All CEOs have the same responsibilities, such as working with the board, engaging stakeholders, setting direction, and creating a positive culture.
In the study and interviews, the authors identified the six mindsets that characterize great CEOs.
Being bold. Successful CEOs have to actively seek significant entrepreneurial opportunities and act boldly. They have to be excellent futurists, and have to define the right vision of future business success. While they have to cut losses if a move is a dud, they have to stick to the strategy for a significant period of time to let tactics work out success. The vision comes first; business performance flows from that.
Treat the soft stuff as the hard stuff. Only one in three strategies is successfully implemented—in large part because change generates resistance. That is why the “soft stuff”—matters related to people and culture—can be the hardest stuff of all. Research has found that companies that solve the soft stuff (the people issues) early are more than twice as likely (79% to 30%) to execute a strategy successfully. Leaders need to make the case for change, listen to objections and try to tackle the issues calmly and rationally. Small gestures to take care of the issues raised in objections can help people buy into the CEO’s vision. Make people calm by promising them to incorporate remedial measures or counter measures to mitigate negative consequences identified by them
Design the Organization and ThenSolve for the team’s psychology. To build high-performing leadership teams, the best CEOs start with roles. Then find those who can do them best. Then redesign them for effectiveness and efficiency based on the mutual discussions. CEOs must engage with each individual while keeping some distance. Again, the soft stuff comes into picture.
Help directors help the business. The board is the CEO’s boss, guide, mentor and consultant. Like any relationship, the bedrock is trust. That means being open, honest and prompt about plans and problems. In case of bad news also, the board is there to help. CEOs should establish a strong relationship with the lead director and consult with other directors. Introduce the board to the company, by connecting them to managers and allow flow of information.
Start with “why”? Start with answering why for the strategy? Purpose can be difficult to define. Companies with a clear social purpose have significantly outperformed the S&P 500 over the past 20 years. The best CEOs make purpose an intrinsic part of the business model, knowing that testing strategy against purpose can open up participation and lead to more energy.
Do what only you can do. Great CEOs make it a priority to manage their activities, to ensure that they are not pulled apart. The CEOs may have planned and structured routine, but build flexibility into their schedule, to respond to the unexpected.
By Gautam Kumra, Vikram Malhotra and Joydeep Sengupta
Gautam Kumra is Chairman, McKinsey Asia, based in Singapore, and a leader of the McKinsey Center for CEO Excellence. Vikram Malhotra is a senior partner with McKinsey in New York, and co-author of CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets That Distinguish the Best Leaders from the Rest (2022). Joydeep Sengupta is a senior partner with McKinsey in Singapore and a member of its global board.
https://sponsored.bloomberg.com/article/mckinsey/how-to-be-a-great-21st-century-ceo
No comments:
Post a Comment