The Wall Street Journal Says Gen X Is Getting Passed Over for CEO Roles
They blame bad timing and lack of vision. I call bullshit.
The Wall Street Journal just confirmed what many of us have long feared. After waiting years for the top job and the corner office, Gen Xers are getting x-ed out.
The article, “The Gen Xers Who Waited Their Turn to Be CEO Are Getting Passed Over,” by Callum Brochers, lays out a bleak picture.
When it comes to the C-suite, Gen X might be doomed to live up to its “forgotten generation” moniker. More baby boomers are working past traditional retirement ages. By the time they are ready to pass the torch, millennials will be reaching for it.
Here are the sobering numbers:
Only 43.4% of CEOs in the Russell 3000 are now in their 50s, down from 51.1% eight years ago. Meanwhile, the number of Boomer CEO is way up, and Millennials are starting to get their positions once they retire.
Brochers quotes executive recruiters, business consultants, and a few data heads who say Gen X is too old to be tapped for the next wave of leadership and too young to retire.
It’s really just an unfortunate case of bad timing, they say.
Companies kept boomers around during the pandemic and economic uncertainty. Now, with the rise of AI, boards are looking to “rising stars with big ideas for the next decade.”
That leaves Gen X in the familiar forgotten middle child spot. The Jan Brady of the corporate ladder.
As if this weren’t depressing enough, the Journal talks to Brian Buckalew, a 56-year-old Gen Xer who’s spent 34 years at the same company only to realize he’s never getting the top job.
“I struggled with it until recently,” he says. “Why wasn’t I chosen for this, or why wasn’t I chosen for that?”
His conclusion?
He says Gen Xers are often viewed more as tacticians than visionaries. He notes Americans have never elected a Gen X president and doubts they ever will.
Thanks for the vote of confidence, Bri.
Faux Praise
The Journal tries to soften the blow of this depressing news, saying that private equity firms still like hiring Gen Xers because we’re seen as safe bets for short-term gigs before an exit.
They also offer up a rather meek case for us, pointing to our independence and that we don’t require “hand-holding.”
This is the equivalent of getting a participation trophy rather than a gold medal.
What the Story Misses
Once again, the media has played kickball with Gen X. They love this narrative that Gen X is, as the Times put it, “making candlesticks when electricity came in.”
I suspect many of those who write this fiction are Millennials, and since we know their bosses are Boomers, the deck is stacked against us.
When Gen X isn't telling the story, we’re being written out of it.
So, here’s a little story I’d like to share. It’s the story of a generation that’s been through four major technological shifts and survived and adapted each time.
It’s a generation that’s weathered divorce, latchkey childhoods, mass layoffs, and even this…
You say we don’t get AI. I say bring it on.
You say we aren’t visionaries. I say have you heard of Larry Page and Sergey Brin? They started this little thing called Google.
How about Lauryn Hill and Sophia Coppola?
Heck, even Elon Musk was a visionary before the Ketamine.
You say we aren’t suited for the C-Suite. I’ll give you five reasons you can kiss our sweet ass:
1. We don’t panic.
Gen X grew up with chaos. Divorced parents, 9/11, economic crashes up the wazoo. We’re calm under pressure because that’s our survival mechanism.
2. We’ve managed up and down.
We’ve spent decades working under Boomers and mentoring Millennials. We know how to talk to both and keep them from tearing each other’s heads off.
3. We’re skeptical
We ask a lot of questions. We don’t fall for hype or shiny new things. That makes us clear-eyed, not wide-eyed, in the face of AI takeover.
4. We’re not egomaniacs
Aside from Elon Musk, most Gen Xers are not that comfortable in the spotlight. We prefer to keep our heads down and get the work done.
5. We’re straight talkers
We don’t like BS. The only fluff we enjoy is Fluffernutter. We tell it like we see it, not like we think you want to hear it.
We’re also just fun to be around. We’ve got a sense of humor. We don’t take ourselves too seriously. And honestly, have you heard our music?
Look, I get that Boomers and Millenials are going to screw us.
But for any board members reading this, I urge you not to confuse forgotten with formidable.
We may be overlooked in the media, but we are very much here.
Experienced, capable, and ready to CEO like a mofo.
They don't want us in the c-suite bc we've spent our lives being really good at damage control when boomers and millennials eff things up.
Excellent analysis, Jonathan—you've captured something important here. I'm probably the exception that proves the rule, though. I've been self-employed my entire career because I never wanted to be another cog in the corporate machine. I suspect many Gen Xers share this entrepreneurial mindset.
We learned early to create our own opportunities rather than wait for someone to hand them to us. Even as a kid, instead of asking for allowance, I was charging tourists for pony rides in our small town. That DIY mentality shaped how we approach work—we'd rather build something ourselves than climb someone else's ladder.
Maybe that's part of why we're being overlooked for these CEO positions. We've been busy creating our own companies instead of playing the corporate advancement game. The irony is that the same independent streak that makes us natural entrepreneurs might be exactly what these corporations need in leadership.