More Than Half of First-Time C-Suite Executives Fail Within 18 Months -- New Book Exposes the Preparation Gap Costing Organizations Billions

Executive Advisor Andrea Nicholas Releases The Executive Code: Rise. Lead. Last., Endorsed by Thinkers50 #1 Executive Coach Dr. Marshall Goldsmith — Pre-Order Now on Amazon

AUSTIN, Texas, May 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 50 percent of first-time C-suite executives fail within 18 months. Not because they lack talent — because no one prepared them for what the role actually demands. The Executive Code: Rise. Lead. Last., publishing June 2, 2026, is the field guide designed to change that.

"The C-suite is not the next rung on the ladder," writes author Andrea Nicholas. "It is a different job entirely — where judgment, accountability, visibility, and consequence amplify overnight."

The book has earned a powerful endorsement from Dr. Marshall Goldsmith — New York Times bestselling author of What Got You Here Won't Get You There: "The Executive Code reads like a confidential briefing from a trusted advisor. It surfaces the unwritten rules of the C-suite and gives you language to navigate them without losing your edge."

Nicholas speaks from experience few advisors can match. She spent nearly 15 years in C-suite roles, built and scaled a management consulting firm over 14 years — including a bet-the-company pivot from financial services to healthcare during the '08-'09 financial crisis — before achieving a successful SaaS exit. She has gone on to advise more than 100 senior executives across industries, a body of work that revealed the same gap repeatedly: talented leaders reaching the C-suite with almost no preparation for what comes next.

The Executive Code covers the full arc of C-suite leadership: identity and readiness before stepping into the seat; the career trajectory and relationship capital that compound over time; the critical first 18 months; the politics of power and board dynamics; strategies for expanding internal and external influence; wellbeing and longevity as strategic priorities; and managing transitions, exits, and legacy with intention.

"There is an entire industry built around helping leaders get to the C-suite. Almost nothing exists for what happens after they arrive — the identity shift, the political complexity, the loneliness, the relentless pace. I wrote the book I wish had existed when I was in those seats. The failure rate is not inevitable. It is a preparation problem. And preparation problems have solutions." — Andrea Nicholas

The Executive Code: Rise. Lead. Last. is available for pre-order at amazon.com/dp/B0GV3H6GQ8. For more information visit www.coachsulting.global/the-executive-code.

ABOUT ANDREA NICHOLAS

Andrea Nicholas, MBA, is a strategic advisor to Fortune 1000 C-suite executives, creator of the Coachsulting® advisory method, and author of The Executive Code: Rise. Lead. Last. With more than three decades of experience — including nearly 15 years in C-suite roles — and advisory engagements with more than 100 senior executives, she helps leaders rise, lead, and last without losing themselves in the process. Learn more at www.coachsulting.global.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Flo Jacobs
Andrea R. Nicholas, LLC
Phone: 512-650-8841
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.coachsulting.global
Pre-Order: amazon.com/dp/B0GV3H6GQ8

SOURCE Andrea Nicholas, LLC