Internal or External CEO? How Should the Board Choose the Leader Best Suited to the Next Phase? When a board begins the search for a new CEO, a seemingly simple question often arises: is it better to promote a leader from within the organization or appoint a CEO from outside? Framing the decision in this way, however, can lead the board into an imprecise comparison from the outset. The real choice is not between an “internal” and an “external” candidate, but between different leadership capabilities and their fit with the phase the organization is preparing to enter. An internal candidate may have [...]