The role of the CEO is rapidly shifting. We’re seeing the focus evolve from operational oversight to driving large-scale transformation. As a result, organisations must rethink how they build leadership teams capable of navigating unprecedented market complexity.

In today’s fast-paced business landscape, hiring a C-suite executive is no longer business as usual. Success demands a keen strategic perspective, alignment with company culture, and leadership with a clear eye on the future.

If you are a CEO/founder you are probably thinking: what should I consider when hiring a C-suite executive? In this article we’ll be uncovering some of the leadership hiring trends Erevena is seeing in 2026, alongside insights from an experienced CEO on the importance of the c-suite hiring process and how AI is reshaping the CEO mandate.

What key things should leaders focus on when hiring a C‑suite executive?

When hiring C‑suite executives, leaders should focus on several critical areas:

• Strategic fit: Can the candidate align closely with the organisation’s long‑term vision?
• Adaptability: Is the executive comfortable navigating uncertainty and complex change?
• AI and digital literacy: Do they understand how emerging technologies impact strategy?
• Cultural alignment: Will they champion the organisation’s values and foster trust?
• Execution capability: Can they drive measurable results while balancing stakeholder expectations?

Pre-interview stage

• For earlier stage companies, the vision and execution of the company and what’s expected from a C-suite member is often clear, however the strategy can be vague as they test and iterate their way to product market fit. Having a clear idea of the challenges over the next 6-12 months is an important context to see the cracks and gaps opening in that time span.

• For later stage companies the time span can be more 12-36 months as it is easier to predict the evolution of the role than for a say a start-up.

• In this context it’s helpful to gage how the gap you are looking to fill will evolve over the next stage of growth. The role you’re hiring for rarely stays the same over time and finding the balance of hiring for now and the future is important.

On the day assessment

• When it comes to the day of the interview for a new C-suite executive whether it’s a CCO, COO, CGO, understanding the candidate’s journey and how they have handled challenges and grasped opportunities both in market and internally.

• Get them to describe their way of “working upwards”, with peers and subordinates, and get them to describe in detail what references will say to validate this.

• Dig into anything about their leadership behaviour and particularly how they have evolved and learned indicating growth mindset.

• Assess for potential using the 4 pillars, hunger, humility, curiosity, and ambition.

• Assess their motivation for both the potential opportunities with joining your organisation, but also for the challenges ahead. Far too often are candidates joining for the fair-weather journey they were sold in the hiring process, and not the reality.

Post-assessment

• Validate the interviews with both formal and informal (Backchannel) references with their subordinates. Peers and former bosses. Assessing leadership styles is more about how well they manage downwards than upwards whilst assessing strategic capabilities is best done from their bosses. The peers will be able to shed light of their ability to collaborate with other functions and doing so in the best interest for the company.

The Split in C-Suite Talent Strategy

C-suite hiring today falls into two distinct camps. On one side, AI-native and high-growth companies are expanding at unprecedented speed in 2026, redefining conventional strategies. In these organisations, CEOs and leaders need executives who can shape the companies of tomorrow, embrace AI-first thinking, and guide teams through entirely new challenges. Modern C-suite recruitment prioritises innovation, adaptability, and the creation of capabilities that didn’t exist before.

At the other end of the spectrum, many traditional B2B SaaS companies or capital-constrained businesses face pressure to pivot to profitable growth. Some leadership hiring trends in these companies are prioritising for resilience, operational discipline, and transformation capabilities, often needing leaders who can make tough trade-offs, capital, and sustain growth in a tighter market.

The latter has also impacted the balance between retaining the right C-suite talent for this new paradigm and knowing when new capabilities are needed at the top.

Talent may be more available than at the peak of 2021, but one question remains. Do candidates have the skills and experience required to succeed in a world where profitability takes precedence over growth and valuations are under pressure?

