Chief executive officer
In the nonprofit and government sector, CEOs typically aim at achieving outcomes related to the organization's mission, usually provided by legislation.
Typically, responsibilities include being an active decision-maker on business strategy and other key policy issues, as well as leader, manager, and executor roles.
As an executive officer of the company, the CEO reports the status of the business to the board of directors, motivates employees, and drives change within the organization.
The public relations-focused position of chief reputation officer is sometimes included as one such subordinate executive officer, but, as suggested by Anthony Johndrow, CEO of Reputation Economy Advisors, it can also be seen as "simply another way to add emphasis to the role of a modern-day CEO – where they are both the external face of, and the driving force behind, an organization culture".
Business journalists have often adopted this approach, which assumes that the corporate achievements, especially in the arena of manufacturing, are produced by uniquely talented individuals, especially the "heroic CEO".
Guthey et al. argues that "...these individuals are not self-made, but rather are created by a process of widespread media exposure to the point that their actions, personalities, and even private lives function symbolically to represent significant dynamics and tensions prevalent in the contemporary business atmosphere".
[16] Research published in 2009 by Ulrike Malmendier and Geoffrey Tate indicates that "firms with award-winning CEOs subsequently underperform, in terms both of stock and of operating performance".
[17] Executive compensation has been a source of criticism following a dramatic rise in pay relative to the average worker's wage.
[28] In 2023 Rockefeller Foundation awarded a grant to Korn Ferry to research strategies and then action a plan to help more women to become CEO's.
[29] There are contentious claims that a significant number of CEO's have psychopathic tendencies, often characterized by power-seeking behavior and dominance.
Tara Swart, a neuroscientist at MIT Sloan School of Management, has suggested that individuals with psychopathic traits thrive in chaotic environments and are aware that others do not.
However, Scott Lilienfeld has argued that the attention given to psychopathy in the workplace by both the media and scholars has far exceeded the available scientific evidence.
Emilia Bunea, writing in Psychology Today, has linked psychopathic traits in managers to workplace bullying, employee dissatisfaction, and turnover intentions.
Despite this, Bunea cautions that excessive worry about supposed psychopathic managers could discourage individuals from pursuing careers in corporations and deter employees from addressing issues with difficult bosses.
