Carolyn Dewar, Scott Keller and Vikram Malhotra, all senior partners at McKinsey and Company, have just released an outstanding new book - CEO Excellence (2022).
This book explores the “CEO Effect”, that is, the extent to which CEOs impact on a company so that it consistently outperforms comparable ones. It goes beyond looking at what a CEO does, to how the best CEOs work differently and why.
They chose 200 CEOs who over the past 20 years have consistently outperformed their peers and lasted in their organisations for a minimum of six years. Drawn from across diverse industries, geographies, gender and race. Survey all 200, but did in-depth interviews with 65 of them, which yields a 95% confidence level in the overall conclusions.
From these 6 key responsibilities of a CEO emerged:
- Setting the direction
- Aligning the organization
- Mobilising through leaders
- Engaging the board
- Connecting with stakeholders
- Managing personal effectiveness
Based on these 6 responsibilities, they then developed the 6 mindsets that distinguish the best leaders from the rest. They are confident that these mindsets will transcend time and remain true no matter the context. It’s not about being the best in all 6 things but being exceptional at balancing them all and integrating all the responsibilities simultaneously.
A key quote from one of the CEOs interviewed encapsulates this well by noting that being a CEO means “…spending time on things that no one else can in ways that magnify your effectiveness without getting mired in things that don’t make a difference.”
This book is very different from other books and studies because it is the first to go beyond describing what traits CEOs need, or what they do, to discovering what distinguishes the best from the rest. It also includes an excellent set of prioritization and assessment tools to help leaders in their development.
The book is excellent not only for existing leaders, but also for aspiring and future leaders so they can develop these skills in preparation for stepping up.
I highly recommend this as a resource for every leader.