Leadership  

Leadership is a vague and elusive term often applied to a desire for a skillset that inspires and motivates
others. It’s a characteristic you will see mentioned as a key desirable in some form or fashion in
any and every CEO job search out there. What do they mean when they specify ‘leadership,’
and more importantly, how do they measure it?

First and foremost rather we’re talking about large, mid-size or small companies, culture is a top driver for consistent company performance and well-being.  Rather you like the concept of influencers or not, CEOs are influencers, good or bad.  This is why it is imperative that top-level executives should embody the qualities that they want to see in their company.

If putting in hard work, practicing ethical behavior in the office and outside of it, and diligence
are all coveted traits at all levels of a company, the CEO will demonstrate these, and more. This
is leadership by example or demonstration.

Decisiveness, in making a plan and moving forward with implementing that plan, and
demonstrated examples of such decision-making ability shows this valuable leadership skill.

Demonstrating compassion and empathy through their efforts, and most especially during
difficult decisions are also traits associated with leadership ability. They are measured by the
manner in which an individual handles difficult conversations and situations within their role.

Vision

Vision shows a drive to succeed, a plan for the future and a detailed method to get a company to the goal that vision represents. A goal without a plan is nothing but a dream, and top-level executives know this to be true. Not only will they have a goal, but they’ll have a plan for reaching that goal. This will include how to address the inevitable set-backs and obstacles that arise along the way, including things that are unable to be foreseen.

Ability to Execute

Choosing a management team and providing them with the information and resources that they need in order to effectively do their jobs and execute the high-level strategy that has been created is a key marker of an excellent CEO. A great plan requires action in order to be fully realized. Action often involves delegation and knowing who to delegate tasks to, and when, is an important part of the CEO role.

Willingness to Listen

Listening needs to happen at all levels of an organization, and the CEO is no exception, in fact, they set the tone.  Whether this is listening to items brought to them by management, or things that have worked their way up the chain of command, knowing what is impacting the results of the plan they have set out to realize will have a marked impact on whether or not the plan is successful.

Knowing When to Say No

I think we all know that not all ideas are good ones.  However, the trap that many CEOs fall into is distractions.   Emotionally so many things appear to be urgent and important, and often they are, but learning which items should take priority is a must.  This means CEOs must be able to turn down enthusiastic and well-intentioned requests or ideas, including their own. Knowing when to say no to something, and the ability to elaborate on why it is a no so will set apart a CEO from his or her peers.

Learn How to Prioritize 

When demands are coming from a million different directions, it can get quite overwhelming, and easy to mis-prioritize what’s important.  The long-time philosophy of many successful CEOs, including Richard Branson, put their staff first, customers second and Shareholders third.  Even though this may spark some debate, the results speak for themselves.