Why more CEOs and boards are worrying about security: 'The risk is everywhere.'

"Mentions of exec security protocols are popping up in more proxy filings, and companies like Starbucks are changing corporate jet policies due to what it calls "significant heightened security concerns." These moves follow the December 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City and a shooting at a Park Avenue office building about eight months later. Both instances shattered long-held assumptions that corporate leaders were at least somewhat insulated from the types of violence more often associated with politicians or celebrities, several security executives told Business Insider."

"Buckner, a retired US Army colonel who served for more than two decades, said his firm has briefed more boards in the past 11 months than in the previous 14 years combined. Increasingly, Buckner said, boards view CEOs and other C-suite members as assets that must be protected, even if some leaders are leery of perceived constraints on their freedom. "The board is overruling the CEO who is going, 'I don't need this,'" he said."

Executive security expectations have shifted from optional, private measures to boardroom-level priorities. Mentions of executive security protocols are increasingly appearing in proxy filings and companies are revising travel and aircraft-use policies. Starbucks recommended its CEO use company aircraft for both personal and work travel after a security review. High-profile violent incidents, including the December 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson and a later Park Avenue shooting, demonstrated that corporate leaders face similar risks to politicians and celebrities. Boards now view C-suite members as assets that must be protected, override CEO resistance, and request many more security briefings as perceived risk grows.

Read at Business Insider