“The best CEOs I know are teachers,
and at the core of what they teach is strategy.” ― Michael Porter
There are some CEOs who are passionate
about building next generation of leaders. They walked their talk and shared
their knowledge through teaching and training programs to their employees. The
list of such CEOs includes Jack Welch of General Electric, Roger A. Enrico and
Indra Nooyi of PepsiCo. Roger Enrico became a leadership educator after leaving
as CEO. It is obvious that leaders build leaders, not followers. Similarly, there are some military officers
who became successful CEOs. It shows the significance of military training to
become successful leaders and CEOs.
When CEOs are directly involved in
training and grooming their employees as leaders, the employees become more
engaged and loyal to their organizations. It also conveys a strong message to
the senior management that the organization is committed to developing its
employees as leaders. The brand image of the company goes north direction.
Hence, CEOs must involve in leadership development training programs directly
as it indicates company’s commitment to learning and development. Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric
(GE) walked his talk. He had a vision and was passionate about sharing his
knowledge and building leaders. Hence, CEOs must demonstrate their vision, passion
and commitment to leadership development training programs.
Advantages
of Leadership Development Training Programs
There are several advantages
associated with leadership development training programs. They update the
knowledge, skills and abilities of employees. They enhance employees’ performance
and productivity to achieve organizational excellence and effectiveness. They
improve the image and brand of the organizations. They keep the leadership
pipeline ready to enable the second rung of leaders to be ready to take over
senior leadership positions in case of any eventuality.
CEOs
with Military Background
When you observe CEOs such as Alex
Gorsky of Johnson & Johnson; Robert A. McDonald of Proctor and Gamble; Robert Myers of
Casey’s General Store; James A. Skinner of Walgreens; Herb Vest of H.D. Vest;
Richard Kinder of Kinder Morgan; Ken Hicks of FootLocker; Sumner Redstone of
Viacom; Daniel Akerson of General Motors; Clayton M. Jones of Rockwell
Collins; Tom Dent of Lumetra; Lowell
McAdam of Verizon; James Mulva of
ConocoPhillips; Robert J. Stevens of Lockheed Martin; Frederick W. Smith of
FedEx, it is obvious that they all came from military background.
Does
Military Training Make Better Leaders?
The military training equips soldiers
with several qualities such as leadership, emotional intelligence, team
building, communication skills, confidence, adaptability and fraternity. Since
the soldiers work on under grueling conditions, they excel as strong leaders. In
fact, testing times make them as tough leaders. They are filled with energy and
enthusiasm with a heart to serve others. They are strategic thinkers,
trustworthy, risk takers, learn lessons from failures, and motivate others
where there is no light at the end of the tunnel. They are highly focused
hitting the bull’s eye. However, military leaders must develop flexibility to
adjust with civilians. They are straightforward and often lack tact and
diplomacy.
Although we cannot conclude that the
CEOs with military background alone will succeed, the fact is that the military
background is definitely an asset. Hence,
success rate of leaders and CEOs with military background is higher basically
because they build trust in others and stick to their commitments. Additionally,
their confidence and communication help them stand out from others.
Dr. Irwin Mark Jacobs, founding
chairman and CEO emeritus for Qualcomm once remarked, “A great leader must lead
by example, not by fiat. He or she must set an example of integrity, of
openness to new ideas, of understanding details as well as the larger picture,
of communicating well, and of not shooting the messenger when a problem arises
but helping find a solution.” Most of the military leaders possess these
qualities thus becoming successful leaders and CEOs.
“Where visionaries can be good at
persuasion, CEOs are good at wielding authority. Visionaries transcend
organizations, resources, and current realities, while CEOs master them.” ― Bob
Metcalfe
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Professor M.S.Rao, India
Founder of MSR
Leadership Consultants India
Recipient
of 10th International Prestigious Sardar Patel Award―2015
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