Rising to the top of your company is no easy task — but it is doable. In the U.S., if you’ve done your time at a company then you’ve got a higher likelihood of rising through the ranks. Although that’s not the case in every country.
A recent study by executive search and consulting firm Heidrick & Struggles uncovered what it takes to get to the top of a company. For Americans, rising to the top takes time. Most CEOs in the U.S. are older than those in other countries. They are also mostly male, highly educated and have backgrounds in finance. And if you want to climb the corporate ladder, you’ve got to get in early — most CEOs are hired from within a company’s ranks. In fact, 85 percent of CEOs for American companies were promoted internally.
If you don’t have the patience to wait for that promotion, try seeking a career path in another country. In European nations such as France, Germany and the U.K., CEOs are much younger than your…