WSJ Events · Nov 12, 2026 · 25m · 18m saved
With Mark Weinberger, former Global Chairman and CEO of EY
Mark Weinberger, former global chairman and CEO of EY, told Poppy Harlow at a WSJ Leadership Institute panel that he landed EY's top job as "the lowest common denominator," not as the strongest candidate on paper. Most CEOs get picked for the résumé; Mark said the firm needed a uniter after the Enron and WorldCom audit scandals, and that counted for more.
"I think I was the lowest common denominator. There were two great candidates, both competing head to head." — Mark Weinberger
Mark now sits on the boards of JPMorgan, Saudi Aramco, MetLife and Johnson & Johnson, and says he still feels unqualified on all of them.
The full interview is covered here so you can skip it. 25 minutes of audio, 7 minutes of reading.
Here are the 8 principles that matter.
Key Takeaways
Mark got EY's top job as "the lowest common denominator" who could unite the firm after the Enron-era scandals
EY did 185 acquisitions in his seven years as CEO, moving from mostly audit to 70% non-audit revenue
Leaders should sort problems into three buckets, spending most of their time on what they can control
Mark set an explicit priority to be home every weekend with his four teenagers, because stating it was the only way to protect it
Bush reframed a 25-minute technical debate by asking which plan could actually get 51 Senate votes
As a 39-year-old Treasury official, Mark contradicted his own secretary's promise to Bush's face, and it earned him a standing invite to future meetings
He still feels impostor syndrome "every freaking day" on boards including JPMorgan and Saudi Aramco
Mark joined Saudi Aramco's board in 2018 despite being warned it could cost him Senate confirmation, and now chairs its compensation committee
1. Picked As The Uniter
Mark wasn't the obvious choice for EY's chairman and CEO job. Two other candidates, running the firm's EMEIA and Americas regions, were by his own account more qualified on paper.
Mark says he got the job because EY needed a uniter, not the strongest résumé
"I think I was the lowest common denominator. There were two great candidates, both competing head to head." — Mark Weinberger
Over his seven years as CEO, Mark reshaped the firm through acquisition rather than organic growth alone.
EY went from mostly audit to 70% non-audit revenue in seven years
"We did 185 acquisitions in the seven years I was CEO, and we started as mostly an audit firm. By the time I retired seven years later, 70% of our business was non-audit." — Mark Weinberger
