CEO candidates quizzed on new topics as role gets bigger

Candidates must ace up to 11 grueling interview rounds over a year as firms cut bad-hire risk

- Devina Sengupta

Senior executives eyeing CEO roles should not simply bank on their leadership and business acumen to nail interviews. They may also have to field queries on everything from longevity and global warming to geopolitics, besides having to study financials and present a strategy plan to the board. There may be an odd quirky question like, 'when was the last time you were curious?' By the end of it, a candidate may have gone through up to 11 such grueling rounds, each lasting a few hours.

Such a long-drawn courtship before selecting the CEO betrays companies' fear of making a mistake. Headhunters, obviously, have been left perplexed.

"The role of the CEO has become oversized, with increasing competitive intensity, economic and geopolitical volatility, technology disruptions driving newer business models. In such times, the CEO is often seen as a silver bullet, the one solution to all challenges," said Pankaj Arora, managing director at global executive search firm Russell Reynolds Associates. "Given the high stakes, naturally the bar on recruitment keeps increasing and the process keeps evolving to minimize risk."