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Editor's note: John Maxwell will deliver the keynote address at the September 11th edition of our popular CEO Masterclass series, kicking off an exciting new year of sessions and speakers. Get involved > As global tensions rise and the post-pandemic world continues to grapple with unprecedented challenges, cultural divisions, and one of the toughest and most unpredictable presidential election cycles of our lifetimes, CEOs' role as stewards of society has never been more important. In this environment, best-selling author and leadership expert John Maxwell argues that walking the high path in leadership is not just an option, it's a necessity.…
“It's budgeting season and we have to figure out how to achieve our priorities with 30 percent less resources.” This is a story I recently heard from a C-level executive. She leads a globally significant business function at a complex $1.5 billion company. Upon further investigation, she discovered that the cost-cutting mandate was not due to poor performance; in fact, performance was strong. And her department's work is viewed as critical to the organization's success in managing expected growth. Unfortunately, this executive's situation is not uncommon. As the traditional “budget season” begins, CEOs and CFOs may want to consider the…
With Labor Day fast approaching and the holidays coming to an end, CFOs have a month to hit their third-quarter numbers while they adjust fourth-quarter forecasts and lay the groundwork for 2025 budgets (the latter involving adjustments to assumptions about the macroeconomy, political turmoil and capital markets). The reality is that finance professionals are under constant pressure. Even in the heat of summer, they are constantly aware of their enormous responsibilities. But as the saying goes, it's lonely at the top. A CFO's work and projects are not only impactful, but also usually highly confidential. As a result, today's CFOs…
Manufacturing stands at a pivotal point. Despite the groundswell of public awareness around AI, many manufacturers—who represent a substantial portion of global GDP—have been slow to transition from analog to digital operations, even though the overwhelming majority have long known they need to do so. This hesitancy now threatens their very existence. As innovators and disruptors leverage AI to optimize every aspect of manufacturing, from suppliers to end consumers, those who fail to transform risk becoming obsolete, potentially at a pace far faster than they anticipate. The opportunity is immense. Manufacturing collectively represents three-quarters of the global GDP, or $75…
How often do organizations go through the formal step of defining a corporate values statement and then let it remain just another item to check off a list? When organizational values like integrity, respect, collaboration, and trust don't actually reflect what people experience at work every day, organizational culture suffers. Leaders lose credibility when they only pay lip service to the values. A deteriorated culture can have disastrous consequences, and there have been major tragic events over the years that have been rightly attributed to organizational culture, such as the Space Shuttle Columbia tragedy, the BP Deepwater Horizon explosion, the…
Recent EY and Oxford University research suggests that 85 percent of senior leaders have been involved in two or more significant transformations in the last five years alone. Approximately two-thirds said they had experienced at least one turbulent transformation during this time. That’s a remarkable number. And it takes on an entirely new meaning in today’s incredibly fast-paced market. The EY 2021 Global Board Risk Survey shows that 82 percent of board members and CEO’s say market disruptions have become more frequent and impactful, and companies have begun to transform more frequently to keep pace. Organizations are failing to deliver successful transformations…
The hottest job in 2024 is undoubtedly Chief AI Officer (CAIO). From technology companies to healthcare providers to universities, organizations are hiring CAIOs in droves. In March, the White House spurred a wave of government hiring by announcing that federal agencies must appoint Chief AI Officers “to ensure accountability, leadership, and oversight” of the technology. Given the rapid rise of AI, this trend is not surprising. Indeed, it reflects a widespread instinct and reaction across organizations of all kinds, despite the potential limitations that AI can have on efficiency and competitiveness. When faced with a promising emerging field like AI,…
While joining a startup in an industry undergoing transformation is exciting, which is one of the reasons why long-time CFOs from larger companies are attracted to such companies, the chance to build a finance organization from the ground up is also a strong draw. Auto industry veteran Todd Pepmeyer is one of the chief financial officers making the leap in the current business cycle. In March 2023, Pepmeyer joined Indianapolis-based Alive AI, which automates last-mile delivery of consumer and business packages. The company calls part of its service “Mailbox-as-a-Service.” Pepmeyer, who worked in finance at Ford Motor Company and then…
“Strategic pivots” are all the rage—and a necessity for more CEOs. But how you get to the point of launching a major change in strategy, and how you execute it, can be just as important as the pivot you make. Think about transformation decisions CEOs are making all over the place these days. They’re reacting to technology disruptions, drastic market shifts, restive customers, the accelerating swirls of domestic politics and global events—and more. These things can produce highly consequential new challenges or breathtaking new opportunities, and leaders must lean into both. “Thirty percent of any given sector is in transformation…
Just months after persuading shareholders and Tesla's board of directors to reinstate an unprecedented $44.9 billion compensation package that had been rejected by a Delaware court, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is defying conventional wisdom again by persuading the company's shareholders to ask Tesla's board to invest $5 billion in his AI startup, xAI. If he succeeds in persuading Tesla's board to invest in his startup, will it encourage other CEOs and directors to “invest” in their own private ventures? Such transactions have generally been viewed as conflicts of interest. Musk reportedly asked users on his social media platform X whether…