Chief executives working in the information technology sector received more media coverage than their peers in other industries during the first quarter, accounting for almost 22 per cent of all earned media globally, a new report has revealed.
The inaugural CEO Index, compiled by media intelligence service Onclusive, found that CEOs operating in the information technology sector were cited almost 5,600 times in the top 165 online publications across the US and Europe – accounting for almost 22 per cent of all earned media coverage.
More than 60 per cent of CEO media mentions related to leadership against just 13 per cent that highlighted sustainability considerations.
FTSE 100 CEOs were cited more than 2,800 times in the media and while leadership remained the dominant theme, around half the coverage also focused on financial performance.
Bernard Looney, chief executive of BP, received the most mentions among his FTSE 100 peers, with 272 mentions, as within the UK energy and utility sectors dominated media coverage. BP’s £23 billion annual profits and Looney’s £10 million pay package were juxtaposed with the cost of living crisis.
Onclusive has calculated an impact score for each CEO, which draws on media source reach and authority, prominence of CEO within the article, sentiment and social amplification, and ranges between minus and plus ten.
Looney’s impact score is four. By contrast, the impact score of Chris O’Shea, chief executive of Centrica, who was mentioned 205 times during the quarter, is minus one. The highest impact score was achieved by Luis Gallego, chief executive of International Airlines Group, owners of British Airways and Air Lingus, who came in at 4.8.
