Leadership
Tough Love in the Boardroomby Precis S. on Wednesday, December 07, 2011 4:20:08 PM MST
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In order to avoid another Enron, WorldCom, or Tyco meltdown, company directors should assume a bold and independent role in the boardroom, monitoring the actions and day-to-day operations of the CEO. This dramatic shift creates a new dynamic, one that requires careful negotiation from both parties to get the job done. This is the advice of William M. Klepper, a professor at Columbia Business School.
Klepper's latest book is "The CEO's Boss: Tough Love in the Boardroom." The book discusses giving directors, executives, investors, and stakeholders the tools to make their complicated relationships work. Klepper describes the best techniques for building a productive partnership and establishing a plan of action for a variety of businesses and settings.
He details the eight practices of successful executives, such as facilitating innovation, motivating change, and developing leadership skills, and he explains what directors need to evaluate, such as working style, social behavior, and the handling of stress, before they commit to hiring a CEO.
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Klepper says the most critical element is the social contract, in which directors and their CEOs agree to be transparent, continually reassess their company's risk, maintain core company values, and make a commitment to their stakeholders. These include employees, shareholders, customers, and the community. In this essential volume, Klepper encourages directors to embrace their independence, and he teaches executives to value tough love.
You can read chapter 2: Tough Love in the Boardroom here or learn more about the book here.
William Klepper is a member of the Columbia Business School faculty within the Management Division. He teaches the Executive MBA course on Executive Leadership and is a regular guest professor in the MBA course on High Performance Leadership. He has found SOCIAL STYLE an important element of effective leadership. Visit his LinkedIn Profile.
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