Choosing top leaders: Learning to do better

Abstract

Abstract The CEO was frustrated. He had just fired Bill, the vice president of manufacturing and engineering. It had only been eighteen months since he appointed this promising executive to the position, but it had proven to be a mistake, one the company could ill afford to repeat. The frustration was not only because of the failed decision; it was also because he couldn't determine exactly what had gone wrong. Was Bill simply the wrong person for the job? It was clear he lacked business maturity and made several major decisions that went sour. He didn't. provide leadership and direction for the engineering staff. But there were other factors as well. The job had changed. Bill was the first one to attempt the dual job of vice president of manufacturing and engineering. He was fine in manufacturing; the problems were in engineering. There was no denying that this had been a difficult year for the corporation, with unusual performance pressures. Perhaps the CEO expected too much. It was time to make the next selection decision. What should he do? The CEO opted to split the job once again rather than take any further risk with the leadership of these key functions.