How C-level executives can keep up with AI trends in 2026

C-level executives don’t need to become technical experts in AI – but they do need a system to stay strategically informed without getting overwhelmed. The key is filtering signal from noise and tying everything back to business impact. A recent study found that over two-thirds (72%) of CEOs now act as the primary decision-maker for AI in their organisation.

Here’s 5 practical ways a CEO can keep up-to-date and tailor AI into their C-suite hiring process:

1. Build a “minimum viable AI awareness” routine

Keeping up with the pace of AI development is essential for C-level leaders and future hires. When assessing future leadership hires, it’s worth looking for consistent habits that show they actively stay informed. At the same time, CEOs should be embedding these behaviours into their own weekly routines to remain effective and forward-looking.

Good sources to stay on top of recent changes include:

• MIT Technology Review (practical AI impact analysis)
• McKinsey & Company insights (business-focused AI reports)
• Stanford HAI (research trends translated for leaders)

The goal isn’t volume – it’s consistency.

2. Appoint an internal AI translator

Most leadership teams fail because insights don’t translate into decisions. It’s important CEO’s and founders’ factor this into their hiring process and structure. It’s good practice to assign someone in the business or leadership team to:

• Track relevant AI developments
• Map them to your industry
• Brief leadership in plain language

This could be a Chief Data Officer, CTO, or even a rotating “AI champion” role.

3. Focus on use cases, not technology

Whether it’s the CEO or someone responsible for AI in the business, avoid getting lost in model names or benchmarks.

Ask the following questions at interview stages and also when conducting a reverse-gap analysis on the business:
• Where can AI reduce cost?
• Where can it increase revenue?
• Where could it disrupt us?

For example:

• Customer support automation
• Sales personalisation
• Operational forecasting

4. Learn directly from practitioners

A leadership team benefits most from peer conversations, not reports.

Consider keeping on top of the following and ask your C-suite hire their methods of keeping up to date:

• Private executive roundtables
• Industry-specific
• AI forums
• Advisory relationships with AI leaders

5. Run small, fast experiments and prioritise “AI literacy” across the leadership team

Lastly real understanding of AI comes from hands-on use. Make sure your current and upcoming leadership team has a clear grasp of both the capabilities and limitations of modern AI, along with the risks it introduces. Rolling out targeted workshops across the organisation can significantly accelerate this understanding.

Examples of initiatives to implement:

• Internal productivity tools
• AI copilots for teams
• Process automation pilots

AI is reshaping the C-suite in real time. Capability gaps are emerging faster, and new roles and functions are taking shape as organisations experiment and adapt. For CEOs, this makes hiring more complex. Looking in the rear-view mirror at what worked before may no longer be relevant.

Hearing from a former CEO – Success starts from the top

Kyle Ferguson, former CEO at Forsta and Fraedom, says that identifying skill gaps in your C-suite is crucial. “Leaders can identify skill gaps by observing performance in leaner, more specialised teams and how they adapt to change and new technologies. Misalignment across functions (e.g. product, engineering and go-to-market) can also indicate deeper capability gaps.”

He states, “It’s about pattern recognition. I have learned not to over-engineer things and to measure what matters most. Something as simple as getting an organisation’s feedback across all levels can paint the narrative of where gaps and weaknesses lie.”

Reflecting on his tenure, the former CEO emphasised the importance of acting swiftly on identified challenges to ease organisational pressure. In 2025, his former company experienced a significant performance turnaround after implementing fundamental people and structural changes following the acquisition. The results were striking: a record-breaking 40% increase in net bookings. This transformation clearly demonstrated that hiring a strong C-suite executive team can unlock substantial, company-wide growth.

Leadership hiring trends and the impact of AI

AI is transforming leadership across strategy, decision-making, and organisational design. As a result, we are seeing teams becoming more talent-dense, with higher expectations and an accelerated pace. This is placing greater pressure on leaders to think strategically and prioritise quickly.

Leaders should be asking whether their C-suite understands the strategic implications of AI, and whether they are equipped to lead through them.

