Chief Executives

Pay and outlook

Median annual wage, May 2025

$213,990

Half earn more, half earn less

Middle half earn

$129,540 – $356,200

25th to 75th percentile

People employed, May 2025

204,350

Wage and salary jobs (OEWS)

Projected change, 2025–35

+3.2%

Growing slower than all jobs (0% to under 3.5%)

Openings a year (projected)

19,100

New jobs plus replacing people who leave

Typical education to enter

Bachelor's degree

BLS

• All figures are for the United States as a whole. Pay varies a lot by state and city.
• Wages are for everyone working in the occupation in May 2025, at every career stage. They are not starting salaries or figures for new graduates.
• Growth and openings are BLS projections for 2025–35. They are estimates, not promises. Openings include jobs that open up when people retire or change occupation, not just new jobs.

What the work involves

Determine and formulate policies and provide overall direction of companies or private and public sector organizations within guidelines set up by a board of directors or similar governing body. Plan, direct, or coordinate operational activities at the highest level of management with the help of subordinate executives and staff managers.

Main tasks

• Direct or coordinate an organization's financial or budget activities to fund operations, maximize investments, or increase efficiency.
• Confer with board members, organization officials, or staff members to discuss issues, coordinate activities, or resolve problems.
• Prepare budgets for approval, including those for funding or implementation of programs.
• Direct, plan, or implement policies, objectives, or activities of organizations or businesses to ensure continuing operations, to maximize returns on investments, or to increase productivity.
• Prepare or present reports concerning activities, expenses, budgets, government statutes or rulings, or other items affecting businesses or program services.
• Implement corrective action plans to solve organizational or departmental problems.
• Analyze operations to evaluate performance of a company or its staff in meeting objectives or to determine areas of potential cost reduction, program improvement, or policy change.
• Direct or coordinate activities of businesses or departments concerned with production, pricing, sales, or distribution of products.

More specific O*NET® occupations under this one: Chief Sustainability Officers.

Description and tasks from the O*NET® 31.0 Database.

Getting in

Typical education to enter (BLS)

Bachelor's degree

Work experience in a related job: 5 years or more

O*NET Job Zone 5

Extensive preparation

Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).

Fields of study that lead here

From the federal CIP–SOC crosswalk, which links 9 programmes to this occupation. A link means the programme prepares people for this kind of work. It doesn't mean the programme is required, or that it's the only route.

Related careers

Related occupations from the O*NET database, in its order.

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