{"id":18473,"date":"2022-12-03T21:41:00","date_gmt":"2022-12-03T21:41:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/arielle.com.au\/?p=18473"},"modified":"2026-01-13T04:30:48","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T04:30:48","slug":"how-to-become-a-ceo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arielle.com.au\/how-to-become-a-ceo\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Become A CEO In Australia"},"content":{"rendered":"<span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 6<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutes<\/span><\/span>\n<p>The Internet is rife with clickbait content which reduces the journey towards the CEO title to a seemingly simple numbers game:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"arrow-wrapper\"><div class=\"arrow-list\"><ul><li>&#8220;<strong>3 things<\/strong> you need to do to become a CEO by age 30&#8243;<\/li><li>&#8220;<strong>5 things<\/strong> every woman must do to become CEO of a company&#8221;<\/li><li>&#8220;<strong>How to<\/strong> become a CEO in 12 steps (with pictures!)&#8221;<\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>And my recent favourite:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"arrow-wrapper\"><div class=\"arrow-list\"><ul><li>&#8220;<strong>The One trait <\/strong>shared by the greatest CEOs&#8221;.<\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Matt Given, CEO of Intelivideo,&nbsp;wrote the \u201cone trait\u201d piece for Inc.com.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>His one trait that all great CEOs share is &#8230; wait for it &#8230; OWNERSHIP. Um, yeah. I get its importance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>(Related: <a href=\"https:\/\/arielleexecutive.com\/ceo-resume\/\">How To Write A CEO Resume<\/a>).<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But reading his article represents three minutes of my life I\u2019ll never get back. Does he really think we\u2019re that gullible? Truly, if becoming the big boss&nbsp;were&nbsp;that easy, most of us would already be in the C-Suite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"indent-wrapper\"><div class=\"indented-text\"><span>Thus began my search for substance.<\/span><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/hbr.org\/2017\/05\/what-sets-successful-ceos-apart\">In a study the Harvard Business Review featured earlier this year,<\/a> the leadership consultancy ghSmart released results from their 10-year <a href=\"http:\/\/ceogenome.com\/\">CEO Genome Project<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They profiled over 2,000 Fortune 500 CEOs and their findings confirmed my suspicions&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The &#8220;One Size Fits All CEO&#8221; Is A Myth.<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Especially in today&#8217;s climate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The research team discovered that most corporate boards are still seeking\u2014and perpetuating\u2014an outdated stereotype:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"arrow-wrapper\"><div class=\"arrow-list\"><ul><li><strong>A six-foot-tall white male<\/strong> with a degree from a top university <em>(Note: according to the study, only 7% of the CEOs interviewed graduated from Ivy League schools)<\/em><\/li><li><strong>Said white male<\/strong> was born a strategic visionary<\/li><li><strong>His career path<\/strong> has been a meteoric rise to the top<\/li><li><strong>He has super-human<\/strong> decision-making abilities<\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>John Karagounis, owner of <i>The CEO Circle<\/i>\u2014Australia\u2019s leading exclusive peer group forum for business leaders\u2014<a href=\"https:\/\/www.johnkaragounis.com\/blog-1\/five-qualities-that-make-a-great-ceo\">offers a fresh perspective<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"indent-wrapper\"><div class=\"indented-text\"><span><i>\u201cGreat CEOs come in all shapes and sizes. From the flamboyant like Richard Branson through to the quietly spoken like Google&#8217;s Sundar Pichai. Some are extroverts, others introverts&#8230; Some excel at working on the granular details that keep an organisation running smoothly; while others do their best work from up on high, formulating strategy or dreaming big about brilliant products. Others still are just great all-rounders.\u201d<\/i><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Adam Bryant, who penned <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/10\/27\/business\/how-to-be-a-ceo.html\">the New York Time\u2019s column, <i>The Corner Office<\/i><\/a>, agrees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If it hadn\u2019t been for Bryant\u2019s breakthrough interview technique, he may not have reached the same conclusion as Karagounis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Had he spent the last decade asking 525 CEOs standard questions about expected business topics, we might be sharing different news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>(Related: <a href=\"https:\/\/arielle.com.au\/executive-resume-writer\/\">Australia&#8217;s Top-Rated Executive Resume Service<\/a>).<\/strong><span id=\"Stupid_AI\"><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thankfully, Bryant chose broader, more meaningful themes for his interviewees, such as how they lead, how they hire, and what their lives have been like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Bryant shares that\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"indent-wrapper\"><div class=\"indented-text\"><span><i>\u201cThe career trajectories of the CEOs I\u2019ve interviewed are so varied that spotting trends is difficult, and a surprising number of the executives do not fit the stereotype of the straight-A student and class president who seemed destined to run a big company someday.\u201d<\/i><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>However, in his vast experience, Bryant did observe three commonalities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:60px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>1. Boundless Curiosity.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The best CEOs question everything. They explore new paths, and want to know people\u2019s stories and what makes them tick.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They make the most of whatever path they\u2019re on, extracting valuable lessons from all their experiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:61px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>2. Discomfort = Comfort Zone.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>For great CEOs, discomfort is their comfort zone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2010\/10\/31\/business\/31corner.html\">Arkadi Kuhlmann<\/a>, a veteran&nbsp;banking chief, said that he likes to be close to whatever the hottest issue is: \u201cI just naturally gravitate to the fire. So I think that\u2019s a characteristic that you have, that\u2019s in your DNA.