Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/62198
want to see it on the front page of The Wall Street Journal, don't do it." If you follow that rule, you're fine. From all your interviews with top executives, how would you describe the "perfect CEO"? What traits and skills should such a person have? A good CEO is someone who's hands-on, who's involved with employees. That means watching the product to such an extent that he'll call or send a note to an employee to comment on a job. He doesn't always have to say, "You're the greatest." He could say, "You know, I noticed that piece, and I thought it was really good, but at the same time I would have liked to see this." Sometimes employees don't necessarily do what the boss expects—they do what the boss inspects. When they know a boss is really watching, they work a little harder. The employees take that extra step, because they know they're getting noticed. Even in a large organiza- tion, if the top guy of the parent company can treat you in a way that makes you feel loved, you'll work as hard as you can for that company. Another mark of a good CEO is someone who encour- ages camaraderie in the office among employees. A good CEO also encourages risk taking, which is an expensive exer- cise. It's not easy for corporations to allow employees to try something and then say, "OK, forget it" when that project fails. It doesn't matter whether your company makes widgets or cars. Whenever you start working on a project, whether it be a new marketing campaign or a new product, it takes a lot of money, and it takes a lot of humans investing their time. If it doesn't work, you've wasted time and money. But if you're working in an organization that encourages taking a little risk, you probably will have more successes. The other thing that's very important in the workplace is Welch beautifully. He's very involved, and he's a straight talker. He told me the other day, "I don't expect this econ- omy to come back for the next 12 to 18 months." I'm impressed by straight talk like that. Richard Grasso is a great leader, I think. He handled September 11 at the New York Stock Exchange incredibly well. He organized everyone and stayed calm in a time that was riddled with panic. I recently spent some time with Steve Reinemund, the CEO of PepsiCo, and I found him delightful. It seems to me that he has his hand in every part of the operation. He also is down-to-earth, so that people feel comfortable talking with him. It seems as if he operates in an environment where people are free to speak up. Barry Diller, the new head of Vivendi Universal Entertain - ment, is a proven manager—every company he has run has done very well. He's very focused on work, but also he's easy to talk to. He doesn't talk over your head. He tries to create an environment where people can share ideas and take risks. Finally, it's been a rocky year for the stock market. What are the best lessons that investors can take from today's stock market fluctuations? What lessons did you learn? The No. 1 lesson I came away with was that things don't go well forever. Into everyone's life a little adversity is thrown, but I think that it only makes you stronger. You can't feel as though the world is coming to an end. I'm a realist. If the situation that I'm facing is bad in any way, I say to myself, "OK, here's what I have. What do I do about it now? How can I make the best of this?" Now is also a good time to do some soul-searching, and for employees to feel as if they can disagree with the boss. A CEO needs to create an environment where employees are not afraid to say, "That doesn't look right. I don't like that. That's not the way I see it." Even if it's a subject that's real- ly, really important to the boss and he has a strong opinion on it, he has to cultivate an environment where people are not afraid to speak up. That's how he can figure out if some- thing's wrong. Look at the whistle-blowers at Enron. If only they hadn't been afraid to point out problems earlier, the company could have saved a lot of employees and a lot of 401(k) money. Which CEOs have impressed you the most and why? This is biased on my part, but I absolutely love my boss, Jeffrey Immelt. He has handled GE's transition from Jack that's true for the media, the executive community, and the analyst community. In this tough time, we all have to say to ourselves, "What can I leave here with? How can I do better next time?" I also learned that if something doesn't seem to make sense, it probably doesn't. Companies that aren't generating any revenue shouldn't be valued highly even if they're get- ting millions of hits on their Web sites. But when you're in the forest, sometimes it's hard to see the trees in front of you, and I think that was the case for many of us. The other thing I learned is, it's not so bad to come down a few notches. To keep your feet on the ground and just remember who you are, what you're trying to accomplish. Get your goals in place, and don't get caught up in the hype. I think this is a good thing that's happening. It's only going to be cleansing. It's only going to take out the excess. ■ z BizEd JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2003 21