The Hot Seat — English Brew
English Brew  ·  Season 1  ·  Episode 4
Business English · Intermediate–Upper Intermediate

The Hot Seat:
Why 1 in 9 CEOs
Lost Their Job Last Year

A record number of top executives are clearing out their corner offices. We use the story to master five business English expressions you'll actually need.

Hosts Luna & Mimyo
Level B2 – C1
Source Morning Brew, Feb 17 2026
Duration ~10 min

A Record Wave of CEO Departures

The corner office has always been a symbol of power and stability. But according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of 1,500 major public companies, that stability is cracking. In 2025, roughly one in nine CEOs was replaced — the highest rate of leadership turnover since the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis.

And 2026 is already picking up where last year left off. Companies with a combined market value of $2.2 trillion have already swapped out their top leaders just weeks into the new year, including household names like Walmart, Disney, Lululemon, and PayPal.

1 in 9 CEOs replaced among top companies in 2025
$2.2T Combined value of companies with new CEOs in early 2026
54 Average age of incoming CEOs — younger than before
80% Of new CEOs last year were first-timers

So why now? Companies have cited what Morning Brew called "a potpourri of reasons" — artificial intelligence disrupting entire industries, trade tariffs reshuffling global supply chains, and a general climate of economic and geopolitical uncertainty. The solution many boards have landed on: bring in someone younger, fresher, and willing to take risks the old guard wouldn't.

"They're turning to younger and greener execs to fix their problems — more than 80% of last year's new CEOs were first-timers."

It's a bold bet. Handing the wheel of a trillion-dollar company to someone who has never run one before is either visionary or reckless, depending on who you ask. Either way, the trend is reshaping what leadership looks like at the top of the business world.


Maya & Alex at the Office Coffee Station

In this episode, we eavesdrop on Maya and Alex — two colleagues processing the news over their morning coffee — and pull out the vocabulary that makes the conversation sound natural and real.

☕ Scene — Tuesday morning · Office kitchen
Maya Alex, did you see the news? Apparently one in nine CEOs got replaced last year. The turnover at the top is absolutely insane right now.
Alex I heard. The whole c-suite feels like a revolving door these days — here today, gone tomorrow.
Maya And apparently they're replacing them with younger, greener executives. Like, people with way less experience running a massive company.
Alex I mean, companies want fresh blood. The old guard tried a potpourri of strategies and nothing stuck, so why not take a chance?
Maya I guess. But our CEO has been here fifteen years. You don't think he's about to put in his two weeks, do you?
Alex After that last earnings call? I wouldn't be shocked. The board looked like they'd rather be anywhere else.
Maya Great. So I should probably update my resume... just in case the turnover reaches our floor.
Alex Always a good idea. In this climate, no corner office is safe.

5 Expressions Worth Owning

These five expressions appear naturally in business news, office conversations, and job interviews. Learn them here — use them everywhere.

01 · Turnover

The rate at which people leave a group or organization and are replaced by others. High turnover = many people leaving. Low turnover = people staying long-term. Used in business, HR, and even casual conversation.

Business "The hospitality sector has historically struggled with high employee turnover."

Casual "Our friend group has crazy turnover — someone new shows up every month."

02 · C-Suite

The collective term for a company's most senior executives — those whose titles begin with "Chief": CEO (Executive), CFO (Financial), COO (Operating), CMO (Marketing), and so on. The "suite" suggests they occupy the same executive floor.

Business "The company announced a major c-suite restructuring ahead of its IPO."

Casual "She went from intern to c-suite in ten years — total boss move."

03 · Greener

Less experienced. When someone is described as "green," it means they are new to something and still learning — like a young plant that hasn't fully grown yet. "Greener" is the comparative form: even less experienced than someone else.

Business "We cannot afford greener hires at this stage — the role requires at least eight years of experience."

Casual "He was so green on his first day, he accidentally emailed the entire company."

04 · Potpourri

A random, varied mixture of things. Originally a French word referring to a decorative bowl of dried flowers and herbs used to scent a room. In English, it evolved into an idiom for any eclectic mix. Morning Brew even named it their Word of the Day the same edition we featured it!

Business "The board cited a potpourri of concerns, from regulatory pressure to falling consumer confidence."

Casual "Dinner tonight was a potpourri of whatever was left in the fridge."

05 · Put in your two weeks

To formally resign from a job by giving two weeks' notice before your final day. In the US, it is standard practice to give an employer this advance warning so they can begin finding a replacement. "Putting in your two weeks" is the polite, professional way to quit.

Business "After twelve years at the firm, she put in her two weeks and accepted a senior role abroad."

Casual "I heard Jake finally put in his two weeks. Said his manager was impossible."


Test Your Business Knowledge

We know CEO stands for Chief Executive Officer.
What does CFO stand for?

