Operational power is consolidating at the CEO level.

At GE Aerospace and Northrop Grumman, operational control sits squarely with the CEO, reflecting businesses where execution discipline is inseparable from strategy. Rather than inserting a buffer, these firms rely on seasoned division leaders reporting directly upward, tightening feedback loops in complex industrial systems.

The same pattern appears in healthcare and life sciences. Eli Lilly, McKesson, and Danaher all operate without a COO, suggesting that scale and regulation don’t automatically demand an operational middle layer. In these companies, the CEO often acts as chief integrator, aligning R&D, supply chains, and commercial execution personally.

Technology and consumer platforms extend the pattern further. Microsoft, Amazon, Airbnb, and Intuit show that even fast-moving, globally distributed operations can run without a COO when product, platform, and process leaders report directly to the top. The absence of a COO here reflects confidence in modular operations—and a CEO deeply embedded in how work gets done.