Social skills are particularly important in settings where productivity hinges on effective communication — and it often does in large, complex, and skill-intensive enterprises.
It’s no longer safe to assume that leaders with traditional managerial pedigrees will succeed in the C-suite. An analysis of executive-search data shows that companies today are prioritizing social skills above technical know-how, expertise in financial stewardship, and other qualifications.Large companies today have increasingly complex operations, heavier reliance on technology, more workforce diversity, and greater public accountability for their behavior.
First we defined a distinctive set of skill requirements that were relevant for chief executives. We started by combing through the U.S. Department of Labor’s O*NET database to see what skills were listed for “chief executive” roles.
Our analysis revealed that social skills are particularly important in settings where productivity hinges on effective communication, as it invariably does in the large, complex, and skill-intensive enterprises that employ executive search firms. In such organizations, CEOs and other senior leaders can’t limit themselves to performing routine operational tasks.
Social skills are particularly important in settings where productivity hinges on effective communication, as it invariably does in large, complex, and skill-intensive enterprises. That era is over. As companies move away from shareholder primacy and focus more broadly on stakeholder capitalism, CEOs and other senior leaders are expected to be public figures. They’re obliged not only to interact with an increasingly broad range of internal and external constituencies but to do so personally and transparently and accountably.
With this model, evaluating success and failure was reasonably straightforward. Processes ran smoothly or they didn’t; results were achieved or they weren’t. Social skills mattered, of course: As up-and-comers moved through functions and geographies, their ability to quickly form constructive relationships with colleagues, customers, regulators, and suppliers affected their performance. But such skills were considered something of a bonus.
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