  • A Chief Financial Officer
  • B Chief Federal Officer
  • C Chief Facilities Organizer

The CFO oversees all financial operations — budgeting, reporting, forecasting. If the company is bleeding money, the CFO is the one sweating the hardest.


English in the Real World

The reason we chose this story isn't just because it's current — it's because the language around it is everywhere. Whether you're reading a business article, sitting in a team meeting, listening to a podcast, or interviewing for a job, you will encounter these words. Turnover appears in almost every HR discussion. C-suite shows up in financial news daily. Putting in your two weeks is something any English speaker working in an international environment needs to understand.

The goal of English Brew is never to teach you textbook English. It's to close the gap between the English you studied and the English people actually use — in offices, in coffee shops, in headlines, and in conversations that matter.

"No corner office is safe." — Alex, in this episode. And maybe a useful reminder for all of us to keep learning.

Ready to hear it all come together? Listen to the full episode.

Listen Now →

사용할수 없게 완전 부서졌을때 wreck, holy grail, legendary | First Treasure Recovered from $20BN Sunken Ship

300여년전 침몰한 배에서 대포 한문, 동전 세닢, 그리고 도자기 컵 하나가 회수되었습니다. 산 호세라고 불리는 이 배는 1708년 콜롬비아 카르타헤나 인근에서 영국 함선들에 의해 침몰되었습니다.

산 호세 호에는 200억 달러 상당의 금화와 은화가 실려있는 것으로 추산됩니다.

콜롬비아, 스페인, 미국의 한 기업, 그리고 볼리비아의 원주민 단체들이 모두 이 보물의 소유권을 주장하고 있습니다.

1. wreck

destroy or damage badly

심하게 파괴하다, 망가뜨리다 (난파시키다)

Archeologists recover treasures from the legendary 1708 San Jose, wrecked in war

Fox Weather
break(망가지다, 고장나다)보다 훨씬 강한 뉘앙스를 가진 단어입니다.  오늘 수업에서와 같이 배의 경우엔 완전히 좌초되어 바다나 강 바닥에 가라앉았다는 의미를 갖습니다. 
만약 차의 경우에는 수리해서 다시 쓸수 없을만큼 부서졌다는 의미가 되죠.
동사 뿐 아리나 같은 형태로 명사(부서진 물건; 정신적으로나 육체적으로 엉망인 상태나 사람)로 사용할수 있습니다. 특히 a nervous wreck 이라고 하면 지나친 스트레스와 긴장으로 아주 예민해지고 지친 사람(상태)를 가리킵니다.

I was a nervous wreck before the job interview.
나는 면접전에 신경이 곤두서서 제정신이 아니었다.

I didn’t sleep last night. I’m a wreck today.
어제밤 잠을 못잤어. 오늘 완전 엉망이야.

After the crash, my car was wrecked.

그 충돌 사고 후, 내 차는 완전히 망가졌다.

The storm wrecked the small vilage.

폭풍이 그 작은 마을을 쑥대밭으로 만들었다.

2. holy grail

something that lots of people want, but is very hard to find; ultimate prize

성배 (많은 사람들이 간절히 원하고 찾지만 얻기가 아주 힘든것)

First treasures from ‘holy grail of shipwrecks’ recovered

Sky News
이 단어는 성경과 중세 전설에서 유래합니다. 

예수가 마지막 만찬에서 사용한 컵이었고, 이후에는 기독교 기사들이 목숨을 걸고 찾았다고 전해지는 가장 신성하고 희귀한 보물로 묘사됩니다.

현대 영어에서는 이 역사적 상징이 확장되어, '최고의 목표(성취)'를 비유적으로 가리키는 말로 널리 쓰입니다.

Finding a way to learn languages effortlessly is the holy grail.

노력없이 언어를 배우는 방법을 찾는 것은 꿈의 목표(성배)와 같다.

A cure for cancer is considered the holy grail of medical research.

암 치료는 의학 연구의 최종 목적지(성배)로 여겨진다.

This 1950s comic book is the holy grail for collectors.

이 1950년대 만화책은 수집가들에게 더할 나위 없는 보물이다.

For many startups, going public is the holy grail.

많은 스타트업에게 상장은 최고의 성취다.

3. legendary

well-known and talked about a lot

전설적인

Coins, cannon recovered from legendary ship that sunk 3 centuries ago with billions of dollars in treasure

CBS News
'대단한', '잊혀지지 않는' 사람이나 사건에 대해 이렇게 표현합니다.

The film is based on the life of a legendary Indian cricketer.

그 영화는 전설적인 인도 크리켓 선수의 삶을 바탕으로 한다.

That party last night was legendary.

어젯밤 파티는 전설이었다.

His temper is legendary in the office.

그의 성깔은 사무실 내에서 자자하다.


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