COOs are becoming increasingly accountable for business transformation. The intensity of change programmes continues to rise, driven by factors including market consolidation, cost pressures, regulation, and technology disruption resulting in leaders running multiple transformations in parallel, faster than ever before, making change a continuous activity rather than a series of discrete projects. 

To manage this, firms are standardising how change is designed and delivered. Scaled agile models, for example, are becoming the default approach to ensure technology, process, data, and people move in unison rather than in disconnected waves. 

Boards and ExCos are looking for COOs who can maintain the stability of the core business while continuously evolving how it operates. The role is moving away from incremental optimisation towards a more architectural remit, actively reshaping the organisation’s operating model. 

Cyber and technology risk is also a structural consideration. As operating models become more digital and reliant on third parties, COOs with technology accountability are increasingly engaged with areas such as security architecture, identity and access management, third-party oversight, and incident response. These topics are also now widely discussed in boardrooms. 

In professional services, the pressure is amplified by automation of knowledge-based tasks. Delivery models, global footprints, and partner economics are being rethought as firms decide which activities to prioritise, what skills will be needed, and how work should be organised. Asset managers, insurers, and alternative investment firms, on the other hand, are similarly reassessing platforms, outsourcing strategies, and organisational design, with an emphasis on simplifying and industrialising the core. 

It is becoming increasingly common for the COO to hold one of the broadest functional remits on the executive team. This is the continuation of a long-term trend, with leaders from technology, transformation, operations, and even the front office stepping into the role, often bringing a different mindset or skill set to the position. 

As the COO remit becomes more expansive and less standardised across firms, succession planning is becoming more complex and more strategic. The role can no longer be filled solely through tenure or functional excellence in one domain; it requires a blend of (future) commercial judgement, delivery credibility, technological fluency, and organisational leadership. 

As a result, COOs are placing greater emphasis on developing leadership depth across their teams. This means assessing not only current performance, but future capability needs, identifying potential successors earlier, and deliberately building exposure across change, risk, technology, and business leadership. Strengthening the leadership bench is increasingly seen as a form of operational risk management in its own right, ensuring continuity as the demands of the role continue to evolve. 

At Leathwaite, we specialize in placing enterprise leaders who think business first, function second - leaders who don’t just manage their domain but actively push forward progressive functional agendas. While our searches align with business areas, what truly defines our work is the leadership expectations, navigating transformation, accelerating change, and operating at pace.

We don’t just match candidates to job titles; we identify leaders with the agility, foresight, and growth mindset to thrive in evolving environments. By understanding both the business context and the leadership capabilities required, we take a creative, strategic approach to executive search—finding enterprise leaders who move businesses forward.

With deep market insight, a broad industry perspective, and a commitment to excellence, we don’t just fill roles - we build leadership teams that shape the future.