Elon Musk does not place any of the parts in his Tesla cars. Lisa Su (CEO of AMD) does not do any engineering of computer chips, and Chris Kempczinski (CEO of McDonald’s) does not grill any hamburgers. These Chairs or CEOs and so many others that run companies do not do any of the actual work on the products their companies make. What they do is lead the companies with a vision that sets a standard that must be followed… at all times.
These three are representations of the many Chairs of the Boards or CEOs that set the standards of quality, care, and excellence customers expect when they buy the products those companies provide.
You can also look at an annual report of any major company, and you’ll find a Chairperson of the Board and a CEO (not always different people in those roles) that establish the principles of excellence that must always be followed. Reporting to the CEO is a multitude of C Suite officers who likewise have cadres of people reporting to them, and so forth, down to the production floor and beyond to the procurement, shipping, sales, customer service, administrative and maintenance personnel. A line can be drawn from the CEO all the way down to the people performing the lowest level of services needed by the organization. And if any one of them does not perform in the excellent manner the person at the top prescribes, then the organization would not provide its products or services in the excellent way that would be necessary to sustain it on a long-term basis.
This is a daunting task for the Chairperson or CEO, and it starts and ends with that person. That person has many responsibilities, and each is important, and perhaps they are all equally important. If the CEO has some responsibilities that are of lesser importance than the others, then might I suggest they are not using their time and position properly and that they should re-look at how they spend their time.
I do not know what Elon’s management style is, but I do know that Tesla makes extremely high-quality, innovative products, and people buy those cars with the understanding that Mr. Musk would not permit a car to leave a factory that was less than a 100% quality product. That is leadership.
Leaders set the quality standards and then make sure they are followed and not deviated from for any reason, exigency, or situation. And when they are followed by the person the farthest distance from the CEO, then that CEO is doing their job the right way.
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