{
  "id": 19159061,
  "title": "The CEO job is hard enough to land once. HP’s incoming chief has done it twice",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/09/the-ceo-job-is-hard-enough-to-land-once-hps-incoming-chief-has-done",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-11-09T13:10:26.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Fortune",
    "slug": "fortune",
    "url": "https://fortune.com/article/the-ceo-job-is-hard-enough-to-land-once-hps-incoming-chief-has-done-it-twice-2/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Emma Walmsley, a two-time chief executive of a major multinational, is set to take over as HP's incoming CEO in January. Her journey, spanning three industries, demonstrates how executives build careers that make them attractive to boards across sectors. Prior to GSK, Walmsley spent 17 years at L'Oréal, managing operations in four global cities before taking charge of its consumer products division in China. She joined GSK in 2010, ascending to CEO of its consumer healthcare division in 2015 and ultimately becoming the first woman to lead a major pharmaceutical company in 2017. Throughout her tenure at GSK, Walmsley faced challenges such as activist pressure, the pandemic, and the separation of Haleon, GSK's consumer healthcare company. She also endured investor criticism over GSK's drug pipeline and shareholder returns. Since 2019, Walmsley has served on Microsoft's board, gaining exposure to the technology sector and a company vital to HP's PC business. Her appointment to HP follows the departure of Enrique Lores, who spent three decades at HP, rising from engineering intern to CEO before leaving for PayPal in February. HP's decision to choose Walmsley highlights the appeal of executives with diverse industry experience and a proven track record of leading large organizations. HP now faces the challenge of unlocking growth as AI transforms personal computing, with rising memory-chip prices squeezing manufacturers, PC demand facing uncertainty, and the printing business continuing to contract. Walmsley joins a distinguished group of executives recruited for their tenure in the corner office. Other recent appointments include Kraft Heinz's Steve Cahillane, Verizon's Dan Schulman, Starbucks' Brian Niccol, and Papa John's Todd Penegor. These hires reflect the demand for executives with established track records managing large organizations, navigating competitive pressures, and driving corporate transformations. However, hiring repeat CEOs comes with its own complications. A study by Spencer Stuart found that 70% of CEOs who went on to lead another S&P 500 company delivered stronger market-adjusted shareholder returns in their first CEO role. Researchers cautioned that experienced CEOs may become too reliant on familiar strategies, potentially hindering their ability to adapt to new competitive pressures. For Walmsley, who helped establish her credentials by restructuring GSK, HP presents a test of how effectively her skills transfer to a technology business facing different challenges. Ruth Umoh can be reached at ruth.umoh@fortune.com.",
  "summary": "Emma Walmsley is about to join an exclusive club of CEOs who’ve led two corporate giants",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}