Chuck Prince, chairman and chief executive of Citigroup, is hard to rile. But he can get mildly irritated when challenged about the large number of senior executives who have left the company since he became chief executive in 2003 and the relative lack of potential successors who remain.
To the first charge, he replies that lots of senior executives have joined, too, and that it is part of the natural ebb and flow of things. As for the second - he is not planning for there to be a vacancy soon.
This week's sacking of Todd Thomson, once seen as a potential chief executive, has renewed questions about the depth of Citigroup's management. Insiders concede that most of the credible long-term successors are young and most do not have the breadth of experience for running the world largest financial services company.
All the other top executives are older than Mr Prince, 56. These include Robert Rubin, 67, chairman of the executive committee; Robert Druskin, chief operating officer, 59; and Lewis Kaden, chief administrative officer. None is a potential long-term successor, though Mr Rubin would be expected to take over if Mr Princewere run over by a bus.
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