Let’s talk about all these co-CEOs

Having two co-chief executive officers is a little bit like an arranged marriage. Trust is necessary to make a partnership work. Consistent consideration for one another and the ability to communicate effectively generate that trust.

But just as wonderful parents may sometimes experience hardship with one of their kids, a great partnership doesn’t guarantee great business outcomes.

Co-CEO setups are on our minds lately following recent announcements from some big companies:

Relationship quality between co-CEOs is a clear factor, as academics and business leaders say that trust, role clarity, aligned incentives, and having agreed-upon dispute-mechanisms are all critical to outcomes. If those factors aren’t present, co-leadership often fails.

But relationship quality, or good chemistry, is also not a magic bullet.

Netflix famously has made the model work, as has investment firm KKR. It’s been such a positive experience at global architectural and design firm Gensler that co-CEOs Jordan Goldstein and Elizabeth Brink have implemented a co-leadership structure throughout the entire company. There are co-regional leads throughout the firm’s global footprint. 

“As co-CEOs, we’ve really taken the time to develop trust and alignment around shared values and goals,” Goldstein and Brink told me in a statement — a joint statement, of course. “This is the foundation of our collaborative leadership. We each take the lead in different areas, and that clarity helps us move quickly and stay focused. We stay aligned by checking in multiple times a day. We don’t need to be involved in every decision the other makes but operate with a ‘one-voice’ philosophy. When something that was originally a smaller decision expands, we keep each other in the loop. The communication is constant, as is the trust-building.”

As with any relationship or leadership structure, it can go any number of ways.

“Co-CEO structures are either a masterclass in complementary leadership, or a fast track to gridlock,” said Dan Auerback, a CEO coach. “I’ve coached both, and the difference comes down to role clarity and ego management.”

Co-CEOs succeed, Auerback said, when they:

Co-CEO structures are still pretty rare, and that hasn’t changed much in recent years. According to executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles, the Fortune 1000 had only 15 companies with co-CEOs in place in 2022. There were 14 in 2023, 12 in 2024, and there are 14 in 2025. If the status quo is maintained through the end of the year, there will again be 15 Fortune 1000 companies with co-CEOs in January, once the Comcast transition takes effect.

“As both an HR consultant and analyst in the HR technology space, I’ve seen the co-CEO model generate a lot of interest — and a fair share of challenges,” said Joey Price, the CEO of Jumpstart HR and author of The Power of HR: How to Make an Organizational Impact as a People-Professional. “The question isn’t whether two leaders can share a title, but whether the organization has the right culture, governance, and clarity to make it work.”

Times of transition present some of the best opportunities for the co-CEO structure, Price said.

“The co-CEO model can work best as a transitional strategy (succession planning, scaling into new markets, or during M&A) rather than a permanent solution,” Price said. “The leadership structure should always be in service of clarity, culture, and execution — not simply a compromise at the top.”