The talented men and women who become the heads of organizations have much in common, says Dr. Thomas Saporito, senior vice president of RHR International, the company that pioneered the field of corporate psychology. They are dedicated, hard-working, intelligent and motivated. Those adjectives describe the heads of the smallest start-up companies as well as the chief executive officers of the largest multi-national conglomerates.
Bosses are likely to be tough-minded and unafraid to go against the grain when they believe they are right. However, Saporito points out, no boss comes to the job fully prepared for the numerous challenges it will entail.
"No one accepting the chief executive officer position for the first time is really ready for it," he says. "It is unlike anything they have ever experienced. As hard as they worked to get there, as ready as they think they may be, they have inevitably underestimated the scope of challenges.
"Their natural reaction when they begin to recognize that fact is to intensify the actions that had always made them successful," Saporito continues. "The predictable result is surprise and discouragement when things do not work. They must recognize that it usually requires a change in the nature of their actions to be successful at the CEO level."
This executive had all the right qualities, Saporito says. He was thorough, tough-minded and diligent. He knew the company inside and out, having taken on increasingly responsible positions since joining the organization shortly after completing graduate school 15 years earlier. He was a fast-tracker--the proverbial "golden boy."
His boss, the CEO, had announced plans to retire, and there wasn't much doubt among the corporate staff who would be tapped as successor if the board decided to choose from within. When the company announced his selection to succeed the retiring CEO, analysts voiced their approval and the business press praised the selection.
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