UK chief executives still tend to be over-50 and male, research has suggested, with British boardrooms continuing to fall short when it comes to promoting youth and diversity compared with their European counterparts.

The Route to the Top Europe 2026 report, by executive search company Heidrick & Struggles, concluded just 8% of UK chief executive officers in 2025 were appointed before the age of 45, the second lowest in Europe. The average age for stepping up was 51.7 years.

The only consolation is that, while the UK is at the bottom of the curve, the trend across Europe is also moving towards later appointment. The percentage of under-45s appointed had fallen from 25% in 2021 to 17% this year, it found.

Equally damning, just 8% of UK CEOs are women, and barely half (54%) hold a postgraduate degree – the lowest proportion in Europe.

Before the European C-suite gets too smug, however, the study concluded this 8% figure is broadly in line with the European average, suggesting boardrooms across the continent still have a job to do.

Across Europe, the number of women CEOs had only improved marginally in the past five years, from 6% in 2021 to 8% in 2026, it argued.

The Heidrick & Struggles report tracks the backgrounds and career paths of 522 CEOs at the largest companies across Europe. It also surveys 299 European CEOs and board members on succession planning and leadership alignment.

Among other findings, when it came to academic qualifications, as well as the 54% of UK CEOs who had a postgraduate degree, 39% only had a bachelor’s degree as their highest qualification. This compared with a European average of 69% for postgraduate qualifications, rising to 85% in the Nordics and Benelux.

One positive, however, is the internationalism of UK chief executives. Nearly half (46%) had cross-border experience and 39% had worked across sectors in their previous two roles – both above the European average.

Furthermore, 47% of CEOs at the UK’s largest companies were not British nationals – the highest proportion of any major European economy. France, by comparison, had just 18% non-national CEOs, with Italy and Spain lower still.

A total of 32% of UK CEOs had previously held a chief financial officer role – the highest proportion in Europe, against a European average of 22%.

Once in post, UK CEOs tended to stay for an average of 6.2 years, close to the European average of 6.6 years.

UK and Irish organisations were the most likely in Europe, too, to say CEO succession planning was not a high priority, with 43% saying this, against a European average of 33%.

While the UK’s openness to international leadership talent did set it apart from much of Europe – and was a sign UK plc is still a draw for top global talent – it also raised questions about the depth of the domestic talent pipeline, Heidrick & Struggles argued.

Jenni Hibbert, regional leader, Europe and Africa and global managing partner, leadership insights, at Heidrick & Struggles, said: “The data paints a detailed picture of who is running UK PLC in 2026. The path to the top has narrowed over time and the profile it rewards is increasingly specific. What should concern boards is not just who is getting through, but who isn’t.

“When nearly half your CEOs come from overseas, one in three came through finance, and fewer than one in 10 were appointed before 45, you have to ask whether the pipeline is genuinely open or whether it just looks that way,” she added.

 

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Source: www.personneltoday.com

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