The Case for Creatives in the C-Suite

I am an accidental CEO. I spent 30 years as a reporter, writer, and editor before I stepped into corporate leadership. While I’d managed people and budgets for more than half my career, I always thought of myself as more “right brain” than “left brain,” more expressive than analytical. To be sure, there are quite a few journalists who’ve become CEOs, including my predecessor Eric Schurenberg,?Fortune’s Alan Murray, and?The Atlantic’s Nicholas Thompson. And it is typical for design firms and marketing agencies to be led by creatives.

?But Brian Chesky—a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design—is the rare?artiste?atop a publicly held company. And Chesky is unabashed in his embrace of creativity. In fact,?he told an audience?at the Fast Company Innovation Festival last year that Airbnb had grown too sprawling and conventional. Chesky redesigned Airbnb into a leaner, stronger, and more focused version of itself ahead of its December 2020 IPO. He says that once Airbnb became an “entirely creatively led company,” remarkable things began to happen. The company went from “breakeven to $3 billion of free cash flow,” Chesky said during his talk.

ELEVATING CREATIVE LEADERS

I asked Jana Rich, founder and CEO of executive recruiting firm Rich Talent Group, when she thought corporate America might start opening its doors to other creatives at the highest levels. “I think you’re probably at least a year or two out before this becomes more of a true movement,” she says, adding that the prospect of an economic slowdown would likely dampen any enthusiasm for unusual hiring.

That’s a shame because, as Chesky notes, companies can benefit from creativity in uncertain times. “Do you ever have those bad tradeoffs where there’s no good solution? That’s when creativity is really helpful,” he says.

A MODERN APPROACH TO LEADERSHIP?

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Modern reading, listening, viewing on creativity??

Airbnb’s Brian Chesky explains how he nurtures his curiosity and creativity.?Listen here

Can creativity be taught? Yep, researchers tell?Inc.?Read more

Meet dozens of corporate types using creativity to help their companies.?Read more?

Pixar’s Ed Catmull shares his leadership lessons. An oldie but a goodie.?

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Strategy—yes, strategy—needs creativity.?Read more??

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