We study the market for CEOs of large publicly-traded US firms, analyze new CEOs' prior connections to the hiring firm, and explore how hiring choices are determined. Firms are hiring from a surprisingly small pool of candidates. More than 80% of new CEOs are insiders, defined as current or...

I study the influence of networks and connectedness on CEO labor market outcomes, including new CEO appointments, CEO termination, and CEO compensation. I distinguish between the pairwise specific CEO-board connectedness and the strength and structure of the CEO's overall connectedness. I find...

This paper presents a new model of CEO turnover that includes outside employment and retirement options. The board and the CEO use firm performance to update their beliefs about the CEO's ability. If the CEO's perceived ability falls below an endogenously determined threshold, the board fires...