The problem with being a CEO of a small to medium size company is that you’re usually not a full time CEO. Too often you’re wearing a sales hat when courting a major customer, dealing with the bank or other major matter. Larger companies can delegate these roles more effectively. The key point is that everyone else in the company has a manager to organize their work and make them more efficient and effective.
Who manages the CEO?
The role originated in the military and President Harry Truman appointed the first civilian chief of state to the president in 1946. Every president since has availed themselves of this important role. Award winning Vistage Speaker USAF Colonel Robert “Cujo” Teschner, a former fighter pilot and founder of the VMAX Group knows firsthand about the role of Chief of Staff having served in that capacity while still in the Air Force. “Every business is doing battle…. our battle space is in the business battle space, a rapidly changing, chaotic, uncertain, complex, ambiguous environment,” Teschner says. “A good Chief of Staff is going to help us navigate that battle space and make sure that the entire team is equipped, confident, ready and willing to take action to bring the Commander’s vision to life.”
An executive summary of the Chief of Staff role in a business environment is offered on the Vistage public site: “Elevating your Leadership: Why every CEO needs a Chief of Staff: “The exact responsibilities of Chiefs of Staff vary from business to business, but what is consistent about the role is that it is a senior-level confidant of the CEO. This person can be charged with everything from being a sounding board for the CEO and overseeing confidential projects to collaborating with other executives and representing the CEO at a board meeting. Many times, the responsibilities can include all those items, plus dozens more.”
If POTUS has a Chief of Staff, why not you?
Peter Drucker once remarked that in every organization “The bottleneck is always at the top of the bottle.” Maybe acquiring your own Chief of Staff will allow you to be a bit less of a bottleneck.
