单选题 When Liam McGee departed as president of Bank of America in August, his explanation was surprisingly straight up. Rather than cloaking his exit in the usual vague excuses, he came right out and said he was leaving "to pursue my goal of running a company". Broadcasting his ambition was "very much my decision", McGee says. Within two weeks, he was talking for the first time with the board of Hartford Financial Services Group, which named him CEO and chairman on September 29.
McGee says leaving without a position lined up gave him time to reflect on what kind of company he wanted to run. It also sent a clear message to the outside world about his aspirations. And McGee isn't alone. In recent weeks the No. 2 executives at Avon and American Express quit with the explanation that they were looking for a CEO post. As boards scrutinize succession plans in response to shareholder pressure, executives who don't get the nod also may wish to move on. A turbulent business environment also has senior managers cautious of letting vague pronouncements cloud their reputations.
As the first signs of recovery begin to take hold, deputy chiefs may be more willing to make the jump without a net. In the third quarter, CEO turnover was down 23% from a year ago as nervous boards stuck with the leaders they had, according to Liberum Research. As the economy picks up, opportunities will abound for aspiring leaders.
The decision to quit a senior position to look for a better one is unconventional. For years executives and headhunters have adhered to the rule that the most attractive CEO candidates are the ones who must be poached. Says Korn/Ferry senior partner Dennis Carey: "I can't think of a single search I've done where a board has not instructed me to look at sitting CEOs first. "
Those who jumped without a job haven't always landed in top positions quickly. Ellen Marram quit as chief of Tropicana a decade age, saying she wanted to be a CEO. It was a year before she became head of a tiny Internet-based commodities exchange. Robert Willumstad left Citigroup in 2005 with ambitions to be a CEO. He finally took that post at a major financial institution three years later.
Many recruiters say the old disgrace is fading for top performers. The financial crisis has made it more acceptable to be between jobs or to leave a bad one. "The traditional rule was it's safer to stay where you are, but that's been fundamentally inverted," says one headhunter. "The people who've been hurt the worst are those who've stayed too long. /

单选题 When McGee announced his departure, his manner can best be described as being ______.
A. arrogant B. frank C. self-centered D. impulsive

【正确答案】 B

【答案解析】细节题。短文第一段第一句即指出：When Liam McGee departed...his explanation was surprisingly straight up(当八月份Liam McGee以总裁的身份从美国银行离职的时候，他的解释出人意料地直率)，其中的straight up就是选项[B]中的frank。此外，该段第二句又用Rather-than cloaking his exit inthe usual vague excuses(不是用通常的暧昧托词来掩饰他的离开)进行了补充说明，也可印证其frank的态度。其余各项都不合原文：arrogant指“傲慢的，自大的”，self-centered指“以自我为中心的，自私自利的”，impulsive指“冲动的”。

单选题 According to Paragraph 2, senior executives' quitting may be spurred by ______.
A. their expectation of better financial status
B. their need to reflect on their private life
C. their strained relations with the boards
D. their pursuit of new career goals

【正确答案】 D

【答案解析】分析推理题。文章第二段第三句首先指出McGee isn't alone，接着说：In recent weeks...quit with the explanation that they were looking for a CEO post(最近几周雅芳和美国万国宝通银行的一些高级经理离职时都解释说他们想找一份CEO的职位)。联系到第一段McGee离职时的解释(he was leaving “to pursue my goal of running a company”)，完全可以得知这些高级经理的辞职原因就是为了追求新的职业目标(their pursuit of new career goals)，因此选[D]。其余三项中，[C]干扰性较强，因为该段后半部分确实涉及到了一些经理们与董事会(boards)之间的关系，但其中的strained(紧张的)在原文中没有体现，且文中明确说明董事会是在股东的压力下才审查继任计划，以此作为这些高级经理辞职的原因并不妥当。

单选题 The word "poached" (Line 3, Paragraph 4) most probably means ______.
A. approved of B. attended to
C. hunted for D. guarded against

【正确答案】 C

【答案解析】词汇理解题。由该词所在句中的headhunters(猎头)一词，以及该句后的直接引语I can't think of a single search I've done where a board has not instructed me to look at sitting CEOs first(我想不起有哪一次招聘董事会是没有要求我先看那些在任CEO的)，再结合常识即可知poach一词应指“从别的单位把人招来”的意思，即平常所说的“挖(人)”，故选[C]。事实上，poach的意思就是“偷猎，窃取”。

单选题 It can be inferred from the last paragraph that ______.
A. top performers used to cling to their posts
B. loyalty of top performers is getting out-dated
C. top performers care more about reputations
D. it's safer to stick to the traditional rules

【正确答案】 A

【答案解析】分析推理题。文章最后一段用招聘者的话，指出“过去(跳槽)让高管们觉得丢脸的感觉已经消失了”，而金融危机让跳槽和放弃不好的工作变得越来越可以接受。还引用猎头的话说，传统的准则是待在一个地方更安全，而现在那些受伤最厉害的是在一个地方待得太久的人。由此可以反向推知，过去那些高管往往是按照传统准则行事，一直待在自己的职位上(cling to their posts)，故本题答案就是[A]。其余各项中，[B]、[D]两项都与原文中相应的信息不符，而[C]项是进行比较，这在原文中没有提及。

单选题 Which of the following is the best title for the text?
A. CEOs: Where to Go? B. CEOs: All the Way Up?
C. Top Managers Jump without a Net. D. The Only Way Out for Top Performers.

【正确答案】 C

【答案解析】主旨题。通读全文并结合上述各题的分析可知，短文论述的中心是高管们纷纷辞职寻找新的职业，很多人都想成为CEO(即他们目前并非CEO)，因此[A]、[B]两项可以首先排除。而[D]项的意思是“高管们的唯一出路”，显然不合原文也不合常识。[C]项的意思是“高管们没有新工作也跳槽”，它很好地概括了全文，并且与倒数第二段第一句中的Those who jumped without a job相照应，因而是本题答案。