What are the traits that make some CEO's standout and someone we want to work with?
I have been on many management teams in several C-Level positons including CFO, COO and CEO. I was fortunate to have worked with some fantastic people so far in my career and I am sure I will work with many more. I know which ones I would jump at the chance to work with again. I joined in on a webinar a while back on Executive Search by Paul Stefunek of DHR International and from what he presented it became clear to me what the important traits were of great C-Level managers.
How do people look at us as CEO’s? What do they look for? Why would they select us to lead their organization? What do they see from how we present ourselves?
There are three things that define us as leaders, as mentors and as respected colleagues: Our Intellect, Our Passion and Our Integrity.
Our Intellect or how we think and how we reason, is shown by the questions we ask, how we formulate our answers and how we react to the input of others. It is what drives our vision and gives us the ability to take all the pieces and put them together in the right form.
Our Passion is probably the most obvious. We love what we do, we love what we are building and we love the challenge of making the company better than all expectations. We also love to share our passion with a team. It is this attribute that instills people to follow us.
Our Integrity is the essence of who we are. It is the sum of our values, our sincerity, our truthfulness, and our trustworthiness. It is probably the thing we have been building throughout our careers. If lost it is the hardest to replace. This is the attribute that helps us build strong teams that want to work with us and helps us build organizations that achieve great things.
These three traits are clearly what people seek us out for. These are the traits I look for in the leader of a team I am going to join. These are the traits that leave our imprints on the organizations we have lead.
What traits do you see in CEO’s that impress you? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.
John Toomey
Executive Coaching | Interim Management | Fractional Management | Board Leadership
Reach out today to add me as your one on one advisor to enhance your personal performance and that of your company. I can also fill that vacant position until it can be filled or join the team on a part-time basis to bring my set of skills and experience to your team. Energize your board by adding me as outside board member that has only your company’s interests in mind.
