The values that make for an effective corporate leader are changing, according to a Wolff Olins Leadership Report, which means the ideal CEO candidate is changing as well. The modern executive search must reflect the growing importance of culture in the workplace. If your proposed leader can't fit in with — and ultimately have a big part in shaping — your ideal culture, he or she may not be right for the role.
The report draws from 43 CEOs at companies of different sizes around the world, as well as leadership experts and employees. Out of all the CEO respondents, 81 percent said a shared social purpose is important, while 86 percent prefer to launch new ideas through small teams instead of an overall consensus.
The authors say that this is because the basic role of the CEO is different: Instead of a leader focused on "command and control," the new millennium has seen a rise in CEOs who empower their employees to make decisions themselves. When it comes to placing a new executive, culture is now more important than ever. As the report puts it, a CEO is expected to be the "Chief Designer of Company Culture."
"CEOs don't think of their business as a cold mechanism," the report reads . "Rather, system design becomes important – and the system must have warmth. Building a culture starts with hiring the right people and CEOs, particularly in younger companies, are devoting more of their time to this."
Understanding the existing culture of a company, as well as any changes that need to be made, is necessary for a global executive search to go smoothly. YES Partners takes this into consideration, and consults with you throughout the process to ensure that every candidate is right for your unique culture.
Finding people is easy, but finding the RIGHT people is not. YES Partners helps companies FIND the right people – for all company functions, across many industries and globally.
