CEO succession: best practices in a changing environment

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to look at CEO succession in light of regulations and post‐Sarbanes‐Oxley (post‐SOX) dynamics. Design/methodology/approach – Describes best‐in‐class practices for boards of directors responsible for CEO succession. Findings – Finds that the post‐SOX dynamics promise to even further confound boards of directors' responsibilities for succession planning and execution. Originality/value – Provides some practical guidelines that may facilitate CEO succession in the challenging post‐SOX business environment.