WASHINGTON POST: Death of Fiat Chrysler chief focuses spotlight on CEO health

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“I think it is classic stuff really. When you are a senior person, to be ill, there is a stigma to it,” said Cary Cooper, an expert in organizational psychology and health at the Manchester Business School in Britain. “In this case, he might have thought it would adversely affect the company, or that he wouldn’t be allowed to carry on.”

Cooper noted that the CEO of Lloyd’s Bank, Antonio Horta-Osorio, had disclosed his struggle with depression, helping to open up a discussion about mental health. At the same time, many captains of industry are not willing to show their physical limits and see illness as just another obstacle to overcome.

“The kind of people who get to the top are pretty resilient people, and they think they are going to overcome it anyway,” Cooper said.