Bill Ferguson, co-chairman and CEO of Ferguson Partners, and Mike Cordingley, who leads Ferguson’s North American Management Consulting and Leadership Consulting Business Units, were guests on Nareit’s REIT Report podcast. Ferguson and Cordingley discussed their latest research into REIT CEO succession trends and shared best practices for transition planning.

“Succession is, if not the highest priority for the board, one of the highest priorities,” Ferguson said. He noted that there were seven CEO succession events per year from 2013 to 2022. In 2023, there were nine and in 2024 that increased to 12.

Cordingley noted that the acceleration is set to continue for a number of reasons, including increasing activist involvement and an aging leadership cohort. “The average age per REIT CEO is 60 and typical retirement is occurring around 64,” he said.