Which European cities have the longest-serving CEOs? (2024)

A chief executive officer (CEO) is often instrumental in the success of a company. Some CEOs will have spent several years at the same company, painstakingly climbing up the ladder.

Some companies value long-term staffers in upper management and executive roles while others look to approach someone fresh from outside the firm.

A recent study by BusinessFinancing.co.uk looked at which cities and countries across the world had the longest-serving CEOs, looking at the CVs of 100,000 CEOs around the world.

Seven European cities made the top 20 list

The Greek city of Thessaloniki emerged in top place, with a median CEO tenure of 9.5 years.

Having shaken off the country's debt crisis following the global bank crisis of 2007 and 2008, Greek cities look to be thriving. Thessaloniki is a growing European tech, life science and entrepreneurship hub, competing with the likes of Lisbon. The Greek city has attracted both investors and companies.

E-commerce furniture company Pakketo, sustainable mining company EcoResources and Web3 firm Mysten Labs are among the most popular startups operating in Thessaloniki. Global giants such as Google, Amazon and Microsoft have also invested significantly in the city, in the form of regional cloud services centres and other facilities.

Portugal popular with business

Braga in Portugal came in at third place, with average tenures being 9.2 years. In the past few years, Braga has emerged as a key technological and entrepreneurial centre for northern Portugal, as well as for companies wanting to get away from busier Lisbon.

In the European Commission's 2023 Quality of Life in European Cities study, 98% of people surveyed agreed Braga was a good place to live. Braga is also attracting more tourism in recent years, with a robust property market as well.

Germany, the UK and Italy also value long stayers

In fifth place was Germany's Chemnitz, with CEOs tending to stay at the top post for 8.7 years.

Hereford in the United Kingdom took sixth place, with CEOs serving for an average of 8.6 years. Southend-on-Sea and Stirling, also both in the United Kingdom bagged 11th and 18th positions respectively, with average CEO tenures of 7.5 years and 7.3 years.

Other UK cities with relatively long-serving CEOs are Portsmouth, Bradford, Newport. Wolverhampton and Sunderland. According to Investors' Chronicle, 70% of current CEOs at the UK's FTSE 100 companies were hired from within.

Some of the UK companies with the longest-serving CEOs are Next, with CEO Simon Wolfson having been at the helm since August 2001, and Ocado, where Tim Steiner has been the CEO since January 2002.

In Florence, Italy, which brought up the rear at number 20, the median CEO tenure was 7.1 years.

Outside Europe, according to the study, the countries with the longest-serving CEOs are Lebanon, with an average CEO tenure of 8.5 years, Turkmenistan, with a median CEO tenure of 7.9 years. and China whose CEOs had an average tenure of 6.8 years.

What makes a CEO successful?

A successful CEO needs to have a strong, clear and achievable vision and strategy for the company, with measurable milestones. They will need to balance the profitability and shareholder interests with finding a sustainable way of upholding the culture and values of the company.

Another key to success is being focused in the moment, according to Laura Alber, Fortune 500's longest-serving woman CEO. Alber has been the CEO of Williams-Sonoma since May 2010.

She highlighted during Fortune's Most Powerful Women Summit in 2023: "If you’re super present in what you're doing, then you're not always thinking about the next thing, which is counterintuitive to what most people tell you about careers.

"If you give it your all, people notice, and they connect better with you and you get more done. I just try to stay fully immersed in what I do and that is Williams-Sonoma."

As the global economic situation becomes ever more challenging and competitive, demands on CEOs are increasing. As such, CEOs need to look after themselves, to avoid burnout and stress.

Christine Assouad, the CEO of Dunkin' Donuts says, as reported by the Young Presidents' Organisation: "Focusing on myself has been very important, allowing me to take a step back and come back stronger. As CEOs, we need to accept that we are also human, and we need to make sure we are well first as we can't help anyone otherwise.

"Something we often forget in coping with crisis is that you and your teams' physical and mental wellbeing is what will, in the end, drive the business through a crisis."

Choosing from within

Internal hiring can also make a difference to how successful CEOs may be. Internal candidates have usually spent several years at a company and know what the company is all about.

According to a CEOWORLD Magazine report in March, France has the highest percentage of internally promoted CEOs, at 79%, followed by the United States at 77%, Mexico at 75%, Canada at 73% and South Africa at 70%.

Other European countries which also saw a relatively high amount of internal CEO promotion were Norway, Switzerland, Ireland, Denmark and Belgium.

Knowing when it's time to go

With years of hard work and success behind them, it may be tempting to stay at the head of a company for a few years more. However, knowing the right time to leave and having a solid succession plan are also essential to a CEO's success and strong legacy.

David Fubini, former senior director at McKinsey and senior lecturer at Harvard Business School said on the college's website: "People always feel like they have one more act. It's a bit like when you are a skier traversing a field of moguls, and you keep saying: 'I'll turn at the next one, or the next one, or the next one, and before you know it, you’re in the woods.

"In reality, very, very few people are wildly successful for an extended length of time, So you want to find an inflection point, where you can leave while you are at the apex, not past it - and most people miss that. Your legacy is enhanced by leaving when people are wanting more."