Strategic roles for model leaders

Abstract

Purpose

Define the unique aspects of the roles that the leaders have played in the most successful organizations.

Design/methodology/approach

In‐depth interviews with CEOs and their top officers in companies whose stocks had greatly and repeatedly outperformed competitors and other companies in North America during the prior three years while that CEO held the job over the period from 1989‐2001.

Findings

CEOs directed their companies to repeatedly improve their business models on a three‐four year frequency and set a good example of encouraging new business models.

Research limitations/implications

Future research should continue this methodology to update what best practices are and expand the universe to include more companies that are based outside of North America.

Practical implications

CEOs need to shift their focus from increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of their existing business models to supplementing and replacing those models on a frequent basis.

Originality/value

Identifies a major new source of strategic leadership value added in the CEO’s attention to creating processes and encouraging efforts for business model innovation. This information will be helpful to those who are CEOs, aspire to be CEOs, and recruit CEOs and the company directors who select and evaluate CEOs.

Citation

Mitchell, D.W. (2006), "Strategic roles for model leaders", Handbook of Business Strategy, Vol. 7 No. 1, pp. 243-247. https://doi.org/10.1108/10775730610618891