A record number of CEOs left their roles last year, according to Russell Reynolds Global CEO Turnover report. This high turnover rate highlight how difficult it is to lead a company successfully in the current climate, as chief executives face increased pressure, scrutiny and a economic uncertainty.
But often, a sage piece of advice can help business leaders overcome difficult times and set them on the path to success. Here, CEOs from the likes of Deliveroo, Bupa and Axa share the best business advice they ever received.
To go all in. When it comes to entrepreneurship especially, you can’t hedge yourself. You have to dedicate yourself 100% to your one idea and be the person that cares about it the most. As part of that, you also have to step outside your comfort zone and take risks. You will learn from the successes and failures and hone your ability to improvise on the fly, which is one of the most important qualities for any entrepreneur.
No one has it figured out 100% of the time. We are all continuously learning and evolving, so it’s important not to be too hard on yourself if you don’t have all the answers.
Instead, focus on your progress by comparing where you are now with where you were last week or last year, rather than comparing yourself with others. This perspective helps maintain a positive outlook and encourages continuous personal and professional growth.
To choose your own battles. I think you have to know when to fight and when to walk away. You can’t face everything and you certainly can’t face everything alone. You have to be careful about how you expend your energy because if you run out of energy, that does not look good for your staff. So you need to be smart about which battles you choose. Of course, for the ones you choose to fight, you need to make sure you win them.
Another thing is to be happy in everything you do. If you’re not happy at work, you’re not going to be happy outside work and the other way around, too. You need to have a positive attitude and think about solutions, rather than just focusing on the problems you have.
Be yourself. If you’re an authentic CEO, you build more trust and have better relationships with your team. I show my strengths, challenges and emotions openly. I encourage everyone to be authentic at the company – it’s like a family.
Surround yourself with talent and keep finding people to bounce ideas off. I’m constantly talking to other entrepreneurs to understand how they’ve achieved things – whether it’s a new market we’re thinking of going into or a new technology we’re looking to develop.
The world of leadership can be lonely too, so you need thought partners, otherwise you can go a bit mad. I went to an event for entrepreneurs with my chief finance officer and most people I spoke to commented on their level of loneliness. You’ve got so many people relying on you as well, so it can be tough-going. Having people around who you can talk to is important.
You should always prioritise the things that you can do. As your business grows, the scope of your role changes. Either the business is bigger and you’re handling more complexity, or you hire somebody to delegate to, which leaves a gap in your role. Sometimes you’re left thinking: What should I be working on? What’s the most impactful thing that I could do as a leader of this business? There’s a myriad of things on the to-do list, so what do you start with?
I think about that piece of advice all the time when I’m trying to work out where to focus my time and energy. You can get pulled in all sorts of different directions, but there are certain things that, as the CEO, you’ll be able to do better than anyone else. That could be talking to the press and being the brand advocate. Or, in my case, product is where my heart is. I love that creative part of the business.
It’s actually advice I received from my brother. He’s in private equity and a very competent guy.
His advice is just to add value – that’s what we’re here to do. If you don’t add value, then there’s really no point. Why even organise as a company or as a team if you’re not adding value, adding components and making things better than before? So add value in whatever you’re doing. If a company is in an ecosystem, it better add value to that ecosystem. If you’re a member of a team, you’d better add value for the team to get better.
My first manager told me something very simple: “There is no bad employee, there is only bad employment of people.” The relationship between the employee and the line manager is crucial. I have seen many examples of people who are really underperforming but, after changing their environment, they become top performers.
Having the right people with the right mindset in the right environment is the key. It’s up to the manager to ensure that when they hire people, they don’t only focus on the experience and the capability of the individual, but also the connection they have with the person. It’s a big part of successful recruitment.
A record number of CEOs left their roles last year, according to Russell Reynolds Global CEO Turnover report. This high turnover rate highlight how difficult it is to lead a company successfully in the current climate, as chief executives face increased pressure, scrutiny and a economic uncertainty.
But often, a sage piece of advice can help business leaders overcome difficult times and set them on the path to success. Here, CEOs from the likes of Deliveroo, Bupa and Axa share the best business advice they ever received.
To go all in. When it comes to entrepreneurship especially, you can’t hedge yourself. You have to dedicate yourself 100% to your one idea and be the person that cares about it the most. As part of that, you also have to step outside your comfort zone and take risks. You will learn from the successes and failures and hone your ability to improvise on the fly, which is one of the most important qualities for any entrepreneur.
