So I work for a large bank in the United States. Me and my coworkers always joke that whenever something bad or inconvenient happens it’s the CEOs fault. Though it’s just a running joke it got me thinking, on a day to day basis what does a CEO actually do? I get the “Chief Executive Officer” nomenclature means they more than likely make executive decisions but what does that look like? Are they at their desk signing papers all day? Death by meeting?
Edit: Holy crap thanks for all the answers I feel like this sub always pulls through when I have a weird question. Thanks guys!
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I am a CEO of a 150 person company so take my answer with that perspective in mind. My job is mostly about:
– Setting the tone for our organizational culture. The most senior people in the business deeply impact the way people around them feel with their words and actions. One of our most important functions is to ensure that we are doing things that foster the kind of environmental tone that is conducive to great work being done efficiently.
– Deeply understanding and leading the strategy. I need to be very clear about what our purpose and current focus is as an organization so that I can constantly communicate how we should be thinking about things as we move forward as a business. When this is done right organisations tend to resonate with a clear vision and direction of travel. This process involves working closely with more specialized senior people, such as a CFO, CMO, CTO, etc. With the strategy in mind, we need to combine the shared insight of these senior experts and use it to make the right decisions that impact the organisation’s future.
– Overseeing general operations but only at a pretty high level. Understanding what key pieces of information to keep track of in any organization at a given time is a key requirement for a CEO to ensure that appropriate action can take place to avoid significant strategic risk and capitalize on opportunities.
– Understanding where we are as a business and where we are going. We need to have a view on the future and be able to reflexively understand how well our current state lives in that future. It is the CEO’s ultimate responsibility to ensure that a business effectively evolves with market/environmental demands.
There’s definitely more but I think that captures most of it.
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