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The Secrets of CEOs

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The Secrets of CEOs

150 Global Chief Executives Lift the Lid on Business, Life and Leadership

Nicholas Brealey Publishing,

15 min read
10 take-aways
Audio & text

What's inside?

Get an inside view of life as a CEO: an informed analysis of what drives Chief Executive Officers.

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Editorial Rating

7

Qualities

  • Comprehensive

Recommendation

Famous chief executive officers (CEOs) have an aura of invincibility. But scandals and failures have engulfed many infamous CEOs who ultimately lost their powerful jobs. And avoiding risk is no guarantee of top-job security. Many companies want their CEOs to serve as agents of change, not caretakers. How do successful CEOs stay on top? The answer depends on their style of leadership. Today, most chief executives are superb managers or bold entrepreneurs. Others are visionaries or astute diplomats. To find out what motivates CEOs and how they think about leadership, Steve Tappin and Andrew Cave conducted comprehensive interviews with 150 chief executives and compiled their findings in this book. getAbstract recommends their work to anyone who wants to know how CEOs think and act.

Summary

So You Want to Be a CEO?

Being a chief executive officer (CEO) is more demanding than ever. As a CEO, you have little time for your family. Your organization and its stakeholders frequently put many demands upon you. Achieving a proper professional and personal balance may be impossible. Unless you can handle stress, you are headed for big trouble. The pressures that CEOs encounter could break those people who lack remarkable personal strength and character.

A successful CEO is wise, determined, resilient and visionary, a capable leader who is passionate about his or her organization. The job of CEO also can be very rewarding because it allows the CEO to shake things up and truly make a difference. Few other positions offer this much opportunity for success – and this big a risk of failure.

What advice can prominent CEOs offer young professionals who hope to reach the same dizzy heights? For a start, they should stay healthy. Being a CEO is a notable health risk. Individuals who are unable to cope with the demands of the job are unlikely to remain CEOs for long.

Going Global

As a CEO, you need to develop a plan for the rapid globalization...

About the Authors

Steve Tappin is a managing partner of an executive search firm. He is an expert on CEO issues. Andrew Cave is a financial journalist with the Daily Telegraph in London.

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