The great Aussie CEO recipe

MORE THAN 50 per cent of Australian CEOs have taken responsibility for significant training and development decisions, and as such, HR professionals must ensure development programs are hard-wired to the business strategy at the executive level.

The overarching people strategy also needs to have both team and individual development components, according to Mike O’Neill, CEO of The Executive Connection.

Speaking on the release of a report that identified characteristics of great Australian CEOS, O’Neill said such CEOs are “energy creators” and their organisational culture is innovative. “Leadership in this environment is often shared throughout the teams at all levels.”

The report found that one of the biggest workplace and leadership challenges for both HR professionals and CEOs is communication.

“One of the communication issues is that it is difficult to foster a cohesive team that embraces the same ambition and motivation because of the generational differences among employees,”O’Neill said.

“A great leader has strong interpersonal skills needed to build, motivate and sustain a high performing, goal achieving team. This means he or she will want to initiate and take part in this strategy for the personal development of the team.”

Successful leaders have successful companies that consistently achieve beyond objectives and expectations of the shareholders and the market, he added.

“Measuring success must be conducted beyond bland profits. Other success factors are the leader’s ability to grow the business, to retain and promote high performing teams, and to identify new opportunities.

“Success in growing the business is demonstrated by a few factors, starting with skill in developing a strategic plan and through to the development of a team that delivers on or above plan.”

Success in growing people is marked by a leader who develops the right corporate culture with a team that outperforms the opposition, he said.

“A company’s culture develops by design as an integral part of the strategic vision. If there is a positive culture and strong engagement, employee retention is high, again reflecting great leadership.”