Way back in 1916 management guru Henry Favol described the role of a chief executive officer as a person who plans, organises, coordinates and controls. But, today, it?s a lot more.

A paradigm shift in the way corporate houses function has opened up new challenges for CEOs. Today, the role of a CEO is less about managing day to day operations and more about donning the hat of an entrepreneur. They are younger in age, have shorter tenures and have to deliver big on a quarterly basis.

Says K Sudarshan, managing partner, EMA Partners International, a talent search organisation, ?In the current context, the function of CEOs is more about strategic scenario planning than about managing the present. With Indian companies going global and more business opportunities opening up, a CEO has to be an entrepreneur.?

CEOs are not complaining. The challenge to play an entrepreneurial role drives most young CEOs in the country. It starts right from the first job. In fact, a dipstick survey has revealed that about 60% students would prefer to work with a company that gave them the flexibility to part play the role of an entrepreneur at some stage during their career progression. Job aspirants, says the survey conducted at IIM Bangalore in 2006, are willing to slog in the initial stages to learn the tricks of the business and would later prefer to have a substantial role in the expansion and growth strategy of the company.

Sunil Lulla, director and group chief executive officer, Alva Brothers Entertainment Pvt Ltd, who has led companies like MTV and indya.com, lists a number of factors that are changing the CEO?s profile. ?It is certainly more demanding. They should have the ability to raise money, integrate with shareholders, communicate their business vision at large and, more importantly, deliver quarterly as well as in the longer run. The bottomline is that CEOs who adapt, merge, meld and deliver shareholder value have greater success.?

A handsome pay package and perks were always the deciding factor for a CEO to stay in a company. But now with both components more or less at par across sectors in the country, CEOs are looking for more challenges in their work profile. Work satisfaction is a crucial factor and when the job ceases to be challenging, the CEO will look around for something more interesting. This has resulted in a sharp decline in the average life span of a CEO from 10 years a decade before to about 3-5 years now. Says Partha S Sadhu, principal consultant, Ma Foi Global Search Services Ltd, ?Either the high level of expectation has taken its toll or the possibilities of challenges in the present assignment have been exhausted.?

Hewitt Associates estimates the attrition level among CEOs to be at 12-15%. It means that one out of eight companies in India would have had a new CEO in the last one year. It is supported by a study by EMA Partners, which was conducted last year. The study says that 66% of the companies had a new CEO in the last five years.

Multinational companies had the highest percentage of changes at the top with 86% of the surveyed companies appointing a new CEO in the last five years. IT/ ITeS was the highest risk sector with 88% companies changing their CEOs in the last five years. The manufacturing sector had the highest percentage of internal replacements for CEOs (82%) while IT/ITeS relied on external appointments for new CEOs (73%).

Ajay Soni, business leader, Talent Organisation Consulting, Hewitt Associates, says the reasons could vary. ?It could purely be a policy-based decision as in the case of retirement or movements of all kinds across geographies or the urge to start ones own business.?

The trend is also a reflection of the changing times. The shift in the demographic profile to a younger working population means that the age of CEOs has come down across all sectors. The average age of CEOs in India, according to EMA Partners International, has declined from 50 years in 2001 to 44 years in 2007. Technology and financial services sectors have witnessed the maximum drop in average age (see box).

Further, in the last five years, the younger generation is opting more for seemingly more exciting careers in financial services, technology and emerging business like ITeS and BPO. In fact, experts say this is likely to change because the demand is rising in the manufacturing and infrastructure sectors.

Says Lulla of Alva Brothers, ?About 50% of the country?s population is under 35 years. There are more and more independently promoted companies. These factors would naturally lead to younger CEOs. Nonetheless, their ability to work with mentors who can add significant value will enable them to grow higher.?

A marked difference has been in the way modern CEOs think of business expansion. In traditional business houses the focus was much more on internal expansion. But with globalisation and new opportunities, CEOs are constantly looking for inorganic growth through overseas mergers and acquisitions. In such circumstances, a global exposure helps them to attain the skills and companies are doing it now. According to last year?s Hewitt Top Companies for Leaders, about 54% Indian companies offer global assignments to their senior leadership team. The aim is to build their global management capabilities.

Unlike in the past, many Indian companies are appointing CEOs even for separate verticals. For example, Reliance Retail has separate CEOs for Reliance Trends, Reliance Footprint and Reliance Jewels. ?Separate CEO help in smooth functioning of each vertical and streamlines the process as the company grows,? says Anand Varadarajan, partner, ESP Consultants.