CEO transitions are reliable headline material in annual reports and board discussions. What receives far less attention, in research and in practice, is how the executive team prepares itself for the change. And yet, this is where success or failure often begins.

A change at the top extends beyond strategy. It alters relationships, shifts influence, and resets informal power structures. “When a new leader joins the executive team, something has irreversibly changed,” says Tommi Lehtinen, owner and lead consultant at SCCG, who has been assessing leaders for decades. “As an executive team member, it is important to recognize that all the dynamics that start unfolding immediately will be reflected throughout the entire organization.”

Tommi Lehtinen, owner and lead consultant at SCCG, is an executive-level HR consultant and organizational psychologist, specializing in leadership assessment and executive team development and dynamics. Photo by SCCG.

These internal dynamics are the underexamined side of CEO succession. The scale of change alone suggests they deserve more scrutiny. According to the CEO Index — Finland | 2025, produced in partnership with SAM Headhunting, 44 CEO changes took place in listed Finnish companies during 2025 alone, meaning that almost a quarter of them welcomed new leaders. Large-cap companies experienced the highest relative turnover, with more than one-third changing CEOs during the year. In many cases, leadership change triggered broader reshuffling at the top.

“It is important to recognize that the executive team acts as a mirror to the organization,” Lehtinen says. “If members do not commit to and trust the new CEO, this will be reflected throughout the organization and may paralyze the whole.”

The human side of succession

Boards sometimes assume that seasoned executives will simply adjust and move forward. Lehtinen considers this a flawed assumption. “They are ordinary human beings with emotions, facing something new. Everyone reacts in their own way,” he says.

Uncertainty, curiosity, concern, and even quiet fear can surface. Under pressure, predictable patterns emerge. In organizational psychology, these are known as derailers: stress reactions that push capable leaders off track.

“One common reaction is withdrawal,” Lehtinen explains. “People become quiet. They observe from the sidelines.”

Another frequent response, particularly in Nordic contexts, is passive aggression. “In the executive team, people may appear constructive. Decisions may be slowed down. Behind the scenes, actions may even go against agreed decisions.”

The most subtle version is superficial cooperation. “It is a withdrawal from genuine collaboration, replaced by superficial cooperation.”

A capable CEO will interpret many of these reactions as normal responses to change. But Lehtinen stresses that responsibility does not rest solely with the incoming leader.

“There should be responsibility at the executive team level. Members should recognize their own emotions and process them so that they do not surface destructively.”