When we say CEO, we simply mean the head of the organization. Titles vary widely. In some organizations the role is called president, owner, founder, executive director, or general manager. The title is not what matters. What matters is the work. Whoever holds ultimate accountability for the performance of the enterprise faces the same challenges and carries the same responsibilities described in this article.
The question every CEO eventually asks:
“What exactly should I be doing to ensure long-term success?”
With so many demands on a CEO’s time, it’s easy to get pulled into the urgent at the expense of the important. Boards expect results. Employees expect clarity. Customers expect value. And in the middle of all of it, the CEO has to keep the entire system aligned and performing.
The challenge is not effort. Most CEOs are working hard. The challenge is focus.
The most effective CEOs concentrate their attention on six key functions that directly shape the health and performance of the organization.
These functions, drawn from The Effective CEO, form the ultimate checklist for balancing structure, people, and outcomes.
- Managerial Leadership
The first and most foundational function is managerial leadership.
This is not charisma, inspiration, or motivational style. It is the discipline of management applied through leadership.
Effective managerial leadership ensures that managers at all levels:
- set clear expectations
- provide context
- delegate appropriately
- coach and support their teams
- and give meaningful feedback
When this system is strong, work flows smoothly. When it is weak, the CEO will feel it everywhere in the organization.
Managerial leadership is the spine of performance. Without it, even the best structure collapses under operational strain.
- Ensure Work Is Appropriately Delegated Down the Organization
Delegation is more than passing work along. It is the CEO’s tool for distributing accountability to the correct level of the organization.
As organizations grow, complexity increases. Work must be performed at the level appropriate to its time horizon and strategic significance. When CEOs or executives work “too low,” two things happen:
- They suffocate their teams.
- And they starve their organization of strategic leadership.
Appropriate delegation ensures that each layer of management handles the complexity it is designed for. It frees the CEO to focus on long-term direction, not short-term tasks.
Clear delegation is the bridge between strategy and action. Without it, execution becomes a patchwork of good intentions.
- Ensure Work Flows Smoothly Across the Organization
The CEO must also ensure effective cross-functional work flow.
Most organizational failures do not happen within functions. They happen between them.
Sales hands off to operations. Operations hands off to finance. Finance hands off to support teams. If accountability and authority are unclear across these boundaries, the organization experiences:
- bottlenecks
- rework
- frustration
- and delays
Cross-functional accountability defines the “rules of the road” for how work moves horizontally through the structure.
When these rules are clear, people collaborate naturally. When they are missing, performance stalls and silos harden.
A CEO who ensures smooth cross-functional flow removes friction from the system—often unlocking enormous latent capacity.
- Implement the Right Organization Design
Organization design sounds conceptual, but it is one of the most practical tasks a CEO undertakes.
Your strategy determines the complexity of work your organization must handle. Your structure must match that complexity.
This includes:
- defining the number of layers
- matching layers to time spans
- ensuring clarity of accountability
- designing functions that reflect real work, not historical artifacts
When design is aligned, people work at the right level. Decision-making becomes clear.
When design is misaligned—even slightly—execution becomes heavy, slow, and confusing.
Organization design is not an HR function. It is a CEO function. Only the CEO sees the full system well enough to design it for long-term performance.
- Establish an Effective Talent Management System
People drive performance, but only if the system around them supports their growth and deployment.
A CEO’s responsibility is to build a scientific talent management system, not one based on instincts or personality preferences.
This includes:
- assessing problem-solving capability
- ensuring true fit to role
- identifying future potential
- planning succession
- developing managers
- and reinforcing a culture of accountability
Without this system, even great people will fail when placed in roles that exceed their capability, or when asked to work in poorly structured environments.
Talent management is the core of organizational resilience. It ensures the trunk of the organizational tree stays strong as the crown grows.
- Establish and Manage Appropriate Support Systems
Support systems exist to make managerial work easier—not harder.
HR, finance, IT, procurement, and other corporate support functions must serve two purposes simultaneously:
- enable the CEO to maintain corporate control
- enable managers to perform their work effectively
This dual purpose is often where organizations struggle. Support systems become compliance-driven instead of performance-driven.
When this happens, they create friction instead of value.
The CEO must ensure that support systems:
- are designed for the size and complexity of the organization
- provide timely and practical support to managers
- and reinforce, rather than undermine, accountability and authority
When support systems work well, managers can focus on leading their teams—not fighting their tools or their processes.
Bringing the Six Functions Together
These six functions are connected.
Strong organization design enables effective delegation.
Clear accountability enables cross-functional flow.
Effective managerial leadership enables execution.
And a robust talent management system ensures the right people are in the right roles to make it all work.
CEOs who master these six functions build organizations that are aligned, resilient, and capable of sustained performance.
This is the work only a CEO can do.
Learn More
This article draws on The Effective CEO: The Balancing Act that Drives Sustainable Performance.
Get your copy on Amazon to explore these six functions and the full framework behind them.
