How many hours do CEOs work? (2024)

FAQs

How many hours do CEOs work? ›

The average tech CEO works about 300 days a year, 14 hours a day. That's 4,200 hours a year. The stats for most other tech leaders and startup employees aren't too far off. It sounds like a lot of time, but for most, it's not enough.

About half (47%) of a CEO's work was done at company headquarters. The rest was conducted while visiting other company locations, meeting external constituencies, commuting, traveling, and at home. Altogether, the CEOs in our study worked an average of 62.5 hours a week.

The amount of time off that a CEO takes in a year can vary significantly from one to the next. On average, most CEOs take about two weeks of vacation per year. However, some may take two or three times that amount or even more depending on their business and personal needs.

CEOs in the Fortune 500 have an average tenure of seven years. Also, by mid-year 2023, there was 9% CFO turnover in the Fortune 500, in comparison to 7% the same time last year.

On the day-to-day level, this means the job is largely strategic. CEOs spend their time in meetings with stakeholders, management, and other members of the C-suite to oversee operations. They also create the vision and strategies that the organization will follow in order to keep growing.

CEOs of major companies can have pretty extreme sleep schedules. They're often getting up early in the morning and going to bed late to manage their busy work days. Still, there are a handful that aim for 8 hours or more of sleep a night.

Fortune 100 CEOs are some of the busiest and most demanding roles in the business world, and the amount of time they work can vary widely depending on the individual and the demands of their company. However, on average, Fortune 100 CEOs are known to work long hours, often putting in 60-80 hours or more per week.

Do CEOs and other high level executives work fewer hours than their employees? - Quora. Nope! In reality, they usually work much longer hours plus weekends and evenings. Most employees are working 40 hours a week and possibly some overtime for which they receive additional compensation.

Their salary would be set by the board of directors. If the CEO is also the founder and the 100% owner, then, s/he could set his/her own salary. But it is sort of moot because s/he owns what is left in the company, including any salary s/he didn't take. If they own a lot of the organization, then yes, of course.

A recent article from Harvard Business Review found that CEOs spend an average of about 2.1 hours a day relaxing, ranging from simple relaxation to pursuing their hobbies.

Is CEO job stressful? ›

The CEO job is so stressful that many have resigned to the idea that leadership and stress always cos-exist. I don't think this should be the case. In this piece, I share my views on what is stressing CEOs today, the signs that show me I am stressed, and how I deal with the stress.

Nearly two-thirds of successful CEOs say they wake up at 6 a.m. or earlier: 'It's just a matter of establishing routine' Tom Huddleston Jr. You don't have to wake up early to be successful just because someone like Apple CEO Tim Cook is up at 3:45 a.m.

Company Performance: One of the most significant factors impacting CEO pay is company performance. CEOs are often rewarded handsomely when their companies achieve exceptional financial results and outperform their competitors.

Per a Harvard Business Review study, CEOs work an average of 9.7 hours during the week and 2.4 hours each weekend day.

Define Clear Goals: CEOs set specific and measurable goals that align with their vision. Identify what you want to achieve in both the short and long term to guide your priorities. Evaluate Impact: Assess the potential impact of each task on your goals.

Full-time executives are likely to work in the range of 40 to 60 hours per week. Full-time executives often carry many responsibilities that require them to work more than the traditional workweek. This also depends on things like if their company is in their busy season or not.

Average Total Hourly Cash Compensation

The average hourly rate for CEO ranges from $304 to $518 with the average hourly pay of $402. The total hourly cash compensation, which includes base and short-term incentives, can vary anywhere from $421 to $1,019 with the average total hourly cash compensation of $654.