More companies hiring their next CFO from the outside

So far, 2026 has been nine months of CFO musical chairs.

As CFO Brew previously reported, at the end of July, CFO turnover was tracking toward its highest rate since 2019. Fresh data supports those estimates: Public company CFO turnover globally hit its highest mark in eight years, at 15% through Q3, according to executive search firm Russell Reynolds Associates’ CFO Turnover Index. Turnover at S&P 500 companies was even higher—19%.

Beyond the headline stats lies another trend that finance execs (especially aspiring ones) will find noteworthy: Internal-candidate promotions dipped from 56% last year to 53% this year, the lowest recorded share of CFO appointments in Q1 to Q3 in the index’s eight-year history.

More companies are opting for external hiring now, in part because, during Covid and the following years, they opted for a steady hand in the finance function. “During that time, the thought of looking external, about having somebody potentially commuting, having someone new to an organization when people were working remotely, it really favored internal promotions,” Jim Lawson, who co-leads RRA’s global financial officers practice, told CFO Brew.

“But I also believe that our clients are asking us for more tried and true CFOs because the markets have become more demanding” of late, Lawson said. “Investor communication has been just paramount in the tools needed to be a public company CFO, and the role has really shifted from more of an operational CFO…to more strategy [and] capital allocation.”

Retirements also help explain this year’s high turnover rate. While CFO departures through Q3 remained steady at 12%, retirements and transitions to board roles accounted for more than three-fifths (61%) of global CFO departures, according to the index, up from 57% in 2025.

Some CFOs may look at the current economic environment, namely with AI disrupting all facets of business, and feel like they’d rather just take it easy than have to navigate all that, according to Jenna Fisher, co-leader of RRA’s global financial officers practice.

“I think a lot of [CFOs] just feel like it’s a good time to hang up [their] hat, go out on a high note, and pass the torch,” Fisher told us, noting that their skills make them in high demand as board members or advisors to private equity firms, or even as CEOs.