The New Breed of CEO

The New Breed of CEO

 

By Karen Lowry Miller¹ /

Originally appeared as In the Quiet Crow,

Newsweek Special Edition, Winter 2004

©2005 Newsweek, Inc. All rights reserved.

Reprinted by permission.

 

Keeping a low profile: The age of the supercelebrity CEO is coming to a close, replaced by a new generation who stay out of the news

 

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As 2005 got off to a rocky beginning, one wondered if the lessons of Enron, WorldCom and Tyco had registered where it counted. American corporate² scandals kept popping up with amazing regularity³, while European executives resisted reforms to corporate governance.

 

Corporate scandals surrounding supercelebrity CEOs changed the way business is done. The days when a company’s board assumed that the CEO’s big name justified⁴ the means of doing business are gone, too.

 

A new style of leader

 

Now a new kind of leader is emerging. Old-fashioned traits like integrity and character are trumping⁵ a knack⁶ for cutting corners. Bill George, retired⁷ CEO of Medtronic, calls it “authentic⁸ leadership,” or a quiet kind of charisma⁹ that puts a sense of values and purpose ahead of backslapping and magazine covers. The new breed of CEO, says corporate-governance expert Charles Elson, “is a CEO whom you don’t know about.”

 

So just who are our humble¹⁰ heroes? Many have been right under our noses all the time. Reuben Mark, sometimes known as the anonymous¹¹ CEO, has delivered excellent growth and returns at Colgate-Palmolive for two decades. He also enhanced his reputation for honesty when he resigned from the Citigroup board to protest its obscure succession process. Other CEOs point to Daniel Vasella, the doctor who runs Novartis with an eye on the needs of patients. Many in the financial-services industry appreciate the calm competence¹² of Wells Fargo CEO Dick Kovacevich.

 

The risk of defining a new breed is that boards will simply trade one character type for another. “It maintains the mythology¹³ that a company does well or poorly because of the CEO only,” warns Rakesh Khurana of Harvard Business School. After distilling¹⁵ a number of management studies, Khurana concluded that the CEO has only a “small, contingent¹⁶ or tenuous¹⁷ impact” on financial results.

Vocabulary Focus

register (v) [5redVistE] to make an impression; to become or cause to become aware of something

count (v) [kaunt] to have value or importance; to matter

under one’s nose (idiom) something that happens very close to one without one noticing it

distill¹⁴ (v) [di5stil] to reduce something to its most important parts

contingent (adj) [kEn5tindVEnt] depending on or influenced by something else; conditional¹⁸

 

Specialized¹⁹ Terms

low profile (n) 低调；低姿态 the behavior or lifestyle of acting²⁰ so as to avoid attracting attention to oneself

governance (n) 领导驾驭；管理 the act of ruling or leading; the system, manner or process of government

board (n) 董事会 the group of people who are responsible for controlling and organizing a company or organization

[the end] justifies²¹ the means (idiom) 为达目的不择手段 the final goal is so important that any way of achieving it is acceptable

backslap (v) 热情地表达欢欣；热情地赞美 to show an enthusiastic expression of happiness and positive feelings, usually congratulations or praise

新型执行官

吴四明 译

 

维持低调：超级名人执行官时代已近尾声，取而代之的是致力于避免曝光的新时代。

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2005年举步维艰地开始时，人们不禁怀疑安然、世界通讯及泰科等弊案所带来的教训是否真的已深植人心。美国企业丑闻以令人惊讶的规律性不断爆发，而欧洲的高级主管则抗拒公司治理的改革做法。

围绕着超级名人执行官的企业丑闻改变了企业经营方式。过去董事会认定只要执行官拥有高知名度，就可以不择手段经营企业的那种时代也结束了。

 

新型领导者

现在，一类新型的领导者正逐渐抬头。正直及品德等传统的特质，正胜过投机取巧的本领。已退休的美敦力前执行官比尔·乔治称之为“真诚领导”，就是一种低调的领袖气质，它看重价值观与目的，多过看重对于成就的热情赞美及登上杂志封面的荣耀。公司领导统御专家查尔斯·艾尔森指出，新类型的执行官“是你不熟悉的那种执行官。”   

那么，到底这些谦卑的英雄是谁呢？很多人一直近在我们眼前，但我们却视而不见。鲁宾马克有时被称为无名执行官，20年来一直使高露洁—棕榄公司保持高度的成长及获利。他曾因程序不透明抗议继任而自花旗集团的董事会中辞去职务，诚实的声誉因此获得更高的肯定。其它执行官也称赞诺华公司的丹尼尔•华塞拉医生，他经营诺华公司是以关注患者的需求为出发点。许多金融服务业人士则推崇富国银行执行官迪克·科华塞维奇的沉稳干练。   

