From chief executive officer to jobless - that's what these nine CEOs recently experienced in the past few months which created headlines and shocked the corporate world.

The latest to join the growing list of fired or forced to step down company heads on Thursday night was Rio Tinto Chief Executive Tom Albanese over the $14 billion write-downs of aluminium assets that Australia's second-biggest miner had to make in 2012. The Alcan assets were acquired by Rio (ASX: RIO) under Mr Albanese's helm.

Mr Albanese created record as the first high-profile CEO firing in 2013. He will join by summer the company of these CEOs who left their well-paying jobs from late 2011 to late 2012.

1. Carol Bartz - Yahoo!

After a two-year term as CEO of the once-dominant email and search engine company in the world, Ms Bartz was fired in September 2011. She was only informed by the Yahoo chairman of her termination by phone while she was traveling to New York.

Ms Bartz, in her last email to Yahoo employees, wrote, "It has been my pleasure to work with all of you and I wish you only the best going forward."

2. Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie - Research in Motion

BlackBerry, made by Research in Motion (RIM), reigned briefly in the mobile market but shortly lost luster after the failure of the Canada-based tech firm to keep up with the technological advances by rival tech firms Apple and Samsung. As a result the two co-CEOs were forced to resign in early 2012 in deference to investor pressure.

In their farewell email to RIM employees, the duo wrote, "There comes a time in the growth of every successful company when the founders recognise the need to pass the baton to new leadership."

3. Robert Diamond - Barclay's Bank

Among the reasons why Mr Diamond had lost his brilliance as a banker were trading scandals, fraud charges related to mortgage-back securities and bailouts. To worsen the situation, Barclays was also implicated in the manipulation of the Libor rate. In an email to Barclays workers, Mr Diamond said, "I am sorry that some people acted in a manner not consistent with our culture and values."

Mr Diamon quit his post in July 2012, a week after the bank was fined by regulators a record $455 million for rigging the benchmark for over $360 trillion of securities.

4. Steven Freiberg - ETrade Financial

Mr Freiberg was fired in August 2012 as CEO of one of the leading brokerage firms in the world as the firm's shareprices plummeted 97 per cent in five years, while trading dried up and commissions fell.

To save face for Mr Freiberg, ETrade Chairman Frank Petrilli said in a statement, "The board believes it is an appropriate time to transition . . . to a new leader to guide the company through the next phase of its evolution."

5. Vikram Pandit - Citigroup

While Mr Pandit kept Citigroup steady during the 2008 global financial crisis with the help of a $45-billion bailout, it was not enough to save his job as CEO. In the five years he headed the global bank, the company's shareprices tumbled down 90 per cent, dividend was down and Citigoup even failed a stress test by U.S. regulators.

Mr Pandit's departure is an indicator of the growing power of boardroom muscle at Citigroup. Before he was fired in October 2012, Mr Pandit told CNBC, "Given the progress we have made . . . I have concluded that now is the right time for someone else to take the helm."

6. Christopher Kubasik - Lockheed Martin

Unlike other CEOs who left because of poor performance, Mr Kubasik was fired in November 2012 even before he could start his term in January 2013 after he acknowledged that he had a close personal relationship with a subordinate, even if it happened before he became CEO.

Commenting on the turn of events at the armaments company, outgoing Lockheed Martin CEO Robert Stevens said, "I am deeply disappointed and saddened by Chris's actions, which have been inconsistent with our values."

7. Robert Dutton - Rona

After Mr Dutton rejected the takeover offer from a competitor in the home improvement sector, share prices of Rona fell 40 per cent and the company suffered an 89 per cent drop in its third-quarter profit, resulting in Mr Dutton quitting his post in November 2012.

Amid a continuous downturn in economies of many first world nations, the question now in the minds of the corporate world is how will be the next names of this growing list.