The CEO Index
A chief executive's promise is the most expensive sentence in business. Here is who keeps theirs.
Their word, scored.
One promise is a moment. Five is a habit. A leader enters the ranking when five of their promises have been settled.
Nobody has five settled promises yet. The first names enter as the 2026 full-year reports arrive in January and February.
Their first promises are in the books.
Listed alphabetically, never by score, until each has five settled promises. Stamps before a full-year report are provisional.
| Leader | Settled | Score | Status | Promises | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ed BastianCEO, Delta Air Lines | 1 | · | 4 more to be ranked | ||
| Søren Krogh KnudsenCEO & President, Columbus | 1 | · | 4 more to be ranked | ||
| Jens H. LundGroup CEO, DSV | 1 | · | 4 more to be ranked | ||
| Sveinn SölvasonPresident & CEO, Embla Medical | 1 | · | 4 more to be ranked |
Only what they said, in their role, on the record.
The score
The average of a leader's settled promises: Kept 100, Partly kept 60, Late 40, Broken 0, Quietly dropped 0. Promises still on track wait for their deadline.
Hard years count
A promise broken by a fuel shock is still broken. The company's reason sits beside it on the Ledger, so you can judge the reason for yourself.
Promises follow the person
When a leader moves company, their record moves with them.
What it is not
It is not a verdict on anyone's character or honesty. It measures one thing: whether the number they gave came true.