C EO O F THE YE AR
‘WHY
IS SUPER IMPORTANT’
IT’S PERHAPS NOT SURPRISING THAT trust emerged as a running theme when AlixPartners’ Ted Bililies and Chief Executive editor Dan Bigman talked leadership with a brain trust of America’s most prominent CEOs at the tail end of a tumultuous year. Trust is what gives team members the confidence to persevere in the face of adversity. And it’s trust that powers forging forward with a plan of action when the road ahead is far from clear. As Marillyn Hewson, former CEO of Lockheed Martin and 2018 CEO of the Year, put it, “As a CEO, you’ve got to outline for your team what the mission is, what the purpose is and where you’re taking the organization. And that starts with them trusting that you’ve got a value system that aligns with their values, that you understand the business and know where to take it. Then they’re willing to follow you through the ups and downs.”
What does it take to be an effective leader? Four CEO of the Year award winners talk shop. Some takeaways.
Share the ‘Why’
Having led through crises like 9/11 and the financial downturn, these leaders know well the importance of shoring up trust during a crisis through candid communications. For Arne Sorenson, 2019 CEO of the Year and the CEO of Marriott, that meant speaking to employees in a poignant video outlining the decimating impact of the shutdown on his company. The idea initially raised questions internally out of concern that Sorenson’s hair loss due to undergoing cancer treatments could be discouraging for employees, he recounted. “I said, ‘We’ve got to be transparent with folks, and that means I need to deliver the bad news and do that hopefully in a way that is personal, that is honest and with some sense of hope,’” he said. “Faced
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with that kind of crisis, you turn to the only thing you can: the importance of communication and transparency.” Heightened during times of stress, the need for clear communication around the ‘what,’ the ‘why’ and the ‘how’ is always critical. “This year, a sense of urgency was created for us, but usually we’re creating it,” pointed out Michael Dell, 2006 CEO of the Year and CEO of Dell Technologies, who urged leaders to bring employees along on the thought process when driving transformation. “In our company, we say, ‘Change or die.’ When you’re driving change, don’t make it a choice—and ‘why’ is super important. You’ve got to explain in detail why it really matters. Be transparent, tell them what you know, tell them what you don’t know, be visible, empathize and understand the challenges.” Listen and Learn
Being a strong leader also demands a keen ear, attuned to murmurs in the ranks and able to coax out and parse information from all quarters. “You’ve got to be a sponge,” said Brian Moynihan, 2020 CEO of the Year and CEO of Bank of America. “Start with the experts who work for you directly but also listen to the people out there actually doing the work and, particularly in a crisis, help them get the information, process it and make sure they’re capable of doing what they do.” Customers, employees, investors, peers in other industries and community stakeholders all represent rich resources strong leaders mine for clues on where the business is—or should be—headed and how to get it there. “The ability to listen is one of the most critical skills a CEO should have,” said Hewson. “As a new CEO, I took that on right off the bat, meeting with customers to ask how we were doing and what we could do
