CEO Coach - Company Vision
Bill Warner Thursday, June 05, 2008
I am starting a new series of articles called the CEO Coach. I plan to address the various aspects of the job of CEO. It will not only be useful to company executives, but to all people within the company in that they should know what to expect from their CEO.
Let start at the top. The first thing that a CEO has to do from day one, and for every day thereafter, is communicate the vision of the company. The source of the vision and the keeper of the vision is the CEO. The CEO is responsible for:
- Creating the vision with involvement from all the company executives
- Establishing company-wide buy-in to the vision
- Explaining the vision and answering questions about it
- Communicating the vision to everyone in the company, consistently and constantly
- Monitoring the understanding of the vision so that it stays on track
But, the task of being the keeper of the vision never ends. A vision is fragile. If the CEO doesn’t “walk the talk” every day, the vision will eventually erode away. The CEO’s consideration of the vision has to be visible to everyone. For example:
- The CEO needs to take action to communicate the vision frequently in staff meetings, company meetings and other company communications
- The vision has to be factored into decisions where the CEO makes it clear that the decisions being made are consistent with the company’s vision
- In external communications via the website, newsletters, public speaking engagements and the media, the CEO needs to reiterate what the vision of the company is
- When an incident occurs that is inconsistent with the company’s vision, the CEO must grasp it as an opportunity to make corrections and remind people what the vision is and what it means
- In establishing business relationships, the vision is often a factor in deciding how to handle them
Managing the vision of the company is a full time job for the CEO. Not that it takes full time, but it takes constant awareness and discipline to ensure that the vision is well understood and being acted up appropriately.
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Be Referable
Bill Warner Saturday, February 23, 2008
We have all heard the old saying, “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” Well, there is a lot to be said about that. Look back on the business you have won recently. How much of it came by referral from someone you know, versus a cold call to a prospect or an inquiry directly to you or through your website? Like many of the business people I meet, the majority of their business comes by referral.
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The Pillars of Success in Today’s Economy
Bill Warner Friday, January 18, 2008
Everywhere you turn in the technology industries the first or second thing you always talk about is how hard it is to get a company started and on track in today’s economy. It is hard to get market traction with customers that are reluctant to take a risk on new technology and have constrained budgets. The early stage private equity market is imploding as institutional investors take less risk by requiring terms that reflect low company valuations, leaving the early stage investors with minimal returns. There is a lack of management know-how that is required to provide leadership and operational management to young companies as they mature.
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What Does a CEO Do
Bill Warner Monday, January 14, 2008
One of the very important roles in a company is that of the CEO. A management staff ranges from group leader, to section manager, director, vice president, senior vice president, executive vice president and chief executive officer. Each of these positions has a different scope of responsibility, but they all have several things that they do in common with the CEO.
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Initiating Change
Rich Kramarik Friday, January 04, 2008
Strategic leadership is about looking to the future with the ability to see around corners, look through walls with x-ray vision, find the shine under the tarnish and use this information to chart the course of the company. The CEO does this by making strategic decisions that will ensure a viable future for the business and by constantly tuning the organization to fit the current business environment. The biggest challenge, however, is not in identifying the correct solutions, but in convincing the employees that the changes required to implement these solutions are essential and manageable.
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Family Business Successes
Bill Warner Thursday, January 03, 2008
We have worked with some exciting family owned businesses over the last year. All are doing well and each has a lesson or two to teach others. I can safely name some names without getting into too much trouble. They all have a unique story and are proud of what they have done.
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Employee Loyalty - Does it Still Exist
Bob De Contreras Thursday, January 03, 2008
These days, your best workers are likely to show more loyalty to their careers than the company. That’s a polite way of saying that your employees are more concerned about themselves than the company where they work. What CEOs need in order to avoid frustration over loyalty is a new view of loyalty and its meaning to employers and employees.
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Effective Decision Making
Bob De Contreras Thursday, January 03, 2008
Do you ever stop, take a deep breath and ask yourself how you can make better business decisions? If you’re like other CEOs and top executives the answer is, “probably not.” You’ve read about decision making and problem solving strategies, just like we have. So, why is it we continue to be able to help our clients solve business problems that they have not been able to resolve themselves? The answer is that good decision making alone is not sufficient to solve business problems.
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Ceos Doing Their Job Better
Bill Warner Thursday, January 03, 2008
Sometimes when CEOs do what they are supposed to do, they still don’t get the results they expect. What follows are a few examples from real life situations Paladin have been involved in solving.
