How many ways can CEOs fail? Too many to count, but I’ve narrowed it down to my top 10 most common failure modes based on behaviors unbecoming a CEO. Many of these, much like a Shakespearean fatal flaw, are based on insecurities or other human emotions that get the best of people, especially during times of stress. If CEOs are not self-aware and allow these behaviors to flourish, they will fail.
The Cheerleader CEO: I believe excessive cheerleading is the single biggest sin committed by CEOs. Whether driven by fear of failure or the need to be liked, this CEO is positive to a fault. Cheering every victory no matter how small and downplaying any negatives, this type of CEO loses credibility with his staff very quickly.
The “My Favorite Child” CEO (aka the “BFF” CEO): Any CEO who is attached at the hip to another executive all the time is doing his executive team and himself a disservice. Too much attention paid to one person sends the wrong messages: 1) I cannot do this job by myself. 2) I am playing favorites. 3) This person has way more influence than other members of my team.
The Drop-In Carpet Bomber CEO: This type of CEO is relatively clueless about the day-to-day operations of the business but panics from time to time. As a result, he or she comes in barking orders at employees like a marine drill sergeant. This causes undue stress on the employees. Also, the CEO is not familiar enough with the business to give orders that are effective.
The Saint CEO: The Saint CEO shrinks from conflict of any kind. While caring is a critical trait for a CEO, this type takes it to extremes. He or she finds it difficult to take any actions that create disharmony, such as firing people. The lack of action – and sometimes a backbone – can decrease credibility greatly.
The Budget Tyrant CEO: Ah, the Budget Tyrant CEO, so beholden to the annual budget that nothing else trumps it! Unable to accept that business is conducted in a constantly changing environment, this CEO loses out on opportunities simply by being unwilling to change the budget between yearly cycles.
The Budget Blower CEO: The opposite of the Budget Tyrant, the Budget Blower throws money at every promising investment. While he or she has good intentions, the behavior is often caused by pride, fear or the pressure to do something. These feelings override his or her fundamental business sense of profit and loss.
The CIA CEO: This CEO believes he is operating in a modern spy novel. He keeps employees in the dark about even the most basic facts about business operations. Instead, he believes employees should simply follow orders without any higher-level understanding of the corporate goals or strategy. For knowledge workers especially, this “need to know” type of operation is terribly demoralizing.
The Super VP CEO: New CEOs are especially likely to become a “Super VP.” Without any experience in the CEO role, they gravitate to what they know best, which is usually a functional role they excelled in such as marketing, sales, engineering, etc. They end up spending all their time in this role, failing to evolve and tackle the unique challenges of the CEO role itself.
The Total Control CEO: This CEO is the ultimate micromanager. Full of hubris, he believes that he can do any job in the company better than the person performing it. If people would just follow his instructions correctly, his logic goes, everything would go well. No decision is too small for this CEO, who ends up focusing on tactics at the expense of strategy and alienating his employee base.
The Master Strategist CEO: At the opposite extreme, the Master Strategist believes that if he cannot control everything, then he will worry about nothing. In his mind, his only responsibility is to develop a grand strategy. Once imparted, he only has to sit back and watch as employees execute to the “perfect” strategy. So removed from the day-to-day flow of the organization, this type of CEO does not see problems developing until it is too late.
There are many more CEO failure modes. In particular, the need to be liked and maintain harmony manifests itself in many detrimental behaviors. One way to avoid these failure modes is to maintain a strong sense of self-awareness and recognize where your weaknesses are. Find people you can trust to tell you the unvarnished truth both inside and outside your organization. It also helps to have a good understanding of the specific CEO responsibilities. Reconciling the fact that a CEO has total responsibility but limited control goes a long way to being successful. What CEO failure modes do you think are most damaging?
