????查林格指出，醫療行業一直是CEO更換最快的行業，原因是因為醫院和醫療服務提供商數量巨大。

????金融和信息科技行業最近的CEO離職數量居前，但在此類景氣波動度較大的行業中這樣的情況也很常見。Challenger的數據顯示，服務行業由于規模巨大，更換CEO最多，今年以來已有88家公司換了CEO。

????今年以來，CEO離職有所放緩，9月份只有95位CEO離職，為2011年最后3個月以來的最低值。9月份總量較8月份的104名下降了8.7%。10月份總離職數為108位，同比下降了12%。

????難道說，去年的董事會膽子更大嗎？管理咨詢公司博斯（Booz & Co.）的高級合伙人及最近一份CEO更替研究報告的合著者加里?L?尼爾森表示，他們的目標是“在經濟動蕩的環境下延續穩定和熟悉的領導班子”。等到經濟狀況改善時，“公司就會準備更換CEO，獲得新的理念和策略。”

????“董事會承受著很大的壓力，但很多人都說，一定堅持住，”尼爾森談到今年CEO離職減少的現象時說。“因為現在對業務起伏有了更明確的預期。而且，轉換到新的領導人可能需要很多時間。”

????相比這種謹慎，董事會在提高CEO性別多樣性方面似乎要激進得多。Equilar數據顯示，2009年至2011年新上任的CEO中6.6%是女性，高于同期離職CEO中3.2%的女性比例。

????女性角逐一把手的努力取得了顯著的進展。Equilar的研究顯示，大約23家公司聘用了女性CEO替代男性前任，略微提高了財富500強公司CEO中3.8%的女性比例。

????譯者：楊智

????The health industry always has been a top area for CEO turnover, Challenger notes, simply because of the sheer number of hospitals and health providers.

????The financial and information technology industries also had more recent leadership departures than other industries, but that is routine for such volatile sectors, says Challenger. The services sector, because of its vast size, experienced the most turnover, with 88 companies changing CEOs to date this year, according to Challenger firm figures.

????So far this year, chief executive turnover has declined, with only 95 departures in September, the lowest number of exits since the last three months of 2011. September's total was down by 8.7%, from 104 exits in August. And last month's total departures, 108, was 12% lower than the same month in 2011.

????Were boards of directors just bolder last year? Their goal is "to provide steady and familiar leadership in economic turbulence," says Gary L. Neilson, a senior partner at management consulting firm Booz & Co. and co-author of a recent study on CEO succession. It's when economic times improve that "companies look to change CEOs to provide new ideas and strategies," he says.

????"Boards are under a lot of pressure, but a lot of them are saying, 'just hold on,'" says Neilson, referring to this year's decline in departures, "because ups and downs are more expected now. And transition to a new leader can take a lot of time."

????This sort of caution has not exactly inspired boldness among board members when it comes to CEO gender diversity. Only 6.6% of incoming CEOs, for example, were women, between 2009 and 2011, according to Equilar. That's an uptick from the 3.2% of women CEOs who departed during the same three-year period.

????Still, women made some strides at the top. Some 23 companies in the Equilar study hired a female for their top post to replace a departing man, slightly boosting the 3.8% of women who are CEOs of Fortune 500 companies.