-driven actions that build trust. HR leaders should invest in development programs for senior leaders that build skills in emotional intelligence, active listening, effective and transparent communication and ethical decision-making.

By also providing coaching for senior leaders on consistent and authentic leadership practices, HR leaders may be able to help maintain employee trust and mitigate confusion from retracted decisions.

With CEOs intensely focused on driving growth in 2025, senior leaders find themselves needing to make sure they are doing their part to build trust and encourage employee effort.

Luring in New Talent and Replacements

Forty-four percent of prospective job candidates reported they received multiple job offers in their most recent hiring process, according to an additional survey by Gartner. This is down from 51% in 1Q24 and 72% in 1Q23.

The survey of nearly 3,000 candidates conducted from January through March 2025 revealed that 35% of candidates backed out after accepting a job offer in 1Q25, compared to 48% of candidates who reneged after accepting a job offer in 1Q24.

“We are seeing signs of a softening labor market, with fewer candidates getting multiple offers or backing out after accepting a job,” said Caroline Ogawa, director of research in the Gartner HR practice. “Even with candidates seeing less opportunity in the market, organizations are still struggling to attract talent, as candidates get more selective about the jobs they pursue.”

Competition in the Labor Market Likely to Increase

A Gartner survey of more than 100 HR leaders conducted this spring found that nearly twothirds of U.S. private sector HR leaders (61%) anticipate increased talent competition due to the U.S. administration’s tariff policies, particularly for front-line talent.

“As organizations continue to navigate through the unpredictable business environment, HR leaders must challenge assumptions about how labor market competitiveness tracks with economic cycles and pay close attention to actual candidate behavior,” said Dion Love, vice president, advisory in the Gartner HR practice.

The survey also revealed that 53% of respondents cited higher compensation as their main decision driver when accepting an offer, up 11 points from 1Q24, followed closely by 47% who cited more opportunities for career growth.

“When candidates do accept a new offer, they are prioritizing compensation and career growth. Organizations need to show they can help candidates get ahead, with either an impressive salary increase or career opportunities,” said Ogawa.

When evaluating employment offers, candidates are also considering work-life balance (45%), better working conditions (39%) and opportunities to learn new skills (39%). These factors are more commonly prioritized over total rewards offerings, including better healthcare (22%), PTO (10%) and parental leave (6%).

Keeping employees believing in the company mission and dedicating themselves to their work is always complex but bundled with the recent surge of C-suite defections, it has become exponentially more challenging. If the surge of departing CxOs continues, the HR to-do list – both preventively and reactively – has clearly become longer than ever before.