My CEO Life

As i have previously mentioned, we have bought a couple of businesses.  Both of these acquisitions will merge with parts of the existing business.

One of the businesses has a new product set that is complementary to the existing product set.  The way we are approaching this merger is to rapidly focus on getting the go to market approach right.

What is a go to market approach – it is the product / pricing / sales and marketing approach to get the product to the market in the most cost effective manner.

We purchased the business on Monday and by Friday the sales team will be training on the integrated product set … how are we doing it?

1. We have flown the leadership team for that business unit into head office for 3 days of solid work
2. They are charged with merging the product sets (from a sales perspective), revising pricing, and getting materials ready for the sales people who fly in from around the country on Friday for a day of briefing.
3. On Monday, the new product set is being sold by the sales team and our industry marketing team kicks in with special offers to target customers

It may not be pretty but it will work.  We would rather get out there and try it than think for ever and a day about what may be.

I will let you know how we go.

One thing that i constantly do is read.  I always have a stack of throw away reading for plane trips.  I never read confidential materials about the business on a plane and really spend that time opening my mind to new ideas and thoughts – either about the industry we operate in or about new management techniques and thoughts.

Leadership is one of my hot buttons … here is a list from a management magazine of the top 8 tips for leaders

1. People are led – things are managed
2. Pay attention to people, not structures
3. Some things never change.  Leadership is a process which involves the leader and the followers in a specific situation.  It is NOT a person, a role, a position or a title.
4. In the next century, despite the on rush of technology, people are still people and need to be and like to be led.
5. In the knowledge economy, the most precious knowledge is knowing what you dont know
6. In the knowledge economy is it not what you know but how adept you are to learning
7. Knowledge is mobile – when people move so does their knowledge
8. No matter what century, without integrity, there is no leaderhip

I hate meetings … especially if they don’t have an agenda, are not lead by someone and go on and on and on.  So what have i done about this, here are a few simple rules i try to live by

1. 30 minute meetings only – i even have a great 30 min timer on my desk as a reminder
2. No agenda, no meeting and the agenda must be sent before we get together
3. No more than 4 people to a meeting
4. There must be a clear leader and that person nominated before the meeting
5. Clear outcomes must be reached including decisions or next steps

Simple in theory but takes discipline to make happen.  They challenge is getting everyone to do it around the business and change the culture from a meetings one to a decision making one.  Now that takes time!!!

I received the question below and it got me thinking about how you can become a CEO.

Right now I am studying Business Administration at a University.  My ultimate goal to become a CEO of a large corporation.  I know I will probably have to get an MBA.  But what other things can I do to help get me there?

For this writer, the first i have a question – why do you want to become the CEO of a large company?  There can be many reasons for this ranging from money, to power, to status or to actually making a difference.  I would examine these first before deciding on the goal.

For me it is about making a difference and to fundamentally changing how things operate.  I am less fussed about the size of the business and more about what we are trying to achieve. Being the CEO of any business has its downsides – you are often alone, there is resentment in the business (usually because of pay), politics, a Board to deal with and if you are public, massive scrutiny from how much you earn to everything you do.  Oh — and everyone has an opinion as to what you should be doing.

So back to the real topic of discussion … “are CEO’s born (nature) or can they be created (nurture)?

I hate sitting on the fence however i am going to have to.  I think it is a combination of both.  Firstly i think that you need to naturally have some innate qualities.  You need to be able to lead, to communicate and to be able to juggle lots of things at the same time.  While in theory these can be taught or learned, i think really good leaders just do this type of thing naturally.

Secondly, i think there are a range of skills you have to learn.  These are generally around finance, HR procedures, strategy, operations etc.  The books give you theoretical guidance on how to do them but there is nothing like actually doing them.

So if you want to become the CEO of a large business.  I think you need to have and do the following

1. You have to have some innate skills – e.g. leadership, passion etc
2. You should do an MBA to help give you some theoretical knowledge – but this is not necessary
3. You should try to do as many types of roles as possible – finance, operational, sales, marketing etc …
4. You need to have a whole lot of luck and be in the right place at the right time – and take a risk or two!!!

If you would like to have a good read then you cant go past Winning by Jack Welch.  Now i know that there are a 101 books about him and GE however i find this one great to read and able to provide me with useful insights and tips.

The book covers a range of issues from culture to leadership and to how to manage your company and competition.  The book tackles many issues head on.  One of my favourite is candor.

Now, for many organizations, candor is a dirty word.  People cant or dont look each other in the eye and tell it straight.  Instead there are politics, back stabbing and avoidance.  GET OVER IT.  Talk to each other straight.  Don’t hide things, don’t guild the lily — just tell each other as it is.

As Welch says, “When you’ve got candor, everything just operates faster and better.”

So enjoy the read.