"We need to have certainty so that we can plan," said Ellen Kullman, CEO, Dupont Co. Kullman made these remarks at a recent meeting of the National Association of Corporate Directors whose members are responsible for helping lead and plan for their respective companies' futures.
Now if you read this quote and say, "spot on; she's absolutely correct" then you probably don't want to go further than this line for fear of your hair catching on fire.
When was there absolute certainty, or more specifically, when was the last time certainty existed in the markets, business, life, etc.? Was it when everything was going great gangbusters back in the go go days of the 1990s? Was it perhaps earlier than that -- back in the Roaring Twenties before World War II?
While it's obvious Kullman was referring to the pending fiscal cliff issue and all of its potential realities, what's less obvious, or more subtle, is how much fear and uncertainty now inform leadership decisions, many of which could benefit from more vision, confidence and contrarian wisdom to sail against the headwinds of conventional thought.
Message to CEOs or other wannabes: If you're still griping about being over-regulated, over-taxed and otherwise victimized by the government at this time next year, then it will have long been time to remove the word "leadership" from your vocabulary.
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2 comments:
You said it all in the one word at the end of your letter - "LEADERSHIP"! Haven't seen any in at least 4 years, maybe longer. Feeding the squabbling of the masses you're supposed to lead is not productive LEADERSHIP!
CEOs are paid to manage risk--and to take some. The ones sitting on their hands shouldn't complain about competitiveness and lack of growth.
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