Summary
Barron’s – one of the most renowned investors magazines – has published its ranking of the “World’s Best CEOs”. The magazine admits not to “have a precise formula for constructing the list – it reflects the collective wisdom of our editors and writers.” Only CEOs with at least five years in their position are eligible to enter the list. In the 10 years since Barron’s launched the list, corporate boards have increasingly come under fire. The credit crisis, volatile energy prices, and disruptive technologies turned the decade into something of a CEO killer. Of the 30 CEOs listed in the first edition ten years ago, seven have kept their jobs and only two remain in the list: Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway and Michael O’Leary of Ryanair Holdings. The 30 CEOs listed come from all parts of the globe. Twenty of the companies they run are U.S.-based; five are based in Europe, and five are Asian.

Seven CEOs have been added to the list this year: Robert Iger of Walt Disney, Joseph Jimenez at Novartis, Macy’s Terry Lundgren, Sergio Marchionne at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Larry Merlo at CVS Health, Under Armour ’s Kevin Plank, and Aditya Puri, managing director of India-based HDFC Bank. Eight CEOs have been removed, making way for new faces. They are Amazon.com ’s Jeffrey Bezos, Mark Donegan at Precision Castparts, Hugh Grant at Monsanto, Nick Hayek of Swatch Group, CBS’ head Leslie Moonves, Ford Motor ’s Alan Mulally, Norbert Reithofer of BMW, and Lars Rebien Sørensen at Novo Nordisk.

While on the one hand this ranking provides an interesting perspective on the performance of CEOs, its methodology is merely based on the personal views of Barron’s editorial team and writers – and therefore highly subjective and non-transparent. The fact that the vast majority of the CEOs in this “global” ranking are US-Americans shows that their might also be an ethnocentric halo effect included.

Summarizing, Barron’s’ “World’s Best CEOs” is a useful ranking to get a snapshot of successful CEOs (and their well-performing firms). But caution is necessary: The CEOs listed are nothing more than a subjective recommendation – and they do not provide any reference how exactly they got there. Due to the long history and consistency of the ranking, comparisons and developments over time are possible – which is a significant advantage for interested readers.

Unfortunately, the full list and the corresponding article are only available for subscribers.