When it comes to retirement, many finance executives are walking away from the corporate world years earlier than their father's generation. In just the last month, three fiftysomething CFOs have announced their retirements. Google Inc.'s George Reyes, 53, is leaving at the end of the year; Kraft Foods Inc.'s James Dollive, 56, is departing Sept. 30; and Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co.'s Robert A. Rosholt, 56, is leaving next year.

"Retire" is the operative word. None of the three said they were "stepping down" or "resigning" or "moving to explore other opportunities." They were, they made clear, "retiring"–or, as Webster defines the word–withdrawing from business. That doesn't mean that one or more won't come out of the shadows to take another crack at a challenging job in the business world, but headhunters and consultants expect many options-rich executives to slide into quieter and, perhaps, more socially fulfilling lives.

"I've seen examples of executives at fairly senior levels take the opportunity to switch gears and find other opportunities that may be more rewarding," says Allen A. Geller, managing director at executive search firm Raines International Inc. "The market has been good up to this point, making them wealthy," he notes. (Reyes, for example, will retire with options valued at more than $23.5 million.) "At the same time, regulations are increasing and adding to their headaches," Geller notes. "So they think, 'Why not find something more fulfilling?'"