CEOs are undeniably instrumental in steering companies towards sustainable growth, and therefore lending a hand in contributing to the vibrancy of the British business landscape.
And while CEOs can be found all over the UK, are they naturally drawn to certain regions more than others? Here at TonerGiant, we analysed census data from the Office for National Statistics, looking at nearly 130,000 CEOs from across the country, to find the answer.
Surrey is the CEO capital of the UK, having a total of 6,217 CEO’s, making up almost 5% of all of the UK’s CEOs.
Hertfordshire ranks second, having 4,060 CEOs, whilst Westminster comes in third, with 3,701 CEOs in the London borough.
The north-south divide is evident in the findings – no northern areas are included in the top 20 CEO list.
In fact, Lancashire is home to the most CEOs in a northern region, having 1,327, but only coming in 27th place in the data analysed. Still, Surrey has almost five times as many CEOs as those in Lancashire.
“It’s striking to see the sheer difference in CEOs living in the north versus the south. Although our research doesn’t identify where CEOs were born, it signifies that the southern region’s close proximity to London has meant that it has become a flourishing economic hub, ideal for CEOs and other senior executives to situate themselves.”
Despite some businesses deciding to move their HQs outside of London and up north, our research has highlighted that there are still regional disparities and inequalities in the UK, signalling that potentially more dedicated investment is needed to expand the economic growth further than London.”
The Office of National Statistics was used to identify the number of chief executives and senior officials, mapped out via upper tier areas.
The full data was sourced and correct as of 06.03.24. The full data set is available upon request.