From navigating complex regulatory landscapes to managing internal politics and keeping ahead of the curve in a fast-paced, hyper-competitive market, the life of a modern-day business leader is challenging to say the least.
While much of this work goes on “behind the scenes”, there are a lot of moving parts that a CEO must carefully balance in order to achieve success. Thanks to technological advancement, the business landscape we once knew has evolved to become a global, interconnected environment; a whole new ball-game that demands digitally fluent leaders capable of adapting quickly in unchartered territory.
If they are to take the business to dizzy new heights, the Chief Executive must combine agility with innovative thinking – of course, that’s easier said than done. In their journey towards commercial success, CEOs will be met with a number of challenges along the way:
Securing the right mix of talent
Every CEO knows that employees are the backbone of a company, but not all CEOs boast a robust talent strategy. It may be easy enough to get people through the door, but recruitment is no numbers game. Identifying, attracting, engaging and securing high quality candidates who will not only meet the skills requirements but add something special to the company culture is a time-heavy task that is daunting to most business leaders.
For organizations with limited resources, the challenge of building diverse teams that boast drive, passion and talent is even greater. With time already stretched thin, the pressure starts to mount, and leaders can find themselves opting for the easiest solution: settling for second best or someone “like them.” However, considering the importance of fostering a diverse and inclusive culture, taking a shortcut is often to the detriment of company growth. Ultimately, the decision as to whether to outsource part of the process to a specialist agency is one that falls to a CEO, but even this option requires input.
In order for leaders to source and secure the most suitable candidates, they must ensure company values and objectives are clearly defined. Only then can an external recruiter get to work in finding candidates who fit the bill.
Communicating a vision
As the team begins to grow, leaders face the challenge of ensuring everyone is on the same page. Unfortunately, this isn’t as simple as sending out an email with a list of objectives or holding a one-off company-wide meeting to discuss the strategy. Instead, CEOs must find a way to simplify the long-term vision into shared goals that employees can work towards.
Effective, forward-thinking leaders shouldn’t have to remind employees of their objectives: staff should come to work every day with a vision for the future as well as an understanding of the short-term milestones that need to be reached in order to get there. If every single person in the company can say what the company strategy is and clearly state the immediate and ongoing actions they are taking to achieve this common goal, the CEO has done a good job.
Managing scalability
Even the most successful start-ups need a scalable strategy to ensure momentum is not lost and growth continues at a steady pace. If a company is not able to scale upwards, they are perpetually stuck in start-up phase: before long, motivation will die a sad and slow death in the workforce and long-term objectives will seem like a distant, unattainable dream.
In order to keep up with shifting customer demands, the Chief Executive must work with other members of the C-suite to determine the components necessary in ensuring scalability. Naturally, talent acquisition will play a pivotal role in this, but there’s no use adding more people if the organizational structure itself needs reworking. Beyond people management, CEOs must consider whether the technological infrastructure will suffice moving forward, and which tools or systems will need to be replaced in order to achieve growth. That leaves a lot for the CEO to think about.
Nevertheless, recent research from PwC has shown CEOs remain relatively optimistic amidst this growing list of challenges. According to the 2018 report, 53% of CEOs described themselves as ‘very confident’ in regard to their growth prospects over the next 12 months: that’s an increase of 14% since last year. In fact, the last time North American CEOs were this positive was the year before the global financial crisis.
Whilst maintaining a competitive edge in a buoyant market will always pose a challenge, those who begin with the right foundations will be better equipped to build their vision and achieve success.