Today’s CEOs are contending with a raft of complexities—inflation, supply chain, geopolitics, and more. But the best CEOs apply timeless messages and take timeless actions, despite the circumstances. That’s one of the key learnings of CEO Excellence, the New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-selling book that reveals the characteristics of the world’s most successful leaders.
“Great CEOs were bold 20 years ago, they are today, and they will be 20 years from now,” says McKinsey’s Vik Malhotra, who coauthored the book with Carolyn Dewar and Scott Keller. “When it comes to aligning the organization, they treat the soft stuff as the hard stuff. They did that 20 years ago. They do it today. They’ll do it 20 years from now.”
To commemorate the two-year anniversary of CEO Excellence, McKinsey Global Publishing leader Raju Narisetti sat down with Dewar, Keller, and Malhotra to revisit the book-writing journey and reflect on its global impact. Check out all three parts of the conversation below to learn what distinguishes the best leaders from the rest—in times of stability and in times of uncertainty. Then dive into more insights on how top-performing CEOs create distinctive value for their organizations in every stage of their career, and learn what’s top of mind for executives in today’s tough operating environment.
CEO EXCELLENCE REVISITED
The CEO’s secret to successful leadership
Impacting audiences across the globe
THE CEO JOURNEY
Stepping up: Becoming a high-potential CEO candidate
Starting strong: Making your CEO transition a catalyst for renewal
Staying ahead: How the best CEOs continually improve performance
Sending it forward: Successfully transitioning out of the CEO role
CEO PRIORITIES
CEO priorities: Where to focus as the year unfolds