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  • 2010
  • Chapter
  • Handbook of Leadership Theory and Practice

What Is Leadership: The CEO's Role in Large, Complex Organizations

By: Michael E. Porter and Nitin Nohria
  • Format:Print
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Abstract

What is the role of the CEO in a large, complex enterprise? What makes a CEO effective? At first blush, these questions seem easy to answer. A CEO is the epitome of leadership. He or she exercises ultimate power and is responsible for making the most critical choices facing an organization. However, these questions get far more complicated as one contemplates the realities of large organizations. Actually, the CEO cannot make most decisions, or even review them. The CEO is powerful, but multiple constituencies can exercise power as well, starting with the board. The shortening CEO tenure reveals that many leaders misunderstand the role and how to play it effectively.

Keywords

Decision Making; Leadership; Managerial Roles; Power and Influence

Citation

Porter, Michael E., and Nitin Nohria. "What Is Leadership: The CEO's Role in Large, Complex Organizations." Chap. 16 in Handbook of Leadership Theory and Practice, edited by Nitin Nohria and Rakesh Khurana. Harvard Business Press, 2010.

About The Authors

Michael E. Porter

Strategy
→More Publications

Nitin Nohria

Organizational Behavior
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  • India’s Quest for Sustainable Growth in a New Global Reality:: The Need for a Region- and Sector-Driven Approach By: Christian H.M. Ketels and Michael E. Porter
  • Competitiveness Roadmap for India@100 By: Michael E. Porter and Christian H.M. Ketels
  • As the World Shifts, So Should Leaders By: Nitin Nohria
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