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.
This is already happening at more companies. In the Russell 3000, 41.5% of chief executives are at least 60 years old, up from 35.1% in 2017. Over the same period, the share of CEOs in their 30s and 40s has grown to 15.1% from 13.8%, according to research by the Conference Board and ESGAUGE.
That leaves Gen Xers, typically defined as those born between 1965 and 1980, with fewer chances to lead. People in their 50s held 51.1% of CEO seats eight years ago. Now they occupy 43.4%.
Many Gen Xers say they operated on the belief that if they paid their dues, their time would come. But as they enter what is usually the prime, C-suite career stage, more businesses are retaining their aging leaders or skipping a generation in search of the next ones.
“We’re starting to see a barbell phenomenon in the CEO role where Gen X is being squeezed in the middle,” says Matteo Tonello , head of benchmarking and analytics at the Conference Board.
Maybe it’s fitting that workers dubbed “slackers” in their youth would reach the top less often, though Tonello says companies don’t necessarily lack faith in Gen Xers. Their predicament is largely a result of bad timing.
Facing a pandemic, recession and supply-chain problems in recent years, companies prized boomers’ experience. Now some are turning to millennials to navigate the advent of artificial intelligence. Gen Xers, especially those about to turn 60, might have missed their moment.
Set up for disappointment
The cruel thing is a lot of Xers don’t realize they are headed for dead ends.
“A type of person I come across in my business all the time is the executive-in-waiting,” says Shawn Cole , president of Cowen Partners Executive Search. “They assume when their boss retires, they’re going to get the seat. A lot of folks are going to be disappointed.”
The most vulnerable people are those sandwiched between leaders on the young side of the boomer cohort and hard-charging older millennials.
Say you’re a 55-year-old lieutenant with a protégé who is 44 and a CEO who is 63. If the boss hangs on for five more years, the board will be tempted to go with the younger option.
One bright spot for Gen X executives whose windows are closing: Private-equity backed companies remain eager to hire them, says Bo Burch , CEO of Human Capital Solutions. A private-equity firm hoping to exit an investment in three to five years generally wants a veteran manager for a short stint. A 50-something often fits that bill.
But in other settings, Gen Xers frequently get stuck in No. 2 roles . They have to fight to be seen as transformational figures by boards that want rising stars with big ideas for the next decade.
“There’s a bias toward younger, future-fit leadership branding—even if Gen X has the real substance,” Burch says.
The case for Xers
Brian Buckalew has spent his entire, 34-year career at Majestic Steel USA, whose baby-boomer founder was succeeded as CEO by his millennial son. Buckalew, 56, has been a road warrior for decades, traveling from his home in Georgia to meet with customers. Though he has risen from sales assistant to vice president of strategic sales, he has sometimes felt overlooked.
“I struggled with it until recently,” he says. “Why wasn’t I chosen for this, or why wasn’t I chosen for that?”
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.
Boomers have won eight of the past nine elections. (Joe Biden is part of the pre-baby boom silent generation.) And 2028 betting favorites mostly revolve around several millennials.
Buckalew says he has come to appreciate having time for hobbies he might be forced to sacrifice if he climbed higher. It helps that he considers his millennial boss deserving of the post.
Still, Buckalew, who grew up going home to an empty house after school, says Gen Xers’ ability to figure things out on their own is underappreciated.
The “ latchkey generation ”—so nicknamed because its childhood coincided with a surge of women in the workforce—doesn’t require hand-holding. This comfort working without guidance is arguably more valuable amid AI uncertainty than having been raised on the internet, says Megan Gerhardt , founder of Gentelligence, which advises companies on managing multigenerational teams.
If AI is the biggest workplace disruption since the internet, then Gen Xers who survived the previous big shift can be a steadying presence now, she contends.
“It’s this attitude of, ‘Well, I figured that out, so I can figure this out too,’ ” says Gerhardt, who is also a management professor at Miami University in Ohio and, yes, a Gen Xer.
That sounds like a decent pitch for any would-be executive whose demographic reality bites.
Write to Callum Borchers at callum.borchers@wsj.com
