When X CEO Linda Yaccarino stepped down this week, the news reignited a long-standing debate: are female CEOs more likely to be set up to fail? The term glass cliff female CEOs has gained traction over the years, describing how women are often appointed to lead companies in crisis—only to face higher risks of failure or termination. Yaccarino’s departure raises new questions about this phenomenon and whether it still applies in today’s corporate climate.
What Is the Glass Cliff for Female CEOs?
The phrase glass cliff was coined by researchers who noticed that women were more frequently appointed to senior leadership roles when companies were already struggling. One early study asked participants to select a CEO for either a thriving or failing company. When the company was doing poorly, 63% chose a woman. When the company was thriving, 67% picked a man. The rationale? Struggling companies tend to value traits like empathy, communication, and the appearance of change—attributes often stereotypically assigned to women.
Are Female CEOs Still More Likely to Be Set Up for Failure?
Surprisingly, recent data challenges the idea that glass cliff female CEOs are still the norm. A sweeping analysis of over 10,000 CEO appointments between 1998 and 2022 found that women were not more likely to lead failing companies. In fact, the study found that the better a company performed, the more likely it was to appoint a female CEO. Still, tenure length and termination risk remain concerning: female CEOs are 45% more likely to be fired than men, regardless of company performance.
Yaccarino’s Exit Highlights Challenges Female CEOs Still Face
Linda Yaccarino’s exit from X came after major milestones—like regaining 96% of advertisers and projections of revenue growth for the first time in years. But X also remained mired in controversy, including a scandal involving its AI chatbot Grok. Whether she stepped down by choice or was nudged out, Yaccarino joins the growing list of high-profile women with shortened CEO tenures. Research shows that women lead Fortune 500 companies for an average of 3.8 years—compared to 5 years for their male counterparts.
The Bigger Issue: The Lack of Women at the Top
While the glass cliff theory may not fully explain what happened to Yaccarino, it underscores a bigger problem: representation. As of 2025, only 9% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women. Whether pushed, pulled, or sidelined, female leaders face structural barriers that make staying in power just as hard as getting there. Yaccarino’s story is a reminder that breaking the glass ceiling is only half the battle—staying off the glass cliff is the other half.
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