EDO CEOs Should Know the Same Things About Leadership

Nine Things CEOs Need to Know About Leadership
Source: Chief Executive Magazine

1. “There’s no question, companies that are committed to developing good leaders attract good people. Even those who leave the company spread the word after moving on.” —William A. Cohen, professor of marketing and leadership, California State University in Los Angeles, Maj. Gen. USAFR Ret. and author of The New Art of the Leader.

2. “[Leaders] try to engage employees at a level where they actually transform themselves to make things happen that would not have been possible with just ordinary employees.” —Jay Conger, professor of organizational behavior, the London Business School and author of Building Leaders.

3. “The key issue is that the board of directors and the CEO must embrace leadership development as a business tool. They must espouse it, invest in it and view it as a necessary competitive advantage.” —Peter D. Crist, vice chairman, Korn/Ferry International, an executive search firm.

4. “Everyone in a leadership position takes responsibility for developing the people under them. They’re measured on it, rewarded on it and own it. There is no substitute for it.” —Stephen J. Drotter, president, Drotter Human Resources and co-author of The Leadership Pipeline.

5. “The leader is a person who does not do it himself. The leader is a person who works with and through others to achieve a vision.” —Marshall Goldsmith, founding director of leadership development network Alliance for Strategic Leadership and co-editor of Coaching for Leadership.

6. “Leadership is creating an impression of yourself and your company that other people want to emulate.” —Russell S. Reynolds Jr., chairman and CEO, The Directorship Search Group, an executive search and consulting firm.

7. “The tough aspect of leadership development is reflection and feedback. No matter how great you are, until you sit back and figure out how what you’ve learned makes sense for you and the company, you won’t develop as a leader.” —Lt. Col. Scott Snook, Academy Professor, Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership, the United States Military Academy at West Point and author of Friendly Fire.

8. “Strong [CEOs] create effective followers not through fear and intimidation but through realistic performance appraisal and risk-reward applause.” —Frederick W. Wackerle, executive coach and corporate board adviser and author of The Right CEO.

9. “For decades, we have talked about the traits of successful leaders and tried to find ways to develop those traits. But I would say that’s only half the equation. Leaders can look pretty, talk nice and dance well, but if they don’t get results, they’re not good leaders.” —Warren Wilhelm, president, Global Consulting Alliance, a human resources management firm, and author of the forthcoming Learning Architectures.