为新类型执行官下定义的风险在于董事会只会用某种性格类型取代另一种性格类型。哈佛商学院的拉凯许·库拉纳警告：“这种情况仍未打破一家公司的营运优劣完全取决于执行官的神话。”库拉纳从数个管理研究个案中萃取精华后得到的结论是，执行官对公司的财务状况只有“微小、有条件或薄弱的影响力。”

1 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。

2 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

3 regularity   

n.规律性，规则性；匀称，整齐

参考例句：

• The idea is to maintain the regularity of the heartbeat.问题就是要维持心跳的规律性。
• He exercised with a regularity that amazed us.他锻炼的规律程度令我们非常惊讶。

4 justified   

a.正当的，有理的

参考例句：

• She felt fully justified in asking for her money back. 她认为有充分的理由要求退款。
• The prisoner has certainly justified his claims by his actions. 那个囚犯确实已用自己的行动表明他的要求是正当的。

5 trumping   

v.（牌戏）出王牌赢（一牌或一墩）( trump的现在分词 )；吹号公告，吹号庆祝；吹喇叭；捏造

参考例句：

• Reality has a way of trumping art, and human-climate change is very real indeed. 现实总有它的王牌艺术，受人类影响的气候变化的确成了事实。 来自互联网
• This quirky aversion may be a case of psychological security trumping physical comfort. 这种奇怪现象可能是缘于一个心理上的安全感战胜生理上的舒适感的例子。 来自互联网

6 knack   

n.诀窍，做事情的灵巧的，便利的方法

参考例句：

• He has a knack of teaching arithmetic.他教算术有诀窍。
• Making omelettes isn't difficult,but there's a knack to it.做煎蛋饼并不难，但有窍门。

7 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

8 authentic   

a.真的，真正的；可靠的，可信的，有根据的

参考例句：

• This is an authentic news report. We can depend on it. 这是篇可靠的新闻报道, 我们相信它。
• Autumn is also the authentic season of renewal. 秋天才是真正的除旧布新的季节。

9 charisma   

n.(大众爱戴的)领袖气质，魅力

参考例句：

• He has enormous charisma. He is a giant of a man.他有超凡的个人魅力，是个伟人。
• I don't have the charisma to pull a crowd this size.我没有那么大的魅力，能吸引这么多人。

10 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

11 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

12 competence   

n.能力，胜任，称职

参考例句：

• This mess is a poor reflection on his competence.这种混乱情况说明他难当此任。
• These are matters within the competence of the court.这些是法院权限以内的事。

13 mythology   

n.神话，神话学，神话集

参考例句：

• In Greek mythology,Zeus was the ruler of Gods and men.在希腊神话中，宙斯是众神和人类的统治者。
• He is the hero of Greek mythology.他是希腊民间传说中的英雄。

14 distill   

vt.蒸馏，用蒸馏法提取，吸取，提炼

参考例句：

• This standard set determine the method of petroleum products distill.本标准规定了测定石油产品蒸馏的方法。
• Distill the crucial points of the book.从书中提炼出关键的几点。

15 distilling   

n.蒸馏（作用）v.蒸馏( distil的过去式和过去分词 )( distilled的过去分词 )；从…提取精华

参考例句：

• Water can be made pure by distilling it. 水经蒸馏可变得纯净。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• More ammonium sulphate solution is being recovered in the process of distilling oil shale. 在提炼油页岩的过程中回收的硫酸铵液比过去多了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 contingent   

adj.视条件而定的；n.一组，代表团，分遣队

参考例句：

• The contingent marched in the direction of the Western Hills.队伍朝西山的方向前进。
• Whether or not we arrive on time is contingent on the weather.我们是否按时到达要视天气情况而定。

17 tenuous   

adj.细薄的，稀薄的，空洞的

参考例句：

• He has a rather tenuous grasp of reality.他对现实认识很肤浅。
• The air ten miles above the earth is very tenuous.距离地面十公里的空气十分稀薄。

18 conditional   

adj.条件的，带有条件的

参考例句：

• My agreement is conditional on your help.你肯帮助我才同意。
• There are two forms of most-favored-nation treatment:conditional and unconditional.最惠国待遇有两种形式:有条件的和无条件的。

19 specialized   

adj.专门的，专业化的

参考例句：

• There are many specialized agencies in the United Nations.联合国有许多专门机构。
• These tools are very specialized.这些是专用工具。

20 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

21 justifies   

证明…有理( justify的第三人称单数 )； 为…辩护； 对…作出解释； 为…辩解（或辩护）

参考例句：

• Their frequency of use both justifies and requires the memorization. 频繁的使用需要记忆，也促进了记忆。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• In my judgement the present end justifies the means. 照我的意见，只要目的正当，手段是可以不计较的。