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:60px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>3. Ability To Be Present.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Successful CEOs got where they are, in part, by doing their current job well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Not that ambition is a hindrance, but the leaders Bryant has featured warn against putting too much energy into where you want to be versus where you are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>(Related:&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/arielleexecutive.com\/cfo-resume\/\">How To Write A CFO Resume<\/a>).<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:60px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Gender Bias: Fact Or Fiction?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Bryant confesses that, early on, he looked for differences in the way male and female CEOs lead their people. His final conclusion was that gender generalisations don\u2019t hold up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Again, the only generalisation that does is that every person is unique.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He did express that \u201cwomen face much stronger headwinds than men to get the top jobs. And many of those headwinds remain once they become CEOs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>His take on the matter?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Keep talking about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/07\/21\/sunday-review\/women-ceos-glass-ceiling.html\">why there are so few women in the top corporate spot<\/a>. But, as is consistent with his interview style, quit asking pat questions about stereotypical topics such as juggling family and work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Or, ask male CEOs the same question to level the playing field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:41px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Glass Ceiling vs Glass Cliff.<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Speaking of changing the conversation on how to become the big boss, earlier this month, <a href=\"https:\/\/hbr.org\/2017\/11\/we-interviewed-57-female-ceos-to-find-out-how-more-women-can-get-to-the-top\">HBR published another CEO study<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This time, about women in particular.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While the concept of a glass ceiling is quite familiar, this research called out the prevalence of a \u201cglass cliff\u201d phenomenon. <a href=\"http:\/\/amr.aom.org\/content\/32\/2\/549.abstract\">New research from the Academy of Management<\/a>&nbsp;reveals that women are more apt to be chosen for CEO roles when the stakes are highest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>(Think Marissa Mayer.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"arrow-wrapper\"><div class=\"arrow-list\"><ul><li><strong>The positive:<\/strong> Extreme turnaround situations are ideal scenarios for tenacity, problem-solving skills and the desire to make things better. The lessons learned can be career builders.<\/li><li><strong>The negative:<\/strong> The lessons learned can result in failure and a tarnished career. Which means the door revolves yet again in the C-Suite.<\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>But, like all other aspects of the CEO gene pool, failure is not a gender-specific trend.<span id=\"Why_CEOs_Fail\"><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why Some CEOs Fail.<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>David Reimer, CEO of C-Suite consulting firm Merryck &amp; Co., cites some noteworthy contributing factors. While we won\u2019t touch on all of them, a few stood out as trends to watch:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:60px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>1. Resting On Past Laurels.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>While Bryant credits successful CEOs with being present in their current roles during their ascent to the top, Reimer has observed that CEOs who fail tend to dwell in the comfort of what worked at their last company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:59px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>2. Hiding In The Echo Chamber.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Reimer advises CEOs to get out of their own head.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Rather than turning the corner office into an ivory tower, successful CEOs reach out to seek perspectives that differ from their own\u2014both inside and outside their company and industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:60px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>3. Overexposure.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The corner office is more transparent than ever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Examples: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/technology-26868536\">the resignation of Mozilla\u2019s CEO Brendan Eich<\/a> after being bashed for his support of \u201ctraditional marriage; and, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.engadget.com\/2017\/11\/29\/snapchat-ceo-blames-rival-social-networks-for-fake-news\/\">the apology from Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel<\/a> for accusing other social networks of spreading fake news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ten years ago, before social media, these public missteps would never have been, well, so public.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Today, according to Reimer, a CEO must assume the same lack of privacy that celebrities and pro athletes confront daily.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It bears pointing out that the two example CEOs are American.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let\u2019s look locally at the risk overexposure can pose to CEO longevity.<span id=\"Alex_Malley\"><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:38px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>CEO Tall Poppy Chopdown: Alex Malley.<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>First, an excerpt from Malley\u2019s job description according to afr.com:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"indent-wrapper\"><div class=\"indented-text\"><span><em>&#8220;The CPA Australia CEO is required to: ensure the vision and strategic goals of CPA Australia are achieved; be a key ambassador for the organisation globally; positively influence key external organisations; enhance CPA Australia&#8217;s position as a premier global brand; provide inspirational leadership to the executive team.&#8221;<\/em><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>So, for all intents and purposes, his CEO role seems to be focused on that of brand ambassadorship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Unusual in its exclusive focus? Yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Part of CPA Australia\u2019s key business strategy? Evidently. