The CEO's Right Hand Partner

The CEO and a Chief of Staff (CoS) have a unique relationship that is essential to the success of any organization.??The Chief of Staff is the CEO's right-hand person, responsible for a wide range of tasks that allow the CEO to focus on the big picture.??This can include anything from providing strategic advice and support to ensuring the implementation of plans.

A successful CEO-CoS relationship is built on trust, communication, and collaboration.??The Chief of Staff must be someone who the CEO can trust implicitly to handle sensitive information and make decisions on their behalf.??They must also be able to communicate effectively with the CEO, both in terms of understanding their needs and providing clear and concise feedback.??Finally, the Chief of Staff must be a collaborator who is willing to work with the CEO and other members of the executive team to achieve common goals.

When these elements are in place, the CEO-CoS relationship can be a powerful force for good. The Chief of Staff can help the CEO to be more efficient and effective, freeing them up to focus on the most important strategic initiatives.??When these two individuals work together effectively, they can achieve great things.

The Chief of Staff needs to be motivated and driven, resilient in the pursuit of results, and passionate about delivering the mission of the organisation successfully.??The key differentiating qualities of an effective Chief of Staff are:?

• Strategic execution, particularly focussed on how different functions and teams can work together to achieve goals.
• People skills are a “given” as is the need to effective at communicating with all levels of the business, not just the Boardroom.
• Problem solvers who can create solutions when operating under pressure with a lack of resources and time.
• Parallel processing of multiple activities and tasks and staying on track.
• Systems thinkers who can adapt to change and are usually the first ready to experiment.

5 tips for a successful CEO-CoS relationship:

1. Hire the right person.?The Chief of Staff is a critical member of the executive team, so it is important to hire someone who is qualified and experienced.??Look for someone who has a strong track record of success in a fast-paced environment.
2. Set clear expectations.?The CEO and Chief of Staff need to have a clear understanding of each other's roles and responsibilities. The Chief of Staff should know what the CEO expects of them in terms of tasks, deadlines, and outcomes.
3. Communicate regularly.?The CEO and Chief of Staff need to communicate regularly to stay on the same page. This can be done through regular scheduled conversations.
4. Trust each other.?The CEO and Chief of Staff need to trust each other implicitly.??This means being able to share confidential information and relying on each other to make sound decisions.
5. Be flexible.?Things will inevitably change, so the CEO and Chief of Staff need to be willing to adapt.??This means being open to new ideas and being willing to change course when necessary.

Successful ‘scale ups’ require vision and execution, but it is rare to find both qualities in one person.??Indeed, surveys suggest that only 8% of people can bridge both talents.??Vision is nothing more than a dream without an integrator who can execute the plan, and there’s nothing to execute if there’s no vision in the first place.??

Great things in business are never done by one person, they’re done by a team of people.

#leadership #management #entrepreneur #growth

About the Author

Les is a coach, consultant, and facilitator who works with growth-oriented MDs and CEOs of businesses in “scale-up”.?He is also a director of 20-20 Management which is a performance improvement company that specialises in leadership development and growth.?

Les has a proven track record of helping clients deliver successful results by addressing vision and strategy, organisation structure, culture, and performance, and managing change to create more accountable, affordable, and agile businesses.

Contact Les to share an experience, thought, or idea or if you have questions about how to improve leadership and business performance.