TULSA, OK--(Marketwire - Oct 3, 2012) - In today's climate of mergers and acquisitions, changing markets, and outsourcing, the role of the CEO has evolved into a highly recognizable -- and oftentimes, controversial -- figure responsible for influencing how people understand the business. Technology CEOs such as Marissa Mayer, Larry Page, and Tim Cook have become household names, highlighting the prevalence and significance of the position even in the mainstream media. Still, despite countless studies about leadership, research about the personality attributes of the CEO begs the question -- what makes a chief executive?
Hogan Assessment Systems' latest new white paper, "CEOs Aren't Like Us," written in conjunction with New Zealand consultancy Winsborough Limited, offers valuable insight into the ambitions, attitudes, and common traits of chief executives, providing a framework for identifying potential candidates. Using Hogan's assessments, this report studied the normal personality, values, and dark-side personality, or derailers, of a pool of chief executive applicants. The results indicated that chief executive-types tend to be incredibly similar to one another but substantially different from the rest of the workforce.
Early in their professional careers, aspiring CEOs Jack Welch and Steve Jobs would have seemed far from executive material, yet both managed to leave an indelible mark on their respective companies. Welch offered GE the ambitious brain of an engineer while Jobs brought his technical ability and unparalleled creativity. For many companies, the challenge in developing a high level of executive success comes from the combination of recognizing the necessary hard skills and identifying candidate characteristics that fit industry- or company- specific needs.
"CEOs Aren't Like Us" describes three CEO sub-tribe personality patterns referred to as The Alphas, The Brains, and The Pragmatics. Each sub-tribe has its own habits and quirks that distinguish it from the other two; however in this research, all three groups fall prey to the same derailers: mischievous and colorful. Taking CEO research even further, this white paper references studies about past chief executive failures and offers aspiring CEOs several suggestions to help them maximize their business acumen and leadership prowess.
"The CEO is the backbone of the organization," said Dave Winsborough, partner at Winsborough Limited. "But obviously, not everyone can, or even wants, to be a CEO. By understanding the types of personalities that gravitate towards chief executive positions, companies can build stronger teams and plan for succession."
"CEOs Aren't Like Us" is now available for complimentary download at: http://www.hoganassessments.com/sites/default/files/CEOs_Arent_Like_Us_R3.pdf
About Hogan Assessment Systems
With more than 30 years of experience, Hogan is the global leader in providing comprehensive, research-based personality assessment and consulting. Grounded in decades of science, Hogan helps businesses dramatically reduce turnover and increase productivity by hiring the right people, developing key talent, and evaluating leadership potential.