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.afr.com\/business\/accounting\/cpa-australia-spent-6m-on-former-ceo-alex-malleys-book-tv-show-20170914-gyh5t9\">It was confirmed by an independent review. <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Did he take it too far? Perhaps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s how his self-promotional marketing plan broke down:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"arrow-wrapper\"><div class=\"arrow-list\"><ul><li><strong>$4.2 million<\/strong> on <i>Conversations with Alex Malley<\/i> (includes the Neil Armstrong interview)<\/li><li><strong>$1.8 million<\/strong> on publishing and promoting The Naked CEO<\/li><li><strong>$1 million <\/strong>a year on LinkedIn (500,000 followers and counting) and other social media<\/li><li><strong>$1.25 million<\/strong> getting Malley and the CPA brand in front of Qantas passengers. <\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>While some are calling the financial figures shocking, the $8+ million price tag is modest when considering the average marketing budget for a financial firm <a href=\"http:\/\/deloitte.wsj.com\/cmo\/2017\/01\/24\/who-has-the-biggest-marketing-budgets\/\">is 8% of total revenue.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In CPA\u2019s case, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ibisworld.com.au\/australian-company-research-reports\/personal-services\/cpa-australia-ltd-company.html\">whose 2016 revenue was reported as $180,115,000<\/a>, an average total marketing budget would be around $14 million using the 8% rule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When, on June 23rd, Malley was forced out of his CEO role due to his exuberant pursuit of his brand-building charter, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.afr.com\/business\/accounting\/alex-malley-my-only-crime-is-that-i-took-a-public-profile-20170630-gx1vpp?login_token=x--Kc2yfooD1n_d5GafJb5ga-p3SvCeiMNGkktudwqxFbAGTHJ8Ku8evKB6sO3qbfvpl4hoXQ8ZrvwCcqQJISQ&amp;expiry=1512059982&amp;single_use_token=eB444ZvcwdsR7rATObLu1NJKdOvHrl-a2FIpDm0X1Y0qoPoypzQNrYR6aAZdvxB8g2zyW6s4oKE91-CimVIu1g\">his defence was<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"indent-wrapper\"><div class=\"indented-text\"><span><i>&#8220;My only crime is that I took a public profile on public interest issues on the way we ran the business. The board set the strategy, and I executed the strategy [&#8230;] At the end of the day, we&#8217;ve had a fantastic business, successful, and it just resembled a tall poppy <i>[&#8230;]<\/i> it was time to chop it off.\u201d<\/i><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Maybe you like Malley; maybe you don\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Maybe you think the Tall Poppy syndrome is valid; maybe you feel it\u2019s time for an evolution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Regardless, I want to take one last look at Alex through Jonathan Karagouis\u2019s lens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In his previously quoted blog, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.johnkaragounis.com\/blog-1\/five-qualities-that-make-a-great-ceo\">Five Qualities That Make a Great CEO<\/a>, a few have Malley written all over them. Here they are, abbreviated for relevance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Great CEOs:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"arrow-wrapper\"><div class=\"arrow-list\"><ul><li><strong>Understand<\/strong> their USP.\u00a0Great CEOs are keepers of the brand flame. They get what makes the organisation work and they understand its unique selling proposition. Above all else, <a href=\"https:\/\/arielle.com.au\/transformational-leadership\/\">great CEOs work to protect, cherish and enhance their company\u2019s brand and USP<\/a>.<\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s hard to deny that Malley achieved this one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"arrow-wrapper\"><div class=\"arrow-list\"><ul><li><strong>Communicate<\/strong> well and often.\u00a0Great CEOs understand the power of a quiet chat away from the crowd as well as the power of broadcasting to a wider audience. They use the right medium for the job, from face-to-face meetings through to social media to get their message across.<\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>While we could nitpick about his mediums (and lack of quiet chats), he did communicate often and was consistently on-message.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"arrow-wrapper\"><div class=\"arrow-list\"><ul><li><strong>Build<\/strong> strong stakeholder relations.\u00a0A company, an organisation, is a cooperative effort. It is the job of the CEO to rally a disparate group of people behind that vision. This takes political skill and requires the capacity to persuade and build consensus.<\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>On the relationship front, Malley was criticized for <a href=\"http:\/\/www.afr.com\/opinion\/columnists\/michael-stutchbury\/the-naked-ceo-alex-malley-never-had-any-clothes-20170625-gwy6en\">using his public persona to \u201cback scratch.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Was he really back-scratching, or was he bringing together other community leaders (such as the commissioner of taxation, the auditor-general and a renowned indigenous leader, to name a few) on behalf of his brand?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Is this perception just another manifestation of the Tall Poppy milieu? Tall Poppy or not, Malley\u2019s story is a cautionary tale for anyone aspiring to become the big boss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For all you CEO aspirants out there reading this now, take heed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite your talents, background, abilities and intentions, endless people and circumstances will conspire to bring you down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I suspect it\u2019s something you can\u2019t quite fathom until you live through it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:39px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Irene<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:27px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 6<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutes<\/span><\/span>What&#8217;s the fastest way to the C-Suite? There&#8217;s no shortage of leadership advice on the Internet, but does this advice help us achieve real results?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":102262,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,270],"tags":[32,36],"class_list":["post-18473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-career","category-career-development","tag-executive-education","tag-leadership-lessons"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How To Become A CEO In Australia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"What&#039;s the fastest way to the top job? 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