Journey to CEO: Key Takeaways from an Evening with Four PE-Backed Leaders

Earlier this week, we hosted an exceptional panel discussion with four leaders who have each carved their own path into the CEO role across private equity, public markets, consulting and multiple industries. The level of candour, humour, and hard-earned wisdom shared on stage made this one of our most memorable events yet.

Here are the key themes that stood out.

1. Say “yes” more often, even when it feels irrational

A striking common thread across all four journeys was an almost reflexive willingness to say yes to opportunities, even when they were messy, undefined, unglamorous or came at unexpected moments.

Luke described this as the single biggest differentiator between people who accelerate and those who stall:

“The number of things you try matters far more than the length of time you do them.”

Alexis echoed this with humour and honesty, he accepted his CEO role after a Sunday interview “I had no idea what I was getting into but saying yes consistently created agility that paid off.”

The message was clear: careers don’t unfold linearly, and upward steps rarely look neat. The leaders who rise fastest collect breadth: roles, industries, geographies, and problems, not just senior titles.

2. Build a personal ‘bench’ long before you need it

Several CEOs emphasised a point that PE investors understand instinctively: speed matters, and you rarely have months to build out a team once you’re in the seat.

Leaders need people they trust before they land the big job.

Those who succeed think constantly about followership - who they’d want on their team, who believes in their leadership, and who will move with them.

This extended to advisors too. Many described having a handful of people - coaches, ex-colleagues, investors whom they treat as a personal board, meeting quarterly to stay grounded, challenged and mentally resilient.

3. Clarity on accountabilities is a superpower (and widely missing)

Despite how overused the language can be, the panel stressed how rare genuine clarity still is inside organisations.

“People say they know who’s responsible. But not who is on the hook, for what, by when?”

This level of precision with roles, ownership and decision rights is the backbone of successful transformations and fast-moving PE environments. It’s also why many CEOs prefer ex-consultants with a bias for structure and rigour.

When ambiguity creeps in, velocity dies.

4. Resource against the outcome date, not the job description

One of the most useful operational insights came from Dennis:

“The most important question is: when do you need the outcome? That determines whether you need an internal hire, an interim, or a consulting solution.”

He broke it down:

• 18 months to deliver?
  You can hire a permanent external operator and ramp them.
  
  
• 12 months?
  You could look at an internal candidate or there may simply not be one in a lean PE-backed environment.
  
  
• 6 months?
  Bring in an interim/consulting solution who can hit the ground running and ship outcomes immediately.

This framing resonated across the room because of how often organisations misjudge timing and overestimate internal capacity.

5. Decision-making: intuition matters but only if you challenge it properly

The CEOs were refreshingly honest about the limits of data, especially in high-ambiguity situations. But they also cautioned against glorifying gut feel without discipline.

Luke shared a simple inversion:

“Use facts to disprove your intuition, not to prove it.”

Others advocated for deliberately engineering real challenge, not echo chambers:

“Close the door and say: pull my plan apart. Pick holes in it. The more you do that, the stronger the decision.”

Another powerful reminder: surround yourself with sparring partners who complement not mirror your style.

One CEO described hiring a CFO who “breaks my ideas into pieces every time” and valuing her all the more for it.

6. What CEOs wish they had known before taking the seat

A recurring theme: the CEO role is not the apex predator position people imagine, especially in PE.

Being a public company CEO can feel freer than being in a PE-backed business, where scrutiny is constant and directional pressure is explicit.

Yet what keeps CEOs energised includes:

• Choosing the people they work with
  
  
• Solving complicated, previously unsolved problems
  
  
• Owning difficult decisions
  
  
• Feeling deeply embedded in something meaningful

The job is demanding but it creates a sense of relevance and purpose that is difficult to replicate elsewhere.

7. The emotional resilience required is enormous

Adam spoke openly about executive loneliness. Alexis emphasised needing a coach. 

The message was unequivocal:

“If you don’t work on your emotional fitness, the job will break you.”

The CEOs who thrive build support structures early and protect their lives outside work fiercely.

8. Mentor widely. Learn from everyone. Give back deliberately.

One of the most moving segments of the evening was on mentorship.

Dennis reframed mentorship beautifully:

“Everybody is a mentor if you’re open-minded. Everyone teaches you something.”

Alexis shared how he changed global policies at McKinsey to enable his route to parenthood, a reminder that personal missions can shape professional leadership.

The panel also described the joy of watching their mentees become CEOs, often surpassing them in success.

Mentorship, they agreed, is reciprocal. You take and you give.

9. And finally… don’t forget to ‘smell the frog’

It wouldn’t be a PE event without at least one memorable metaphor.

One CEO shared a story about an investor who promised major funding but, due to undisclosed illness, passed away before any capital materialised.

His reflection:

“Kiss every frog but smell it first.”

A powerful reminder to due diligence everything, even the parts that feel uncomfortable, like founder health, governance realities, and operational culture.

This event brought together over 100 senior leaders across strategy, consulting and private equity and the quality of conversation reflected both the ambition and honesty of the room.

The shared message:

The journey to CEO is rarely linear, never simple, and always defined by people - your network, your team, your mentors, and your own resilience.

If this conversation sparked reflections about your own career, or the emerging leaders inside your organisation, the OnUpBeyond Momentum Package is designed to support both sides of that journey. For individuals, it offers structured, expert-led guidance to sharpen your story, strengthen your CV and prepare for senior opportunities with clarity and confidence. For employers, it provides a scalable way to develop high-potential talent, helping future leaders build the breadth, resilience and decision-readiness that CEOs consistently highlighted during the event. If you’d like to explore how the Momentum Package can support you or your team, we’d be happy to share more.

Huge thanks again to our speakers, the Movemeon Strategy Roundtable community and the Techspace team for hosting us in such a fantastic venue.

If you'd like to hear about future events, feel free to get in touch.

Jamie Cameron
Head of Corporate, Movemeon

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