The New Boss: Younger Than the Old Boss

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Others suggest seeking out a broad range of experiences en route to the corner office. Jonathan Huberman, now 41, became CEO of Zip-disk storage device maker Iomega (IOM) earlier this year at age 40, following stints in tech, management consulting, venture capital, and hedge funds. "Look for diversity of experiences, because to be a CEO you need to be able to understand and set strategy for every facet of the business," Huberman says.

While it's never easy to be a CEO, for those 40 and under it can be even more challenging. "It changes your life top to bottom," says Jordan Greenhall, 35-year-old chief of digital video compression software maker DivX (DIVX). "Not as much as having children, but in that same zone."

Ready for Risk

And like having children, CEOs typically say the job is worth any sleepless nights. "I have to say I really love it," says Michael Chasen, 35-year-old head of school software developer Blackboard (BBBB). "I thrive on the fast pace and excitement in running a fast-growth, successful company."

The people who become CEO at a young age are increasingly unafraid to take risks, notes Peter Cappelli, a management professor at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School. "They're willing to look for opportunities to stand out," Cappelli explains. Still, he cautions that bigger appetites for risk may have unwanted consequences, citing the Enron scandal.

Today's young CEOs are likely to have a better understanding of technology and globalization than did the bright up-and-comers of decades past, adds Michael Feiner, a management professor at Columbia University Graduate School of Business and author of The Feiner Points of Leadership. "The biggest challenge is the leading-people piece," Feiner says. "It takes a while for even really smart CEOs to understand it's people first, strategy second. That comes from experience and mistakes, and I don't think there's a shortcut."

Passion Projects

Meanwhile, new CEOs are taking on the mantle at a time of unprecedented turnover. Corner-office job changes this year are on pace to top last year's record 1,322 departures, according to Chicago consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas (see BusinessWeek, 10/30/06, "The Great CEO Exodus"). Such big-name companies as Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY), Ford (F) and Viacom (VIA, VIA.B) were among those making CEO switches in 2006.

Ultimately, a CEO of any age needs to have a passion for the job. "You can have all the products and packaging and scale that you need to perform, but really none of that takes you any place if you don't have the right attitude about the business," says Mariner Kemper, 34-year-old head of Kansas City (Mo.)-based financial services company UMB Financial (UMB).

The best CEOs grow into the position because they followed what excited them, not because they set out to become CEOs, adds Mark Vadon, 36-year-old chief of online jewelry retailer Blue Nile (NILE). "Do something that you really love doing," Vadon advises. "If you're not doing something that you really like, you're not going to be that successful at it."

Click here to see the list of 40-and-under CEOs of publicly traded U.S. companies.

Hogan is a reporter for BusinessWeek.com in New York.