If you want to take the system down, provide a better alternative at least. At heart Iām an engineer. I want to encourage people to fix things, not to raise false hopes. Engineers often make good CEOs because they have a built-in desire to make things work. They understand the unique details of a problem and how they all come together in a big picture. They are trained to consistently produce successful outcomes.
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6.1. Becoming CEO
āThere are generally three kinds of CEOs:
- Babysitter CEOs are stewards of the company and are focused on keeping it safe and
predictable. They generally oversee the growth of existing products that they inherited and donāt take risks that might scare executives or shareholders. This invariably leads to the stagnation and deterioration of companies. Most public company CEOs are babysitters.
- Parent CEOs push the company to grow and evolve. They take big risks for larger rewards. Innovative foundersālike Elon Musk and Jeff Bezosāare always parent CEOs. But itās also possible to be a parent CEO even if you didnāt start the business yourselfālike Jamie Dimon at JPMorgan Chase or Satya Nadella at Microsoft. Pat Gelsinger, who recently took over the Intel CEO position, seems to be Intelās first parent CEO since Andy Grove.
- Incompetent CEOs are usually either simply inexperienced or founders who are ill-suited to lead a company after it reaches a certain size. They are not up to the task of being either a babysitter or a parent, so the company suffers.
Even the best CEO cannot stand alone, untouchable, unchallengeable, accountable to no one. Everyone needs to report to someone, even if itās a two-person board that you meet with for an hour every few months.
There always needs to be some kind of pressure-release valve. There always needs to be someone who can shake their head and give it to you straight.
And if you do it right, you should never be a victim of your board. As CEO, you help to shape it. Boards always change based on the CEOāthe board under Steve Jobs was different from the board under Tim Cook. Boards complement a CEOās strengths and no two CEOs are alike.
His analysis showed that the most effective CEOs were not charismatic but were remarkably persistent and humble. They excelled not at self-promotion but at nurturing talent in their teams. Instead of aspiring to a possible second career as standup comedians or reality TV stars, these effective leaders worked to make other people shine and especially get people working together as a high-performing team.
Focus on opportunities
Good executives focus on opportunities rather than problems. Problems have to be taken care of, of course; they must not be swept under the rug. But problem solving, however necessary, does not produce results. It prevents damage. Exploring opportunities produces results.
Focus on opportunities
Good executives focus on opportunities rather than problems. Problems have to be taken care of, of course; they must not be swept under the rug. But problem solving, however necessary, does not produce results. It prevents damage. Exploring opportunities produces results.