I think treating "execs" as a category upon which judgment can be passed is a mistake. Every company has different standards. Execs as a general population are

I think treating "execs" as a category upon which judgment can be passed is a mistake. Every company has different standards. Execs as a general population aren't genius or clueless. You have to get specific about the sub-group. For example, execs at Amazon are likely to be significantly above average in competence. Execs at a 6 month old startup might be anywhere across the spectrum, hard to know.