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Well, regardless of the industry. Most people would consider the tasks of: -leading a company -dealing with finances -constantly making important decisions

by gitgud 8y ago

Well, regardless of the industry. Most people would consider the tasks of: -leading a company -dealing with finances -constantly making important decisions As a hard job.

CaptainZapp 8y ago
I hope that any company worth its salt has a CFO to deal with finances. Not that the CEO should be completely out of the loop (she has to sign off, after all). But if a CEO is dealing with nitty, gritty details if finances there's a severe delegation issue at best and a detail obsessed control-freak at worst.
- gitgud 8y ago
  True, I was mainly referring to making decisions with company money, like how much to invest in resources and development. Not managing the accounting details.
- sonnyblarney 8y ago
  No, there are many cases where the CEO will be involved in financial issues, especially where it will affect the company as a whole. A European company with major cash holdings may want to diversify currency, but that could be seen as speculative. The working capital requirements and details of the revolving loans they have from the bank. The list goes on.
TheOtherHobbes 8y ago
A stable company with good people will run itself. There may be execution issues, but the good people should be able to handle those. The value-adds from a good CEO are outstanding strategy, positive corporate brand creation, and investor/shareholder relationship management. The first two aren't hard in the bureaucratic sense, but in the creative sense. A lot of CEOs are terrible at them - see the long list of companies run into the ground by very poor decisions. The last one is helped a lot by having the correct class background. It's nightmarishly hard for outsiders, and can be anywhere from not hard at all to equally nightmarish for insiders.
gaius 8y ago
constantly making important decisions This does not explain how CEOs such as Fiorina and Elop can inject themselves into established companies, run them into the ground, and still walk away with lavish rewards. They are in a completely different category than ordinary Workers.
coldtea 8y ago
Hard to get right is different than hard to do (physiologically, in the way it affects the mind and the body). And even hard to get right matters little if you have a golden parachute (as many CEOs do). You can drive a company (or an entire sector) to the ground and still get your nice bonus.

by gitgud 8y ago

Well, regardless of the industry. Most people would consider the tasks of: -leading a company -dealing with finances -constantly making important decisions As a hard job.

CaptainZapp 8y ago

I hope that any company worth its salt has a CFO to deal with finances. Not that the CEO should be completely out of the loop (she has to sign off, after all). But if a CEO is dealing with nitty, gritty details if finances there's a severe delegation issue at best and a detail obsessed control-freak at worst.

gitgud 8y ago
True, I was mainly referring to making decisions with company money, like how much to invest in resources and development. Not managing the accounting details.
sonnyblarney 8y ago
No, there are many cases where the CEO will be involved in financial issues, especially where it will affect the company as a whole. A European company with major cash holdings may want to diversify currency, but that could be seen as speculative. The working capital requirements and details of the revolving loans they have from the bank. The list goes on.

TheOtherHobbes 8y ago

A stable company with good people will run itself. There may be execution issues, but the good people should be able to handle those. The value-adds from a good CEO are outstanding strategy, positive corporate brand creation, and investor/shareholder relationship management. The first two aren't hard in the bureaucratic sense, but in the creative sense. A lot of CEOs are terrible at them - see the long list of companies run into the ground by very poor decisions. The last one is helped a lot by having the correct class background. It's nightmarishly hard for outsiders, and can be anywhere from not hard at all to equally nightmarish for insiders.

gaius 8y ago

constantly making important decisions This does not explain how CEOs such as Fiorina and Elop can inject themselves into established companies, run them into the ground, and still walk away with lavish rewards. They are in a completely different category than ordinary Workers.

coldtea 8y ago

Hard to get right is different than hard to do (physiologically, in the way it affects the mind and the body). And even hard to get right matters little if you have a golden parachute (as many CEOs do). You can drive a company (or an entire sector) to the ground and still get your nice bonus.