Even former CEO, Kyle Ferguson, suggests that an AI-focused leader should be able to “see the wood from the trees.” He explains that they should be able to understand connected data systems, rather than isolated data points – a key unlock in order to drive organisational efficiencies and speed to insights.

“We’re about to go through a period of change unseen in our history, and leaders who can embrace an AI-augmented world will be critical.” The most important quality of an AI leader in 2026 is the ability to adapt to change, interpret complexity and make clear strategic calls.

AI is allowing companies to uncover insights quickly and more effectively than before. This includes crucial data which can be utilised for customer experience and enhancing services. Hiring a C-suite executive team that can understand this transformation and act on it is crucial.

Investor and stakeholder expectations for CEOs and leadership teams

Investors now expect scale-up leadership teams to demonstrate AI readiness. CEOs are under pressure to show they can harness AI for growth, efficiency, and competitive advantage without losing human judgment.

Over the past three years, funding for traditional B2B SaaS companies tightened, and a as a consequence, many businesses were forced to prioritise profitability – often reducing the growth rates and investment in go-to-market functions and restructuring their organisations to extend runway.

At the same time, intensified competition from AI-native companies has reshaped markets. Some scale-ups have found their product-market fit challenged, and in certain cases, effectively moved “back a stage” – from a Series B growth trajectory to operating more like a Series A business again.

This shift has had a significant impact on leadership dynamics. CEOs have needed to become far more hands-on, operational, and commercially involved. Meanwhile, C-suite hires who were well suited to a later-stage, scale-focused environment (for example, a Series C trajectory) may no longer align with what the business now requires.

In today’s climate, leadership fit isn’t just about calibre – it’s about stage, context, and adaptability.

With every function needed to be performing at max level, the CEOs role of optimising with what talent they have becomes incredibly challenging.

Former CEO Kyle Ferguson’s take on this is that “Investors expect CEOs to execute, which is considered table stakes. Strong leaders are defined by their ability to embrace change, communicate clearly, scale business and platforms efficiently, and develop talent. This is especially the case in private equity-backed organisations, where driving efficient growth with fewer resources is non-negotiable.”

So, what can CEOs expect from the new year? What are the leadership hiring trends we are seeing

With over 20 years in executive search, Erevena has seen what changes, what repeats, and what truly defines leadership success.  Last year, we saw hiring accelerate in Q4, a trend that has continued into Q1. The shift from retaining sub-optimal talent to appointing new leadership can happen quickly. CEOs who delay those decisions risk being left with misaligned capability at the top.

We are seeing more executives choosing to stay in their roles. This is not always driven by loyalty, but by a perceived upside, attachment to equity that may have lost value, or hesitation about the risks of starting somewhere new.

Many leaders struggle to recognise when their cycle with an employer is coming to a natural close. As a result, moves are often delayed, or made for the wrong reasons rather than as part of a considered long-term strategy.

This applies to CEOs as well and even founders/co-founders.

Final takeaways: What will CEOs need to be prepared for?

This will be the year where increased use of AI will decrease team sizes, and lead to extreme execution followed by unparalleled output. For CEOs it will be key to understand the cause and implication on the org, talent and culture, and how to lead in this new paradigm.

Kyle Ferguson, former CEO, adds a reflective point: “The expectation of a CEO is that they come up with the big ideas and can execute flawlessly. The “How” is what sets good leaders apart. Again, it’s the ability to adapt to change, communicating strategy clearly to rise to this challenge.”

In summary, what CEOs should expect with c-suite hiring and structuring in the new year:

• Shrinking of team sizes with higher talent density means a tight and impactful C-suite
• Knowing what talent to keep and what to let go. The answer may surprise many
• Higher pace leading to extreme execution and massive increased output
• Focus on aligning parallel strategy and connected processes at pace without losing sight of bold ambitions
• A non-negotiable capability is understanding AI’s impact and knowing how to act on it

If you’re planning for the year ahead and need support with board structuring or leadership hiring, feel free to connect here.