CEO Bloggers' Club

Why CEOs fail

Some time ago I found an interresting book about the 11 reasons why a CEO fails. I didn't buy it (yet), but I got a glimpse about those 11 reasons. Here they are :

Arrogance— you think that you're right, and everyone else is wrong.
Melodrama— you need to be the center of attention.
Volatility— you're subject to mood swings.
Excessive Caution— you're afraid to make decisions.
Habitual Distrust— you focus on the negatives.
Aloofness — you're disengaged and disconnected.
Mischievousness— you believe that rules are made to be broken.
Eccentricity— you try to be different just for the sake of it.
Passive Resistance— what you say is not what you really believe.
Perfectionism— you get the little things right and the big things wrong.
Eagerness to Please— you try to win

I think there's a good point to think about ourselves, and for sure we could find a couple more! Personnaly, I would add :

"Cloudheadness : you think too much about the 5 years vision and forget about the fire you're sitting on".

What are your thoughts about that ?

Doing business differently ?

I think that the startup spirit is still alive.
The new economy wasn't just a dream.

I have the feeling that new leaders (and CEO) are doing business differently : they are more open to the world and more concerned by society.

Do you feel that you're doing business differently ?

VCs on the board

A comment from Laurent from the below post made me wonder on the following: how do you lose part of your freedom if you have VCs on your board? Of course I can imagine that there may be some certain situations, but IMO they rather represent exceptions. If one is going to look for fresh outside equity one will certainly have a business plan that should provide the grounds for the future business strategy and its execution. And this business plan will be commonly agreed upon with the newly added shareholder representative.

From my experience the VCs (should) play a dual role which is more important than just being a simple board member - advisor and door opener. I always prefer to partner with experienced people who understand my business fundamentals, share my vision and from whom I could leverage their experience. Moreover, they supposedly have a solid network my business can rely on when in need. I think that those two attributes are necessary ingredients besides the money they put in when investing in my company.

What do you think?

How Do You Decide What to Blog?

As CEO of your company, your words have great power to influence your key audiences: customers, partners, employees, investors, press, and so on. How do you choose what you blog? Do you have specific guidelines that you follow (e.g., what remains confidential?) or do you just use common sense? Do you seek advice from your lawyer? Your PR person?

As for me, I follow whatever NDAs I have signed for my clients, and, generally, I don't discuss my client work in too much detail until something is made public. I have been known to rant against journalists and analysts when I am frustrated, but I try to make my arguments logical, even when I am angry. I don't badmouth people. If I make a mistake, I admit it, and if someone convinces me my argument is wrong I usually will acknowledge that as well. I use my own common sense as to what I post, and if I feel that something might be controversial, I do talk to my business partner about it.

I hope you will share what you do in the comments so that others can learn from this discussion.