The co-CEO’s of Research in Motion (makers of Blackberry) resigned this time last year, due to sliding market share (3/4 of value in 2 years). Investors were frustrated that the new CEO was not from the outside, but instead joined RIM in 2007. Yahoo’s once-new CEO, Scott Thompson, was their 5th leader in 5 years…
…and now Marissa Mayer from Google is #6.
CEO tenure decreased from an average of 8 years to 6 in the last decade (Booz & Co.).
Some of the causes include:
– Lack board alignment
– Ignore critical feedback and do not tolerate dissenting opinions
– Do not ask for feedback because they may appear weak
CEO’s receive too much credit for success, as well as too much blame for failure. Recent research indicates that a better CEO is more successful 60% of the time; not much better than 50/50 odds. I believe this indicates the need for talent throughout an organization’s hierarchy, as the quantity and quality of decisions in complex organizations are not all made at the top.
Does your organization value talent throughout?
