By understanding employees’ concerns, the CEO can make strategic decisions and develop effective strategies to implement such strategies.Ī case study I read on CEO leadership provides an important example of effective leadership. It sounds trite but this strategy is a wonderful disciplined way of communicating and listening.Ī CEO who can empathize with his/her managers and employees is able to understand their motivations, and can respond more appropriately. I would define this critical characteristic as the ability to understand a person’s beliefs, opinions or motivations by looking at the issue through the person’s eyes. An effective leader has to be able to empathize. A CEO who understands the listening process can accomplish these two important objectives.Įmpathy: This is perhaps my favorite characteristic, one that defines successful CEOs and “successful” people. It is surprising but humans want a chance to express themselves and then feel validation. Employees want to be heard more than to persuade. The second is to communicate to the speakers that the CEO is listening and wants to hear from them. One is to collect and understand others’ ideas, concerns and motivations. A CEO who understands the importance of listening knows that there are two vital purposes to the listening process. Listening: Confident CEOs are able to listen to others, always looking to improve whatever is being done. Employees who embrace integrity will not steal from the company, cheat on their reimbursements, and execute with excellence. A CEO committed to integrity will inspire others to embrace the same value. So, for example, a CEO who makes decisions with integrity will not cut-corners or decide to do something that may be unethical. A CEO who acts with integrity inspires others with his or her own behavior. Integrity: A CEO who has integrity refers to the CEO’s conduct. A CEO who is perceived as untruthful loses all credibility to inspire and successfully promote a call to action to employees in a company. If employees believe that a CEO is not truthful or only truthful for part of the time, the CEO cannot be an effective leader. Honesty: A CEO who is honest communicates truthfully with the board, executives, managers and employees. My list includes four personality traits – honesty, integrity, listening and empathy. A leader who inspires us to a broader purpose can be a great leader.īut what specific personality characteristics turn an average or good CEO into a great CEO, one who truly inspires an organization? Great leaders are those who inspire employees to a broader mission – not just to provide effective legal services, build a great computer, or do something else well. Another way of expressing this same feeling is that employees want to believe in their leaders. The best leaders are always those that inspire employees to work hard and work well. I have worked for effective leaders in a variety of organizations. I know there are lots of so-called “leadership experts” but I think much of leadership is intuitive and requires intelligence and interpersonal skills. My observations on CEO leadership come from my own life experiences, and professional experience. At the outset, let me concede that I am not a psychiatrist (although we all feel like one at times with family members and colleagues).
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