Nevada had 7 announced CEO changes in 2017, report says

The number of chief executive officer changes announced at U.S.-based companies totalled 1,160 in 2017, the lowest annual total since 2004, according to a report released Wednesday by global outplacement consultancy and executive coaching firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

Last year’s departures were down 7 percent from the 1,248 announced in 2016. In 20014, 663 CEO changes were announced.

“The uncertainty surrounding the tax and health care bills, coupled with a tight labor market, kept companies from making any major leadership changes in 2017,” said John Challenger, CEO of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

“In fact, most of the leaders who did leave their roles last year stayed with the company in some capacity, typically as a board member or other C-level executive,” he added.

Thirty percent of the CEOs who left their posts in 2017 stepped down into other roles, compared to 21.4 percent in 2016 and 19.7 percent in 2015.

CEO departures in 2017 were significant for another reason: sexual misconduct. Last year, a total of 11 CEOs left amid sexual misconduct allegations, 266 percent more than the number of CEOs who left for that reason in 2016. A a total of three CEOs left for that reason in each of the last three years.

In Nevada, Challenger, Gray & Christmas reported seven CEOs left their roles in 2017, compared to six in 2016 and 11 in 2015:

— Michelle Caprio resigned last January from the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors.

— Jeff Lynch stepped down from ITS Logistics in Sparks, NV in May 2017.

— Michael Fuoco stepped down from Millennium Energy Corp. in Las Vegas last June.

— David Drake stepped down from AMI Global in Las Vegas last July.

— Carter Matzinger departed from KSIX Media Holding in Henderson last August.

— Kristin McMillan resigned from the Las Vegas Metro Chamber of Commerce last August.

— Rajesh C. Shrotriya was terminated from Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc in Henderson in December.