Leading Major Companies as a CEO - What is required?

GMK News reports back from today's online Cranfield lecture. Most of us will never make it to the dizzy heights of CEO. For those still interested, here is what if required. First, you need good personal skills like being a good communicator etc. Second, you need to know where you want to be in the short-term, medium and long-term future. Third, you need good physical health and mental well being. Generically, according to John McFarlane, the main presenter, at today's lecture, you need to be aware of the approach to value creation curve. This means that over time as your returns go from negative to positive, you will need to invest in growth and find ways to reduce your risk, so that hopefully at a point they will start to fade. On your cv, you need a lot of breath and many years of practical experience, at least over several decades. After being appointed, you will need to focus on managing risk and the markets. It is very important to have a vision. Most CEOs know what they want but have no idea on how to get there, You will need to work out an agenda and hit the ground running. You will have to communicate strategic processes and be able to traffic them. Constructing a good 10 year financial spreadsheet would be useful. Most of the time, it is obvious not difficult as to what you have to do. Important to have a good board of directors and personnel, available to you all the time and globally. Anyone jumping from executive to chief executive, it will be a huge jump. You will need to focus on your organisation and the development of your strategy. You must have a clear vision.. 1. Put your customers first. 2. Achieve good performance for your shareholders and stakeholders. 3. Be a good team player. 4. Trust the community. 5. Be prepared to breakout and the courage to be different. You will need to invest in growth and your break out programme/strategy. Consider how likely is it that you could be taken over. Be responsible for your shareholders and dividends. You need to make things good for your staff. You will need to consider your approach to leadership in a crisis situation and how it will divert from the strategy in ordinary times. You will need to ask yourself what values do people within your organisation want and have. A top value is how are you going to deal with bureaucracy? You will need to always focus on what is going on in America, if the US sneezes, the rest of the world catches a cold syndrome. Consider what the market leader is doing. For example in the financial services sector, Mcfarlane, as head of financial services found it useful to focus n City Bank. You will also have to consider how you are going to deal with cultural change? You may find it useful to research ad consider the McKensey Framework. One such framework would be to provide good customer service, organisational effectiveness, adopt a hard not soft approach. Another could be summarised as follows. 1. Mission. 2.Target.3. Providng an effective organisation. 4. Creating a sytem for feedback and evaluation. 5. Consequeses for managerial decisions 6. Employ the best people 7. Have financial control 8.Operational effectivness 9.Provide opportunities 10 Have values. What do you have to deal with change of culture. In answere to the concluding question, what advise would you give to someone starting out the leadership journey? Macfarlane replied some of the following for edit,, As a CEO, you cant always plan, you need to be responsible for your own future. You cant just sit back. Only exose yourself to roles well you strenghts, never your weaknesses will be shown. You always need to maximise your medium term goals, except in a crisis. Following the very diffuclt period for busineeses at the nd of 2020, Mcfarlae considered those assets which were still performing and nything that wasn't they sold anere always stand your ground, do what you beleive to be right. Retiring CEos always say there biggest regret is going along with other people's decisions, when they dont feel themto be right. You dont get paid as a chair but in order for anything to succeed the chair and the CEO need to always agree on decisions being taken.