PE-CXO’s recent report, The Top 50 Private Equity Firms for Executives of 2025, revealed that many of the executives surveyed had voluntarily left their sponsors and portfolio companies mid-hold period. Leaving early can jeopardize an executive’s career trajectory and forfeit substantial equity gains. So, what compels executives to make this choice?
How Do Equity Outcomes Impact Voluntary Mid-Hold Departures?
Executives who felt their equity outcomes were falling below expectations with no potential to hit target naturally had higher rates of voluntary mid-hold departures — 41% left their role mid-hold with the firm they reviewed. However, there is near parity in departure rates between executives whose equity outcomes were ahead of, on track, or behind expectations so long as there was still potential to hit target. This suggests that when there is a revised value creation plan in place, a lag in financial performance is not the determining factor in whether an executive will choose to leave mid-hold.
What Else Influences Voluntary Mid-Hold Departures?
To better understand why some executives choose to leave their sponsors mid-hold, we analyzed how the Nine Dimensions of Governance Fit® were ranked by executives who had and had not voluntarily left mid-hold. The Nine Dimensions of Governance Fit® represent the attributes that define high-performing sponsors who best enable portfolio company growth and success. <...