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Business Briefing: The Ways Chief Executive Officers Lead

Picture of Jim Krider By   ·  2 minute read

Keywords: CEO, Leadership, Executive Management, Management Styles, Corporate Governance
Source: Harvard Business Review
Link: Read the full article on HBR.org
Authors: Charles M. Farkas and Suzy Wetlaufer
Published: May 1996
Est. Read Time (Original): ~80 minutes

A Note on Access: To read the full article, a Harvard Business Review subscription is required. We believe an HBR subscription is an invaluable asset. We particularly recommend utilizing the downloadable PDF version of their articles—they are a fantastic, high-value resource for sharing and discussion within your team.

The Core Idea

Based on interviews with 160 CEOs, Farkas and Wetlaufer discovered that despite the complexity of the role, effective chief executives do not lead in random ways. Instead, their actions and priorities consistently align with one of five distinct leadership approaches. Each approach is defined by a singular focus that the CEO believes is the best way to add value:

  • the Strategy Approach (focus on long-term vision and market positioning),
  • the Human-Assets Approach (focus on shaping culture and talent),
  • the Expertise Approach (focus on cultivating a unique competitive capability),
  • the Box Approach (focus on creating tight controls and systems),
  • and the Change Approach (focus on creating constant reinvention).

Why It Matters for Business Today

This framework demystifies the CEO's role and provides a powerful diagnostic tool for leaders at all levels. It moves the conversation about leadership from vague personality traits to a concrete discussion of focus and priorities.

  • Leadership is a Choice, Not Just a Personality: The article's most powerful insight is that the best leaders don't just act on their natural inclinations. They consciously adopt the leadership approach that best fits the needs of their business and the current market environment. This reframes leadership as a deliberate, strategic choice.

  • A Taxonomy for Understanding Your Boss (and Yourself): The five approaches provide a clear language for understanding how a leader operates. By identifying whether your CEO (or your own manager) is a "Box" leader or a "Human-Assets" leader, you can better understand their priorities, predict their actions, and align your own work accordingly.

  • A Diagnostic Tool for Organizational Needs: Is your industry undergoing rapid technological change? An "Expertise" or "Change" approach might be necessary. Are you in a highly regulated or mature industry where consistency is paramount? A "Box" approach could be the most effective. The framework helps leaders ask: "What does my organization need from me right now?"

The Strategic Question for Leaders

The authors argue that effective CEOs consciously adopt a single, dominant leadership approach that best suits their company's situation.

Reflecting on your own role and organization, which of the five approaches, Strategy, Human-Assets, Expertise, Box, or Change, best describes your current leadership focus, and is it the right one for the challenges your business faces today?

Share your perspective in the comments below.

Remember, by sharing your insights, you contribute to a unique "Enriched Briefing." {Jim Krider} will follow up to provide you with a powerful "Business Cold Start" document, combining our analysis with expert perspectives to equip your internal AI models with a more nuanced understanding of this topic.